‘The Price Is Right’ Fans Say This Change Is Making the Show ‘Unwatchable’

Robert Voets / CBS

What To Know

Some fans of The Price Is Right believe the “come on down” dances by new contestants have become overly exaggerated.
Producers actively encourage audience members to perform energetic dances when called, even showing example clips as inspiration.
Longtime viewers argue that these forced displays feel disingenuous compared to the genuine excitement of earlier eras.

It’s a well-known fact that when it comes to The Price Is Right, producers are in search of people with big, bubbly personalities while interviewing potential contestants from the live audience. But is there such a thing as too much enthusiasm? Some fans seem to think so, especially when it comes to the big “come on down” moment when a player is plucked from the crowd to join Bidder’s Row.

In fact, long-term viewers have noticed how contestants running towards the stage have become more and more over-the top, a change seemingly encouraged by the show’s bosses. Now some viewers say their reactions look “tacky and stupid,” and are making the show “unwatchable.’

On the Reddit fan page for the game show, one poster suggested that it’s time to put an end to new players “danc[ing] down the aisle like it’s Soul Train.”

“Come on down” dances are certainly a hallmark of the show — and it’s not just dances people do, either. In the past, we’ve famously seen people do everything from rolling down and doing a split halfway to crowd surfing to the stage.

In response to the fan’s note about it, then, several commenters pointed out that the players are encouraged to strut their stuff on the way down to the front.

“My friend was just at a taping recently and said that they literally tell you to do this,” one person wrote.

“They actually show waiting audience members a clip of a guy doing this from an old episode to use as example of what they are looking for in contestants,” added someone else.

Still, even though it’s encouraged, some TPIR watchers agreed that it’s gotten out of hand.

“It looks tacky and stupid,” said another commenter.

“It’s ridiculous,” wrote someone else.

“The show has gotten unwatchable for me lately,” added another. It never used to be this extreme in terms of over-the-top contestants.They really need to tone it back a few notches. It’s almost cringey.”

“I mean yeah, you want contestants with some personality but they should be likeable and relatable not maniacal,” said one fan in agreement with the original poster. “I understand that it’s something the producers encourage, but I really can’t fathom why. It’s not especially interesting TV compared to the actual games/contestants actually on stage/Drew doing his thing,” another added.

One fan wrote that the tradition has become “disingenuous” nowadays, adding, “Back in Bob’s day, when people acted like that, it was genuine – because everyone is different, and each of them showed excitement in their own way. Now, it feels like a bunch of TikTok tryhards trying to outdo each other, and I miss the reactions of genuine shock when somebody heard their name called. I much prefer it when you never know who you’re gonna get when you hear the words ‘Come on down!’ That unpredictability is better TV than this forced fake stuff.” Another agreed and called it “unwatchable” and “extreme,” adding, “They really need to tone it back a few notches. It’s almost cringey.”

The Price Is Right‘s “Come on down!” tradition began in the 1972 edition of The Price Is Right with then-announcer Johnny Olson (hosted by Bob Barker). It was then carried on by Rod Roddy, beginning in 1986 when he became the announcer and issued “call downs.”

“Barker later reflected on the show’s use of the phrase in 2007, saying, “‘Come on down’ was three words in a script, and the late Johnny Olson, with his delivery, he started what has become [a catchphrase]… And now, wherever I go, ‘Hey Bob, come on down!’”