'Wheel of Fortune' Player Misses $1 Million After Losing Easy Bonus Round

Wheel of Fortunate is not for the faint of heart—as evidenced by a contestant named Vivian's devastating mistake during an "easy" Bonus Round puzzle.

On Monday, Sept. 16, Vivian won the popular game show co-hosted by Ryan Seacrest and Vanna White. However, as shown in a clip shared on Wheel of Fortune's on its social media accounts, she narrowly missed out on taking home $1 million.

Vivian landed on $1 million during a regular-round puzzle—meaning $1 million was added as a potential prize for her Bonus Round puzzle.

For the Bonus Round, she chose several letters correctly in addition to the default "RSTLNE." (She also had a Wild Card that allowed her to guess an extra letter.)

The board read: "_ _ _ERING  S _ ME  HELP."

Vivian incorrectly guessed, "ordering some help," "answering some help" and "finding some help," as the 10-second clock ticked down.

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When she ran out of time, the correct answer was displayed: "OFFERING SOME HELP." That's when Seacrest made the heartbreaking revelation.

"And Vivian..." Seacrest said solemnly before showing her the $1 million card and then turning to show the audience.

Meanwhile, Vivian stood speechless for an extended period with her mouth agape in disbelief.

"You were so close to that million dollars. You almost had it," Seacrest sympathized. "Are you all right?"

"I'm OK," she reassured him while still processing what happened.

On Instagram, one viewer reacted to the devastating miss, writing,  "I felt so awful for Vivian😢."

Another Instagram user lamented, "It’s a heartbreaking loss for one million dollars," while someone else exclaimed, "Nooooooooooooooooooooo!" before adding, "Vivian you were fantastic! Keep your head up and don’t drop this 👑."

Meanwhile, one X (formerly Twitter) user wrote, "That poor woman on Wheel of Fortune was so so close to winning a million dollars omfg."

A more critical viewer shared via X, "AIN'T NO WAY SHE MISSED THAT EASY PUZZLE! Plus the prize was 1 MILLION DOLLARS!!! WHAT!!!!!"

Another X user exclaimed, "Omgggg Viviaannnnnnn!" while sharing a GIF of Dan Levy's character, David Rose, from Schitt's Creek.

Yet another viewer shared via X, "That ending of Wheel of Fortune though. I’d never be able to function again after that. Also, someone needs to coach @RyanSeacrest on how to deliver bad news. #WheelOfFortune."

Although she didn't win the $1 million, the good news is Vivian didn't walk away empty-handed; she still went home with $27,300 and a trip to Europe.

Next: Fans 'Screaming' After Ryan Seacrest Surprises ‘Wheel of Fortune’ Contestant With 'Epic' Prize