No Deal for Paula?
According to the Daily Beast, a deal for Paula Abdul to host and judge on a re-booted Star Search on ABC appears to be dead. And since Paula isn’t part of the package, the project itself is probably now also dead.
The Daily Beast reports that “ABC had made a rich offer to Abdul. Her decision to pass is said to have stunned network executives.”
However, the Hollywood Reporter claims that Paula passed because the deal was less than the 5m offered to her by American Idol last year. And, ABC wasn’t willing to up the price in order to launch a new untested reality show into a crowded market.
The Daily Beast wonders if Simon Cowell “swooped in” to claim Paula for his new Fox show, X Factor, which will start in the fall 2011.
The Beast reports that FOX executives would rather not work with the high-maintenance Paula, and are still miffed over hers snub of a generous offer to continue on American Idol.
Either way, it looks like the Star Search deal is dead in the water. My guess is that we will see Paula on X Factor come fall 2011..
via Daily Beast and Hollywood Reporter