Simon Cowell: ‘American Idol Flopped Because I Left’
Simon Cowell believes American Idol suffered because he and fellow judge Paula Abdul jumped ship.
The 56-year-old was a judge on the talent-search show from 2002 to 2010 but quit to bring The X Factor to the US.
But he believes the programme – which ends on April 7 – started to flop when fellow judge Abdul left in 2009 and then got worse after his departure a year later.
Referring to the show’s downfall as broken body parts, Cowell, above, said: “Paula was the right leg and I was the left leg. And with both legs gone, it wasn’t the same show.
“To be honest I think it changed more significantly once Paula left. At least for me, the show was never the same because she and I had such a connection and such a shorthand together.”
American Idol, hosted by Ryan Seacrest, has seen a number of famous faces join the panel over the years such as Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, Ellen DeGeneres, Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and Keith Urban, but Cowell believes none of them had the same “fun” chemistry as Abdul and himself.
The final series of the show with judges Jennifer Lopez, Keith Urban and Harry Connick Jr. but Cowell, above with former American Idol judges Randy Jackson and Abdul, claimed he doesn’t watch it any more.
The talent show supremo, who has just joined the panel of America’s Got Talent, told the New York Daily News newspaper: “I haven’t seen it at all, so I wouldn’t have a clue as to what it looks like now.”
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