, sometimes referred to as Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, is a Japanese quiz show based on the original program of the latter title created by Celador International and currently owned and licensed by Sony Pictures Television. It premiered on Fuji Television on April 20, 2000, and aired its latest episode on July 25, 2026. The show was hosted by television personality until 2013 and actor in 2026.
The main goal of the game is to win ¥10,000,000 by answering twelve multiple-choice questions correctly. There are three lifelines - , (a phone call to an unlimited number of supporters (as long as it is four or less) who are in one place), and . Whenever a contestant answers the second question correct, they are guaranteed ¥100,000. When a contestant answers the seventh question correct, they are guaranteed ¥1,000,000.
This version has the distinction of having the most top prize winners in the worldwide Millionaire franchise. was the announcer of the show until August of its debut year, until 2013, in January 2026 and in July 2026.
Broadcast history The show was broadcast every Thursday regularly from April 20, 2000 to March 29, 2007. From May 3, 2007 onward, the show was brought back for occasional specials, with the most recent one being broadcast July 25, 2026. The next one will be broadcast on January 1, 2027.
Super Millionaire Super Millionaire was a spin-off of Quiz $ Millionaire. The show was broadcast twice, with the first episode raising the grand prize to ¥20 million. The series also added four new rules:
There were only 10 questions, as opposed to the normal 15. Questions 1-5 had 4 choices, and 6-10 had 2 choices, meaning contestants could not use 50:50 after the 5th question. Contestants could not walk away on the 9th or 10th questions. There were no guaranteed sums.
Clock format In 2009, the series became the first international version of Millionaire to adopt the clock format from the American version of the show. Contestants now have time limits for each question: 30 seconds each for questions 1–9, 1 minute each for questions 10–12, and 3 minutes each for questions 13–15. Usage of lifelines temporarily pauses the clock. However, unlike the US version, the remaining time after giving an answer for that question is void. Contestants who exceed the time limit on a given question without giving a "final answer" are forced to walk away with whatever winnings they have at that point.
Payout Structure Answering a question correctly is worth a specific cash prize at each level. Contestants who successfully answer questions on levels with bolded amounts in the table below are guaranteed to leave with no less than the cash award at that level should they incorrectly answer a later question.
+ Regular payout (2000–2013)Question numberQuestion value1¥10,0002¥20,0003¥30,0004¥50,0005¥100,0006¥150,0007¥250,0008¥500,0009¥750,00010¥1,000,00011¥1,500,00012¥2,500,00013¥5,000,00014¥7,500,00015¥10,000,000
+ Super Millionaire payoutQuestion numberDecember 23, 2007March 27, 2008 1¥10,000 2¥100,000 3¥250,000 4¥500,000 5¥1,000,000 6 ¥2,500,000 ¥1,500,000 7 ¥5,000,000 ¥2,500,000 8 ¥10,000,000 ¥5,000,000 9 ¥15,000,000 ¥7,500,000 10 ¥20,000,000 ¥10,000,000
+ Payout (2026)Question numberQuestion value1¥50,0002¥100,0003¥150,0004¥200,0005¥300,0006¥500,0007¥1,000,0008¥1,500,0009¥2,000,00010¥3,000,00011¥5,000,00012¥10,000,000
Top prize winners
Civilians Name Transliteration Date Yasuyuki Kunimitsu July 27, 2000 Yoshiaki Nagata August 10, 2000 Naoko Imao November 2, 2000 Kazuyuki Nose February 15, 2001 Hitomi Sakamoto December 13, 2001 Akifumi Kikuchi June 27, 2002 Michiko Eguchi August 1, 2002 Naomi Nagata November 14, 2002 Shōko Mishima May 8, 2003 Tomohisa Kikuchi April 28, 2005 Toshihiko Hamada May 26, 2005 Junko Nozoe June 29, 2006 Keiko Ōi July 27, 2006
Kids Name Transliteration Date Koutaro Kobayashi September 6, 2001 Katsuhiro Minamigawa September 6, 2001 Sayuu Tanabashi September 4, 2003 Natsumi Kataoka September 4, 2003 Jō Kihara August 26, 2004
Celebrities Name Transliteration Date Hiroshi Hase November 23, 2000 Daichi Suzuki September 18, 2003 Tsuyoshi Shinjo January 2, 2004 Takafumi Horie December 30, 2004 Kazuko Hosoki December 30, 2004 Masaaki Sakai April 7, 2005 Yasuo Tanaka April 7, 2005 Yukiko Kashiwagi and Hanako Oshima April 21, 2005 Kotaro Koizumi January 2, 2006 Yūko Asano March 23, 2006 Dai Tamesue September 14, 2006 ) Bandō Mitsugorō X October 5, 2006 Dewi Sukarno October 26, 2006 Misako Konno February 15, 2007 Shōsuke Tanihara July 5, 2007 Sumiko Fuji March 27, 2008 Kazuo Tokumitsu March 27, 2008 Beat Takeshi January 30, 2009 Hikari Ōta April 1, 2009 Mana Ashida January 2, 2013 Kanna Hashimoto January 1, 2026
Merchandise Several home versions have been released based on the show. The first of these was a board game released in 2001 by Takara Tomy, who later released another electronic version of the game. A version for the PlayStation game console was released on December 20, 2001, with an updated party version released for the same console in 2002. A book entitled , was released by Fusosha on March 20, 2002.
In addition, Visiware and Sony Pictures Television have released an app based on the program's format for iOS and Android devices. Mino introduced the app during the special that aired on January 2, 2013. The app allows home viewers to play the game simultaneously, being asked the same questions featured on the show.
References
External links