Fox Executives Slam ABC's 'Extremely Fraudulent' ‘American Idol’ Remake
May 15 2017, Published 7:46 p.m. ET
Not everyone is happy to see American Idol back on the air — especially the executives at Fox, RadarOnline.com has learned!
During a conference call with reporters today, Fox TV chairman Dana Walden criticized Idol producer FremantleMedia for ditching their network and taking the show’s over to ABC, Entertainment Weekly reported.
“They were determined to get this show back on the air as quickly as possible,” Walden said. “We spent about $25 million sending a clear message that it was the farewell season.”
Walden says Fox was interested in another season, but wanted to wait a few more years before a reboot.
However, according to Walden, FremantleMedia, wanted to keep the same format and judges, and claims the rush back to air is just a bid to make a quick buck.
“It felt to us it would be extremely fraudulent to bring the show back quickly,” Walden added. “That fans would not appreciate being told one thing and then having the show brought back right away.”
As RadarOnline.com first reported, the hit show will be headed to ABC next year, with a few major changes.
New judges are rumored to include Katy Perry or even Kanye West.
But one mega-star AI alumna who WON’T be back is Kelly Clarkson! RadarOnline.com readers already know that Clarkson is spurning Idol to appear on rival show The Voice!
As for Fox’s rejection, Walden points to the steep ratings nosedive Idol suffered at the end as a reason not to rush it back.
“We thought it was too early to bring the show back,” Walden said. “All of our research and all of our fan forums supported that notion."
“We did not see the fan excitement and enthusiasm for the show to come back that Fremantle did. We just had a different set of facts.”
Do you agree? Is it too soon to bring back American Idol? Or can you not wait? Let us know in the comments section!
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