Nigel Lythgoe Near Deal to Return to American Idol!

By On 07/26/2010 · 98 Comments · In American Idol, Nigel Lythgoe, So You Think You Can Dance

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Holy SH*T:

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Nigel Lythgoe is negotiating a deal with FOX to return to American Idol as executive producer!

  • Read it all at the Hollywood Reporter, HERE.

Nigel has been highly critical of Idol since he left the show in a shakeup at the end of Season 7. He has said he’d like to replace the entire judges’ panel, and with Nigel back in the drivers seat, that could actually happen…

THR sources say that Randy Jackson would be most likely to survive a judges purge (he’s the one who should be hitting the bricks, if you ask me. Useless.) and that dumping Ellen Degeneres and her multi-year contract could be problematic. (She’s got a 5-year contract–expensive!)

Nigel has said he’d like Usher, Elton John and Paula Abdul as Idol judges. He’s also come out strongly against the 4-judge panel.

Fuller has his eye on Justin Timberlake and Elton John for a spot on the judges panel, as well as Chris Isaak, Harry Connick Jr. and other celebrity music industry names..

Idol has been going down the crap-hole ever since Nigel left.  Check out Nigel’s show, So You Think You Can Dance–it’s so much better than Idol in just about every way.

YES! BRING NIGEL BACK! I’m all for it.

 
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  • Laurie

    I love KarenC’s comment! I would love for Kara to be gone for good! Lol at the idea of her singing NOBO as she exits. I want Paula back too! And 3 judges on the panel are more than enough! I really dislike having 4 talking heads. The idea of a top 3 finale could be very interesting. I am not sure I would like that, but it could be a real nail biter. Oh and to be on topic, I am for Nigel coming back to produce the show again.

  • Jayd

    I like the idea of Nigel coming back. There are some things on SYTYCD that I don’t like about him (like last week’s nonelimination fiasco), but overall I like him and I think he can see what’s wrong now that he’s stepped away for a bit. I don’t think he’ll ever get Paula back, nor do I really want that.

    I agree with those who have said that more attention should be placed on how the contestants get along during the week and more focus on their daily activities, struggles, etc. It really bugged me, too, when they complained that the contestants had no personality, and then they would show snippets of their fellow contestants talking about how funny, kind, whatever that person was, and I wondered why the judges couldn’t see that.

    Also, maybe we could do a host swap, Cat Deeley could host AI for a while and show people what they are missing: a warm, friendly, sane person, with a normal sense of humor.

  • Mtlfan

    omg that’s news. I’m happy that there seems to be drastic changes for season 10!
    Ellen has no place on this panel. Shes wasn’t a good judge at all. Get rid of her asap

  • iluvai

    undercooked,

    It sounds like you are proposing something for a class on what should be done on AI. Any crazy alterative would be great because it’s innovative.

    I’m not buying it. Crazy idea.

  • https://twitter.com/pmhowden undercooked

    undercooked, It sounds like you are proposing something for a class on what should be done on AI. Any crazy alterative would be great because it’s innovative.

    Can’t a girl dream! :)

  • iluvai

    Can’t a girl dream!

    Of course! Anything would be better than this last season.

    hee hee. (sorry if I was rude.)

  • https://twitter.com/pmhowden undercooked

    Of course! Anything would be better than this last season.

    hee hee. (sorry if I was rude.)

    It’s all good. :)

  • sue

    Yes!!!! Bring Nigel back! I am all for it. I don’t think Paula will come back but maybe?? lol I don’t think it would be the same with Paula and no Simon. Paula belongs with Simon on X-Factor, I hope.
    I kind of want Randy to stay because he is the only original judge left and he is right sometimes. If Kara was gone I think Ellen would shine and have more to say. Ellen/Randy/Harry Connick Jr. combo could work. If not Harry then Elton John. The show should be more about the contestants with more SINGING and less fillers. :)

  • karenc

    The reason I miss Paula so much, is that she was the only one who could tell someone their number sucked without the contestant being left on stage feeling nothing more than a pile of steaming crap. She had a way of saying that didn’t work yet make them feel encouraged enough to brush it off and work it out. The other judges (especially Kara) are down right mean about the negativity and even condescending, sucking the dream right out of the contestant. They were all good enough to make it into the top 36? by the judges, they can’t all of a sudden suck as bad as the judges would want them to believe (okay most of ‘em, anyway

