I hope they saved the set from the American Idol Experience at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. The latest word out of Hollywood is that Disney’s ABC TV network is in late-stage negotiations to become the new home to the rebooted American Idol reality TV series.
American Idol originally aired on Fox, but the production company FreemantleMedia North America and CORE Media Group are considering a reboot of the series and ABC is the expected home for the show. Both Fox and NBC were also being considered.
Although it seems like ages ago, the last American Idol season actually ended in April of 2016. Even before the last show aired, the shows producers were talking about how the show wasn’t going away forever, just that it needed a break.
If the show does return it will likely look very different from a talent perspective. Idol Judges Simon Cowell and Jennifer Lopez are under contract with NBC while Idol host Ryan Seacrest just took a regular hosting job on Live with Kelly & Ryan, which is based in New York.
ABC’s two prior attempts at a music competition series, Duets and Rising Star, both failed pretty miserably.
The original show ran for 15 seasons from 2002 through 2016. Along the way there were a number of spin-offs including “American Juniors,” “The Next Great American Band,” and “From Justin to Kelly.” Some of the breakout stars from the show include Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Jordin Sparks, and Phillip Phillips. Chris Daughtry is perhaps the most successful non-winner to emerge from the competition. By the last season, the air had pretty much been let out of the series, I bet your don’t even recognize the names Nick Fradiani or Trent Harmon, the last two winners to emerge from the show.
Do you have a favorite artist who got their start on American Idol? Did you ever attend the theme park version of the show at Disney’s Hollywood Studios? Would you like to see American Idol return to TV? Who knows, maybe you can be the next American Idol!
ABC must be really desperate for programming. Reviving a dead reality show that had burned out its audience doesn’t seem like a smart move, no matter how cheap it is to produce. Oh, well. It’s another couple hours per week I can watch better shows on cable and streaming services.
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