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
James Austin Johnson and Colin Jost roasted the administration's handling of the Iran conflict.
Mar 16, 2026
The host couldn't help but sarcastically play along with the contestant.
Mar 16, 2026
When the Maheshwari family insisted, and the audience cheered, the veteran host pulled off some moves
Mar 16, 2026
U.S. Trade Representative launched Section 301 probes into unfair trade practices of 60 countries
Mar 13, 2026
The Customs and Border Protection said the four-part refund system will be operational in a few weeks
Mar 13, 2026
Jeopardy! threw indirect shade at the actor for saying no one cares about Ballet and Opera .
Mar 12, 2026
Harvey, in his wildest imagination, couldn't believe the answer was popular.
Mar 12, 2026
The host couldn't believe his eyes when the answer showed up on the board.
Mar 12, 2026
David Malpass told Fox Business that U.S. energy independence will be crucial for growth measures
Mar 11, 2026
Sen. Rick Scott has proposed 'American Dream Accounts' that would help people save for a home.
Mar 11, 2026
The nonpartisan fiscal watchdog CFRB has warned that the U.S. may be heading blindly into the next crisis.
Mar 11, 2026
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei explains if AI models can actually go rogue and rebel against humans.
Mar 11, 2026
By the end of the game, Harvey was left wondering what he had just heard.
Mar 11, 2026
Senator Cory Booker is set to introduce the new tax with the aim to curb the cost-of-living crisis
Mar 10, 2026
Illinois is looking to setup Newborn Equity Support Transfer program to help mothers with childcare
Mar 10, 2026
Harvey was disappointed with the players who couldn't come up with the most obvious answers.
Mar 10, 2026
Some of the answers were too bizarre even for the seasoned host, Steve Harvey.
Mar 10, 2026
While the host fumbled the card, it had just enough for Brenda to win a brand new car
Mar 7, 2026
The nonpartisan fiscal watchdog revised its estimates to add $2 trillion to its earlier projection.
Mar 7, 2026