Shaquille O’Neal Offers Craig Melvin $1 Million Cash to Eat a Giant Bowl of Candy on Live TV

“If you can eat this in 30 seconds, I’ll give you a million dollars cash,” the retired NBA star told the ‘Today’ co-anchor

Shaquille O'Neal Offers Craig Melvin $1 M to Eat Giant Bowl of Candy

From Left: Craig Melvin; and Shaquille O’Neal on ‘Today’ on May 23, 2025.Credit : 

Shaquille O’Neal brought the jokes — and the candy — to the Today show!

While appearing on the the morning show to talk about his Netflix docuseries, Power Moves, on Friday, May 23, the Inside the NBA host offered co-anchor Craig Melvin a sweet sum of money to eat his SHAQ-A-LICIOUS XL Gummies in the latest installment of their ongoing friendly competitions.

“If you can eat this in 30 seconds, I’ll give you a million dollars cash,” O’Neal, 53, told Melvin while gesturing to a large bowl of his not “adult” gummies.

Shaquille O'Neal Offers Craig Melvin $1 M to Eat Giant Bowl of Candy

From Left: Al Roker, Craig Melvin, Dylan Dreyer and Shaquille O’Neal on ‘Today’ on May 23, 2025.

Melvin, 46, laughed and declined the invitation, even though the retired NBA star remarked that there was a Bank of America across the street where he could access the funds, should the broadcaster make good on the challenge.

“I walk you over there,” O’Neal said as Al Roker and Dylan Dreyer laughed in response.

During an earlier segment on the show, O’Neal further delved into his imaginary rivalry with Melvin, who introduced the polymath as the “Black Forrest Gump.”

“Every time we see each other we have a competition and I beat him and he just gets mad,” O’Neal joked. “He sends me rude emails, threatening emails. He says he’s always gonna beat me up.”

Elsewhere in the interview, the former athlete talked about Power Moves, which documents his behind-the-scenes projects with Reebok.

Shaquille O'Neal Offers Craig Melvin $1 M to Eat Giant Bowl of Candy

The bowl of candy offered to Craig Melvin on May 23, 2025.

“Are you gonna bring back the Pump?” Melvin asked, referring to ’80s-era Reeboks that featured an air pump button on the shoes’ tongues.

“Yes we are, and you won’t get a pair,” O’Neal hilariously replied.

Co-host Savannah Guthrie then appropriately summed up the duo’s chemistry by saying: “I’m here for this, I’d like a TV show out of this.”