    I agree with you on this. I think what Paula did is that her comments gave them constructive critism, it was positive enough so they could see what they did right, but she would tell them what was wrong in a nicer way so they understood what was wrong. I think part of the problem this season was that the judging was so conflicting and some negative that the contestants didn’t know what to do. Like they were told to make a song their own, but when someone would do something different with a song, they were told it was terrible, but weren’t really told what was wrong with it. So they lost confidence and were afraid to take chances. And they were more inexperienced to begin with also. Also, at times, a judge would overpraise something, so that they wouldn’t see what really needed to be improved on.

    I also think Paula can see star quality early on, also, and that this might have been what was missing this year.

  • sue

    Hmmmm…. or get rid of Ryan and have Ellen host the show…just a thought….:)

  • FruMiddleton

    starsshella – I’m with you! From reading back through older seasons and including S8, it definitely seems like both the Top 36 and Top 24 formats are imperfect, but Top 36 is more likely to get skewed by Judge & Production Manipulation than Top 24. People need to just deal with the fact that losing Lilly, Katelyn, & Alex all in one night is THE VOTERS’ fault, not the show’s. I’ll admit that the only one I voted for was Katelyn – I didn’t like the style of singing for either Lilly or Alex. Granted, I didn’t like the style of singing for Andrew or Tim or Katie or Paige either – but I also didn’t vote for any of them. The point remains it wasn’t the format’s fault at all, IMHO.

  • starsshella

    MJ-
    “A lot has been written in the Idol press this week about whether or not Season 9 is the worst Season in Idol history. So far, I think it has been”
    You said that.

    Erm. Where did I complain about any of the contestants in my blog?

    Contestants=season.

  • https://twitter.com/pmhowden undercooked

    it definitely seems like both the Top 36 and Top 24 formats are imperfect, but Top 36 is more likely to get skewed by Judge & Production Manipulation than Top 24. People need to just deal with the fact that losing Lilly, Katelyn, & Alex all in one night is THE VOTERS’ fault, not the show’s.

    That is the reason I like the top 36. I would like to know that at least 4 singers that remain in the top 12 are considered the best singers in the group. I thought Anoop was one of the best singers and if it weren’t for the top 36, he wouldn’t have made the tour. By the way, why do people think Cook would have been hurt by the top 36 format? I didn’t watch the all of Season 7, but I do remember him standing out with “Hello” but I can’t recall where that was in the competition.

  • http://www.twilightslo.com Mateja

    I just want them to keep Kara. She is the only judge that can be useful. She can be annoying, but I don’t have to absolutely love all the judges.

    Also, as good as trio Randy-Paula-Simon were as Idol judges, the panel was really stale in season 7, so I was very happy that they brought Kara in.

  • karenc

    The thing I don’t like about the top 36 is that the groups could be manipulated too much. There always seemed to be a few that were better than the rest, and they obvously got through. Or there are too many in a group, and some that didn’t get through were better than some that did get through in another group. Also, a contestant only needed to have one good performance to get in the top 12, where, if they do the top 24 without the groups, they have to have 4 performances to get through to top 12.

  • karenc

    By the way, why do people think Cook would have been hurt by the top 36 format? I didn’t watch the all of Season 7, but I do remember him standing out with “Hello” but I can’t recall where that was in the competition.

    I believe Hello was top 16. Before that it was Happy Together, for 60s week, and All Right Now for 70s, and after that was Elinor Rigby for top 12. I do think he still might have done well, but it did take me a couple of weeks to really like him. I liked his Happy Together, but thought All Right now was just ok. I didn’t get really impressed until Hello. I still think that having them have to have a few performances before top 12 is better because with the groups, one song can really make or break you, unless you get the wildcard.

  • revcat

    Regarding Ellen, is anyone else a little put off by her startling blue eyes? If you notice on her talk show she is always slightly turned toward the guest during most of the show, but on Idol they are staring out at the contestant and it’s kind of eerie. Don’t get me wrong, I think she is really cute especially for a lady her age, but her eyes are just, well, startling. I don’t know how to say what I mean without being rude! Anyway that aside, I never thought she was a good pick for judge and stand by my original opinion. Sorry if I am being *shallow* but I think I would have gotten past her baby blues if she had been good.

