ECONOMY & WORK
MONEY 101
NEWS
PERSONAL FINANCE
NET WORTH
About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Terms of Use DMCA Opt-out of personalized ads
© Copyright 2023 Market Realist. Market Realist is a registered trademark. All Rights Reserved. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.
MARKETREALIST.COM / NEWS

Melissa Joan Hart wins $1 million on 'Celebrity Wheel of Fortune' — and then donates it all away

She became the fourth player in the show's history to win so much in the Bonus Round.
PUBLISHED MAR 13, 2025
Screenshot showing Hart and Sajak's reaction after winning $1 million on The Wheel of Fortune (Cover image source: YouTube | The Wheel Of Fortune/ABC)
Screenshot showing Hart and Sajak's reaction after winning $1 million on The Wheel of Fortune (Cover image source: YouTube | The Wheel Of Fortune/ABC)

"Wheel of Fortune" is a platform for common Americans to win a dream trip or drive away in a car. On the other hand, "Celebrity Wheel Of Fortune" hosts generous celebrities who play games only to give away their winnings to charity. "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch" star Melissa Joan Hart appeared on the show in 2021 and bagged the rare million-dollar wedge and won it too. What made it more special was that it was all for a good cause as the actress donated everything to charity.

Screenshot showing Pat Sajak revealing Hart's bonus prize (Image source: YouTube/The Wheel of Fortune/ABC)
Screenshot showing Pat Sajak revealing Hart's bonus prize (Image source: YouTube/The Wheel of Fortune/ABC)

Hart was competing in the primetime episode against fellow stars Tituss Burgess and Lacey Chabert. She was playing for the Youth Villages charity, an organization that helps young people with emotional, mental, and behavioral problems. “They serve families and children across 23 different states at every kind of level, going through foster care and aging out of foster care especially,” Hart explained on the show. 

Screenshot showing Hart picking the additional letters for her bonus puzzle (Image source: YouTube/The Wheel of Fortune/ABC)
Screenshot showing Hart picking the additional letters for her bonus puzzle (Image source: YouTube/The Wheel of Fortune/ABC)

Through the episode, Hart demonstrated impressive puzzle-solving skills. In the initial rounds, she landed on the Million Dollar Wedge twice after spinning the wheel and solving both puzzles. Her opponent and long-time friend Chabert was also on a great run after solving the show's first puzzle without any clues. However, it was Hart who had the lead in the end to go into the bonus round of the show. 

For the final puzzle, Hart picked the "Food & Drink" category before spinning the wheel for a golden envelope. She then took center stage alongside host Pat Sajak to take on the bonus puzzle. With the standard letters, R, S, T, L, and E filled in, Hart chose the additional letters G, M, W, and A as her additional letters. With this, the puzzle read, "_RAN    M _ _ _ _ NS".

Screenshot showing the final puzzle (Image source: YouTube/The Wheel of Fortune/ABC)
Screenshot showing the final puzzle (Image source: YouTube/The Wheel of Fortune/ABC)

As the clock started ticking, Hart looked confident about her guess. Without wasting much time, she said, "BRAN MUFFINS" out loud as her answer. Sajak and the show's co-host Vanna White revealed that her answer was correct. To add to her delight, Sajak revealed that she had won a million dollars from her golden envelope. 



 

With this, Hart became the fourth player in the show's history to win $1 million. Talking to USA Today, Hart said that White gave away her winning moment early. "Vanna White's face turned white. Vanna looked at me and was like, 'You got it! You got it!' I hit the roof. She hit the roof," she told the publication. Sharing the exciting moment on Instagram, the actress further wrote that it was an amazing feeling to be on the show that she used to watch with her mother as a kid. "I still have the confetti at home. And they let me keep the $1-million chip, Pat and Vanna signed it for me," Hart said in the video.


 
 
 
 
 
View this post on Instagram
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Melissa Joan Hart (@melissajoanhart)


 

Youth Villages also watched the episode and celebrated Hart's win on social media as well. "BRB, we're on cloud 9 right now! @melissajoanhart did it!! She won 1 million dollars for Youth Villages!!!" the organization wrote on Instagram. 


 
 
 
 
 
View this post on Instagram
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Youth Villages (@youthvillages)


 

In the USA Today interview, Hart revealed that it was a nerve-racking moment for her. "It was super exciting and pretty nerve-wracking; I rarely win game shows," referring to an epic loss in an episode of the 1998 "Celebrity Jeopardy" match.

MORE ON MARKET REALIST
The Coast Guard Veteran, Josh Post flubbed the final puzzle to lose out on the big prize.
9 hours ago
Two pre-packaged Caesar's Salad items have been recalled over contamination concerns.
13 hours ago
Harvey decided to act out the scenario which the contestant thought would be inappropriate.
3 days ago
The contestant, Ron Sheppard was inches away from solving the Bonus Round puzzle.
3 days ago
In a major breach, the systems of Mobile Commons that serves the New York State were compromised
3 days ago
Playing "The Lion's Share", Riley Shepherd won big with just two lucky picks.
3 days ago
The new legislation will allow federal workers to quickly get back to work.
4 days ago
The player, Gary, won a brand new Toyota on his 50th wedding anniversary.
5 days ago
When a bald man came up with a strange answer, Harvey roasted his entire team.
5 days ago
Walmart's dupe of the viral cup is on sale for nearly half the price of the original.
5 days ago
Harvey admitted that he had never hear someone say this about American men.
6 days ago
The analysis shows tech giants like Meta, Oracle are pivoting to bonds and debt to fuel AI ambitions
6 days ago
The contestant, April Seubert, made a grand comeback to win prizes worth over $57,000.
7 days ago
With just a one in five chances, Phillip managed to bag the top prize.
7 days ago
Several coffee chains have been feeling the pain amid rising costs, tariffs, competition and more.
7 days ago
The radical pay plan could make Musk the world's first trillionaire in the next decade.
Nov 7, 2025
The TikTok creator, Auzi a.k.a @fatpastrychef's video sparked concerns over rude store staff.
Nov 7, 2025
Joseph Evans dethroned poet, Joyelle McSweeney to become the new champion.
Nov 7, 2025
Following Huang's striking comment, Nvidia took to X to soften the blow.
Nov 7, 2025
Musk has to achieve a few objectives to win the support of Tesla shareholders.
Nov 6, 2025