The 17th season of the Dutch TV series Wie is de Mol? ("Who is the Mole?") aired in the winter of 2017. Art Rooijakkers returned to host the season. The season took place in the state of Oregon in the United States. The season premiered on January 7, 2017. The Live Finale aired on March 11, 2017 where was declared the winner of the season, earning a grand total of €24,320.-. Wallis de Vries had successfully unmasked Thomas Cammaert as the Mole of 2017, outwitting her runner-up Jochem van Gelder.
Format Followed the same format as its Belgian predecessor, this season had ten Dutch celebrities travel to Oregon, United States to complete assignments to earn money for the group pot. However, one of the ten is the titular Mole (de Mol), the one designated to sabotage the assignments and cause the group to earn the least amount of money for the winner's pot as possible. Every few days, players would take a 20-question multiple choice test about the identity of the Mole. Once the test is complete, the candidates await their results in an execution ceremony. The candidate with the worst score is executed from the game, while in the event of the tie the candidate who completed their test most slowly is executed. The season plays out until there are three remaining candidates, where they must complete a final test (consisting of 40 questions). The candidate with the highest score, or had completed their test the fastest in a tie, is declared the winner and receives the group's pot.
Candidates NameOccupationDay ExitedResultThomas CammaertActor 17The MoleCabaret Artist, Presenter 17WinnerJochem van GelderPresenter 17Runner-UpDiederik JekelScience Journalist 153rd placeActress 134th placeJeroen Kijk in de VegteRadio DJ Presenter 105th placeActress 86th placeColumnist 6 7th placeVlogger, Presenter 48th placeDancer, Choreographer 29th placethe result in grey indicates the Mole
Future appearances Jeroen Kijk in de Vegte returned for Wie is de Mol? Renaissance in September, 2020. In the finale, broadcast on October 24, 2020, it was revealed that he was the Mole.
Candidate progress Candidate1234567 FinaleSanneThomasJochemDiederikImanuelleJeroenSigridRoosYvonneVincent The candidate is the winner of Wie is de Mol 2017. The candidate was unmasked as The Mole 2017. The candidate was the losing finalist of Wie is de Mol 2017. The candidate saw a Green Screen to proceeded to the next Episode. The candidate used an Exemption to automatically proceed to the next Episode. The candidate used Jokers for this test, and saw a Green Screen to proceed to the next Episode. The candidate used Jokers for this test, however, they did not see a Green Screen before the Executed player saw their Red Screen. Thus they proceeded to the next Episode. The candidate did not see a Green Screen before the Executed player saw their Red Screen. Thus they proceeded to the next Episode. The candidate was executed from the game and sent home. Notes
Episodes For more information, see: List of seasons of "Wie is de Mol?" (in Dutch) Episode Air Date Title Amount in Pot Location Days Eliminated 1 '... Zo Gedaan'€0 → €2,500 Portland, Oregon 1–2 2 'Meegaand'€2,500 → €4,200 Oregon City, Oregon - Portland, Oregon - Las Vegas, Nevada 3–4 3 ' Ende Verhaal'€4,200 → €6,830 Nehalem, Oregon - Manzanita, Oregon - Portland, Oregon 5–6 4 'Meer Dan Normaal'€6,830 → €1,280 Pendleton, Oregon 7–8 5 'Teugels in Handen'€1,280 → €3,880 Umatilla County, Oregon 8–10 6 'Wijzer Worden?'€3,880 → €6,910 Pendleton, Oregon - Helix, Oregon - Bend, Oregon 11–12 7 'Verblinden'€6,910 → €10,310 McKenzie Pass, Oregon - Bend, Oregon 13–14 8 'Raam Taal'€10,310 → €12,010 Painted Hills, Oregon - Redmond, Oregon - Fort Rock, Oregon 15–16 9 'Het Einde in Zicht'€12,010 → €12,160 Fort Rock, Oregon - Bend, Oregon - Cascade Range, Oregon 17–18 Finale Finale€12,160 → €24,320 Amsterdam, the Netherlands Winner The Mole Runner-up Notes
Season summary Episode 1 – ... Zo Gedaan Episode 1 – ... Zo GedaanOriginal airdates: 7 January 2017Location: Portland, Oregon Assignment Money earned Possible earnings €2,500.- €2,500.- €2,500.-ExemptionsJeroen, Roos and Thomas Assignment 1Execution Vincent 1st player executed 'Assignment 1' To begin, candidates must search a forest for one of four envelopes containing a helicopter ticket which would reward four candidates with a helicopter ride to Portland a chance to earn an exemption. The remaining six candidates travel to Portland by road in one of two vans, each of which hold three candidates.
After being dropped off at a helipad, the four candidates who found the helicopter tickets had to use binoculars to search the nearby buildings for banners with a password (“Keep Portland Weird”) and the location that the password would give access to - Hawthorne Bridge. At Hawthrone Bridge, the candidates had to raise the centre section of the bridge to reach a chest containing the four exemptions. They could unlock the chest with a nearby key and win the exemptions. The candidates in the vans were given a map and a list of locations worth varying amounts of money and one with mystery prize – later revealed as the ability to remove one of the four candidate’s exemptions. These locations were: Alder Street, Central Library, Portland Art Museum, Portland Building and the Umbrella Man statue. They had one-hour from their arrival in Portland to find as many envelopes as they could.
