Simon Cowell rose to a heightened level of prominence as the most outspoken judge on the original American Idol. So it is not surprising that people are curious as to whether or not the former judge has checked out ABC's revival of the long-running series. The short answer is he was not among the millions who tuned in, and the Brit has a pretty straightforward answer for why. Known for his blunt honesty, Cowell shared the candid reason he has abstained from tuning in, saying:
I'm genuinely not interested. I think when we were on it years ago, it was a fun show. It was different, it was kind of naïve, lots of surprises.... I kind of think we've been there, I've been there, time for something new.
The former American Idol judge's desire to evolve is sound. Interestingly, Simon Cowell's explanation to THR about why he doesn't watch was surprisingly light on the salt. His rationale also makes a lot of sense. The feisty former judge left American Idol after nine seasons in 2010. Since leaving, Cowell has remained busy. He is currently promoting the thirteenth season of NBC's America's Got Talent, which the Peacock network recently announced had been greenlit for a winter edition of the series.
The man clearly has his hands full, albeit that is not part of the reason he gave for not watching the ABC revival. A lot of what Simon Cowell has to say about his reasoning for not watching is expert analysis. When the original series was on, it was still a burst of something fresh. The original series ran for fifteen years and 15 seasons on Fox. Despite all the hubbub surrounding the series coming to an end, it did not stay that way for long.
In fact, American Idol was only off the air for two years when ABC revived the show with Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, and Luke Bryan as the new judges. While the American Idol reboot may be of no interest to Simon Cowell, it has been of significant interest to fans of the series. The reboot premiered this past March and ABC renewed the competition series at the beginning of May. Later in the month, the show crowned a new winner.
As for Simon Cowell's other project, America's Got Talent has already gotten off to a jaw-dropping start with a breathtaking performance by the dance troupe Zurcaroh. While American Idol is strictly a singing competition, America's Got Talent offers an eclectic array of various entertainment mediums taking one stage, which is something many viewers clearly find of interest.
American Idol will likely return for Season 2 on ABC next year. You can catch Simon Cowell on America's Got Talent when it airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. For more television content, check out CinemaBlend's guide to TV's summer premieres. If you want to know what's coming after summer, check out the 2018 network TV rundown to find out which shows have been cancelled, and which ones have been renewed.
