Deal or No Deal (American game show)

Did You Know?

• There have been 68 different models over the show's five seasons, with two models appearing in all five seasons.
• Several U.S. states have offered Deal or No Deal scratch-off lottery tickets, with non-winning tickets sometimes used to enter sweepstakes for a chance to be on the show.
• In 2022, Princess Cruises presented a special version of Deal or No Deal on select cruises, where passengers played using a "case card" on screen instead of models holding cases.

Broadcast history

Early ratings were strong; all five episodes in the week beginning December 19, 2005, finished in the top 15 among total viewers, peaking at 14.1 million on December 21, 2005, and averaging about 12.7 million viewers for the week. The show aired nightly from February 27 to March 3, 2006, with an escalating top prize reaching $3 million. The April 3, 2006, two-hour special outperformed the NCAA basketball tournament final. The June 5, 2006, two-hour season finale featuring Celine Dion via satellite set a series high with over 18 million viewers and a 5.5 share in the 18–49 demographic, making it the highest-rated show on any network that week. The show went on hiatus in early 2009, with its Friday time slot replaced by Howie Do It. It returned on May 4, 2009, to air its remaining four episodes, taped in September 2008, on three consecutive Mondays through May 18, 2009. On December 3, 2018, the show returned as a holiday special on NBC, with new episodes airing on CNBC from December 5, 2018, until the final episode on August 7, 2019.

Syndicated version

A daily half-hour syndicated version, distributed by NBCUniversal Television Distribution, debuted on September 8, 2008, with Mandel as host. It offered a top prize of $500,000 hidden in one of 22 cases, rather than 26, and featured only two of the original 26 case models: Tameka Jacobs and Patricia Kara. This version lasted two seasons, ending in May 2010 due to declining ratings. The same 22 contestants appeared for the entire week, with one contestant playing per game and five complete games per week. Before each game, 22 dollar amounts from $0.01 to $500,000 were distributed among 22 briefcases by a third party, unknown to the host, the Banker, or anyone else. The cases were randomly presented to the contestants by the models. The game began with the models spinning the "Deal Wheel," which had 22 numbers corresponding to the cases. A golden ball bounced inside the wheel, and the number it landed on determined the contestant for that game. That contestant's case was placed on a podium, and they could either keep it or swap with one of the remaining 21 cases. Through rounds, the contestant selected other cases to open, removing their values from play, tracked on a large electronic board. After each round, the Banker called the host via a phone on the podium, who relayed a cash offer based on remaining values. The game progressed similarly to the broadcast version until the contestant accepted an offer or kept their original case.

Production notes

The initial pilot for this game show was created for ABC in early 2004, featuring Irish host Patrick Kielty and a top prize of $2.5 million. Though ABC scheduled a March 2004 premiere, the network ultimately chose not to broadcast it. The first season was recorded at Sunset Gower Studios, with earlier episodes filmed at CBS Television City, both in Los Angeles. Seasons two through four took place at Culver Studios in Culver City, California. The second syndicated season was produced at Sonalyst Studios in Waterford, Connecticut, while the 2018 revival was hosted at Universal Orlando in Florida. Starting early in season two, episodes often adopted themes based on details the production team gathered about contestants; host Howie Mandel explained this was intended to make them feel at ease, though critics pointed to an excessive use of such themed shows. A Spanish-language adaptation, Vas o No Vas (with English closed-captioning as Take It or Leave It), aired on Telemundo starting October 8, 2006, hosted by Héctor Sandarti and offering a $250,000 top prize. On November 5, 2006, a contestant won $180,500 plus a Ford F-150, setting a record for an American Spanish-language game show, but the series was not picked up for a second season.