€2,500 was earned for the pot.
The following morning, the four candidates who found the helicopter tickets were driven to Bagdad Theatre. They each met with host Art Roojakkers and are presented with the dilemma of trading their exemption for a group exemption which would ensure all ten candidates progress to the second episode. If all four exemptions were handed in, the group exemption to be attained. Unbeknownst to the four candidates, the remaining six candidates viewed this interaction and had the ability to remove one of the four candidate’s exemption regardless of their decision.
Episode 2 – Meegaand Episode 2 – MeegaandOriginal airdates: 14 January 2017Location: Oregon City, Oregon - Portland, Oregon - Las Vegas, Nevada Assignment Money earned Possible earnings €450.- €3,500.- €1,250.- unknown €0.- €1,000.- €7,000.-ExemptionsDiederik Assignment 4Execution Yvonne 2nd player executed 'Assignment 2' Candidates have one hour to complete seven tasks within the Blue Heron Paper Mill. Each assignment is worth varying amounts of money and require two candidates to complete them at once. During the assignment, Diederik, Jeroen and Roos were privately escorted from the group for 24 hours. Unbeknownst to the candidates, they would not return until Assignment 4.
€450 was earned for the pot.
'Assignment 3' The six candidates not escorted during the previous assignment participate in a Laser game to earn money by taking rides worth varying amounts of money around Oaks Amusement Park. One candidate at a time is given a laser gun and walkie-talkie to communicate with the group. They must reach and ride one of the eight rides before returning to the group without having their vest hit by the amusement park’s snipers to earn money for the pot.
€1,250 was earned for the pot.
'Assignment 4' The six candidates enter a courtroom to serve as members of a jury. There, they are given the opportunity to listen to the statements of the three escorted candidates of their actions in the last 24 hours. Diederik claimed he was taken to the Crater Lake National Park; Jeroen claimed he performed with a band while dressed as Elvis Presley; Roos claimed she was flown to Las Vegas and visited the Las Vegas Strip. Two of the candidates were telling the truth while one was lying. If the jury voted to prosecute the candidate who lied, they would earn €1,000 for the pot. Otherwise, that candidate would earn an exemption for the next quiz and no money would be earned.
The jury voted Roos as the lying candidate, however the required answer was Diederik. Therefore, no money was earned for the pot.
Episode 3 – Ende Verhaal Episode 3 – Ende VerhaalOriginal airdates: 21 January 2017Locations: Nehalem, Oregon - Manzanita, Oregon - Portland, Oregon Assignment Money earned Possible earnings €130.- €3,000.- €2,500.- €4,000.- €0.- €2,000.- €16,000.-Execution Roos 3rd player executed 'Assignment 5' Each candidate is designated a section of the dunes of Nehalem and have 15 minutes to complete a relay race, requiring them to transfer a baton and money from one candidate to the next. To assist, the group is allowed to elect a coach to communicate how much time remains via walkie-talkie. A direct path to the finish line is the fastest route, though this path would only earn €500. The group can earn money by diverting from the main path to collect halves of banknotes worth varying amounts of money. Combining two halves of a note adds that amount of money to the pot, however any half-banknotes remaining after the last candidate finishes deducts that amount from the pot. The money is only counted if the final candidate crosses the finish line within the time-limit.
€130 was earned for the pot.
'Assignment 6' The group must nominate two candidates who are ‘not night-blind’, who would participate in a later portion of the assignment. The remaining six candidates are taken to a beach and are given five minutes to create a picture of as many candidates as possible using provided rakes or nearby material. They could not use numbers or letters, and their only source of light for the assignment would come from fireworks launched during the assignment. After the five minutes were up, the remaining two candidates were given one minute to identify the candidate each picture represented. Each correct guess would earn €500.
€2,500 was earned for the pot.
'Assignment 7' Candidates begin spread across four cars throughout Portland, with two candidates in each car. Each car has clues inside and part of a route printed on the outside of the car. Candidates would have to find each other to combine all four parts of the route which would direct them to their destination of Powell’s Books. Once there, they would have to use the clues to find four books containing money inside. Candidates are not allowed to park the car and had to follow all traffic rules; the time-limit for the assignment is one-hour.
No money was earned for the pot.
Episode 4 – Meer Dan Normaal Episode 4 – Meer Dan NormaalOriginal airdates: 28 January 2017Location: Pendleton, Oregon Assignment Money earned Possible earnings €500.- €3,500.- €750.- €2,000.- €500.- €22,000.-JokersDiederik, Jochem and Sanne Assignment 10Execution Sigird 4th player executed 'Assignment 8' One by one, candidates make it from one side of the Pendleton Round Up stadium to the other, collecting a lasso along the way. Each candidate to complete this earns €250 for the pot and the lasso they collected would be considered out of play for the final round. In the arena is a cowboy or cowgirl attempting to stop them using a lasso. For the final candidate’s attempt, the cowboy or cowgirl first had to collect a lasso left behind by the previous candidates before pursuing the candidate. If the final candidate succeeded, they would double the money earned.
€500 was earned for the pot.
'Assignment 9' Candidates have 15 minutes to search through dozens of hay bales to find banners worth varying amounts of money inside four of the bales. Any money found is added to the pot.
€750 was earned for the pot.
'Assignment 10'