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There was a very familiar face playing for the jackpot on Jeopardy! this week, as a former child star popped up in the studio.
On Wednesday, viewers were forced to do a double take when Brett Kelly appeared on the small screen opposite Ken Jennings.
The 30-year-old came to fame at a young age, thanks to his efforts as Thurman Merman in 2003 flick Bad Santa, alongside Billy Bob Thornton, Bernie Mac and John Ritter.
He later reprised his role in the 2016 sequel, with Christina Hendricks and Kathy Bates joining in the fun.
Sadly, Brett’s stint on the gameshow didn’t quite go as well as he offered up a few wrong answers, meaning that he left the show with nothing.
Instead, Will Wallace managed to win the day with a total of $10,000.
Although he didn’t take home any money from his brief Jeopardy! appearance, fans couldn’t get enough of Brett’s endeavors and flocked to social media to share their surprise.
Reddit user Joerph713 cheered: ‘I’m guessing he is tired of talking about it so they didn’t mention it. But Brett is the kid from Bad Santa, right?’
Over on Twitter, AndrEWx penned: ‘The kid from Bad Santa is grown up, he’s on Jeopardy right now.’
Krayonic agreed: ‘Me and my neighbor were just watching Jeopardy. My neighbor said “That’s Herman Merman” (Bad Santa) I think he’s correct. I think we just watched Herman Merman on Jeopardy and I’m trippin….just a little [sic].’
Chelsi joked: ‘Watching #Jeopardy tonight I jokingly said, “That guy looks like the kid from Bad Santa!” Imagine my surprise!’
Rebecca Forstner enthused: ‘This is not a drill!! The kid who played Thurman in Bad Santa is on @jeopardy tonight!!’
‘I don’t even know how to process that the kid from Bad Santa was a @Jeopardy contestant today. Help,’ Ryan J Rusak said.
As Rainbowbucs added: ‘My mind is still blown that the little kid from Bad Santa was a contestant on #Jeopardy last night.
‘They never mentioned that he was an actor. Felt bad he did not make it to Final Jeopardy. A bit surreal, as you can still see him as that kid…mannerisms.’
Brett first kicked off his acting career in the early 2000s, before landing the part of Thurman in 2003.
Aside from the sequel, he added appearances in Dead Like Me, What Goes Up, High School and Supernatural to his CV.
He has still continued to act, and currently has a recurring role in Canadian legal drama Family Law, playing Cecil Patterson.
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