  • keithp

    Contestants=season.

    A statement about the season doesn’t necessarily translate into a statement about the contestants. Yes, they are a part of the season, but a season includes everything: contestants, judges, time management, theme selections, everything.

    I don’t mind the idea of Nigel going back to AI. Ultimately, though, I agree with those saying that whoever gets the job needs to put the focus back on the contestants. I’ve stopped watching the judges comments on both AI and SYTYCD. They’ve never shaped my opinions of the contestants. I used to listen to the comments on SYTYCD to hear the technical aspects of routines, which I’m unfamiliar with, but they don’t seem to be doing that as much lately, so I’ve stopped listening.

    I also feel the judges could learn something from shows like Top Chef and Project Runway. I’ve always felt the judges on those shows are able to give short, to the point critiques that say what they felt about the contestant’s work, while giving evidence to support their statements that don’t involve OTT metaphors(Mia) or the word ‘Dawg’(Randy…obviously).

  • Grammie Kari

    I agree, SYTYCD has not been as good as it was the first four seasons. No, to Nigel ever being a judge on Idol. I like the idea of Chris Iaask as the new judge. Yes, Ellen needs to go – however, she could have a behind the scenes role as she has her own record company.

    If there were no Randy, my idol Siobhan wouldn’t have passed the audition. So I’m grateful to him.

    Yes, Randy was very supportive of Siobhan. He was her favorite judge. I liked how he encouraged her for being different. They need to keep the TOP 24, get rid of the Judges Save, and retain Ryan as the host. There has to be less emphasis on the judges, and more on the contestants!

  • koshka

    I also feel the judges could learn something from shows like Top Chef and Project Runway. I’ve always felt the judges on those shows are able to give short, to the point critiques that say what they felt about the contestant’s work, while giving evidence to support their statements that don’t involve OTT metaphors(Mia) or the word ‘Dawg’(Randy…obviously).

    I agree.. but also if you notice on these shows, they edit the judges comments.

  • TwigLA

    I say YaY for Nigel coming back … if he does. He ran a tight ship and even if I didn’t always agree with him, I did respect him. Plus I miss his weekly Wednesday/Thursday industry interviews on a site that I cannot remember for the life of me.

    I’d get rid of Ryan (I’ve been ‘over’ him since season 2 and really over him since season 8). He has other irons in the fire … and is already spread too thin. When is his contract up? Ellen has 4 (?) years left on her contract. Move her into the hosting position where she does shine. Buying her out would be way too expensive

    Buy out Randy so he can join Simon on US X-Factor. He’s nostalgia, but so is the the moldy casserole I forgot about in the fridge. Paula brings the crazy, but she also brings the compassion and it appears that all former contestants loved her. She also seems to have an eye and ear for talent that some others may miss.I don’t care if she comes back one way or another. In her best interests, I think she should move on from AI and continue to reinvent herself and her career.

    I don’t want Kara back. She annoys me.

    I want to know who is replacing Rickey Minor.

    ETA: Get rid of Ken Warick. He can stick to America’s Got Talent.

  • http://www.madzionist.com negativo

    See, I disagree. Paula, Simon, Randy, and Ryan were the show’s main characters. They were the constant.

    We’re smart enough to figure out who we like and dislike without any self-absorbed camera pigs trying to manipulate the results to fit their agenda. The show needs to be more about TALENT and less about bullshit celebrity judges fighting for the spotlight.

  • starsshella

    That is the reason I like the top 36. I would like to know that at least 4 singers that remain in the top 12 are considered the best singers in the group. I thought Anoop was one of the best singers and if it weren’t for the top 36, he wouldn’t have made the tour.

    Another reason why the top 36 format was screwed up, was because of the uneven gender balance. The girls in group 3 were clearly stronger than the males, but Jorge still got through instead of someone like Felicia, because they thought he was “cute.” This caused only 3 girls to make it to tour and 7 guys. It wasn’t because the boys were “stronger,” it was because of the tweeny boppers voting for their crushes. I think that is why Kris got through in his group. It should have been Mishavonna, Allison, and Adam. Again, that explains the flaws of the top 36 format-its the perfect recipe for a sausage fest.

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