Simon Cowell told The Hollywood Reporter at a recent X Factor screening that he “couldn’t give a sh*t” about rival singing competition, The Voice, winning an Emmy for Outstanding Reality Competition Show.
“The only thing I care about are the ratings [for my show],” he told The Hollywood Reporter with a laugh at an X Factor screening party, held at West Hollywood’s Soho House on Monday evening. There Cowell, along with fellow judges Demi Lovato, Kelly Rowland and Paulina Rubio, premiered a 20-minute clip of the forthcoming “four-chair challenge” round — a new sudden-death elimination twist to air in the coming weeks.
Those of you who watched the X Factor UK over the weekend got a taste of the Four Chair Challenge, where contestants play a game of musical chairs to earn a spot in the live shows. After a performance, the judges seat contestants they deem worthy to move on. But, if another performance down the line impresses them more, they have the option of “swapping out” an already seated contestant.
Sounds pretty gruesome, doesn’t it?
“We thought we can make this bigger and better,” said Simon. “It aired in England over the weekend and people went nuts — half loving it and half hating it.”
The thing is, kinder and gentler is the the thing now. It’s part of The Voice’s shtick and it seems to be working for them. I’m betting this new twist won’t go over so well with fans and pundits, but we’ll see.
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And as an aside, Simon’s baby mama, Lauren Silverman was by his side during the screening. ” The two later nuzzled in a corner by themselves before Cowell sat down for a procession of interviews. Silverman didn’t budge,” wrote THR.
