American Idol Will changes fill void left by Simon Cowell?
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| On the new season of “American Idol,” host Ryan Seacrest (from left) will appear with new judges Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler, along with judging veteran Randy Jackson. |
And it will also feature, the network promises, a renewed focus on the warbling would-be stars who are supposed to be the singing smash’s reason for existence in the first place.
Ah, but something will be missing. Oh, right — the sassy guy with the flattop and tight T-shirts.
The big suspense surrounding the new “Idol” isn’t whether Steven Tyler will be introduced as Liv Tyler’s father or Jennifer Lopez will salvage her fading career. The Aerosmith frontman and Bronx-born J-Lo were picked as new judges amid a seemingly endless carnival of speculation last summer.
Instead, the real story centers on whether the show will survive the departure of Simon Cowell, the caustic lead judge who rode his merciless putdowns of auditioners to high-powered stardom.
The stakes are incredibly high for Fox. “Idol” is the No. 1 series on television and has propelled Fox to repeated victories in the crucial demographic of adults ages 18 to 49, according to the Nielsen Co. The singing contest has generated hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for Fox and made it almost impossible for ABC and NBC to compete in midweek during the winter and spring.
CBS, the most-watched network, has fared much better but has nevertheless been held to a counterprogramming strategy, batting back the “Idol” threat with franchise crime series such as “Criminal Minds” and “NCIS,” which skew heavily toward older viewers.
And at a time when broadcasting was supposed to be slumping off into irrelevance, “Idol” proved that 30 million viewers will still crowd around a network show, provided it’s the right network show.
At least for the record, Fox executives insist there’s little cause for concern. “Idol” just needs a few tweaks and, in any event, a somewhat less big “Idol” is still huge.
“For any show in its 10th season to be holding up as well as ‘Idol’ is a testament to the show,” said Preston Beckman, Fox’s research and scheduling guru. “It’s been about 60 percent higher than the next highest-rated show, so worst-case scenario, it’ll still be the biggest show on television.”
“Idol” indeed has a long way to fall before it could be considered in trouble. It has been the No. 1 program for a record six straight years — longer than any show, scripted or otherwise, including “All in the Family,” “The Cosby Show” and “I Love Lucy.”
This season, the network is hoping “Idol” can push it to the top of the heap on Thursdays, a night where Fox has been weak. Executives made the decision to move the results show there (after following a Tuesday-Wednesday schedule in years past) after CBS pulled “Survivor” off the night.
“We could go into next season as the No. 1 network on Thursday night,” Beckman said.
But there is a sense that Fox is on the defensive, that the network must stop more air from escaping the “Idol” balloon. Last May’s finale drew 24.2 million total viewers — still an enormous figure, but “Idol’s” worst season closer since its first back in 2002. Critics griped about the perceived blandness of the contestants, including runner-up Crystal Bowersox and the self-effacing winner, Lee DeWyze.
Even the show’s once formidable infrastructure seemed out of whack. After Kara DioGuardi was added in 2009, trying to accommodate reactions from a quartet of judges threw off the pacing and often made the program run long. And Ellen DeGeneres, who was hired last year to replace Paula Abdul at the judge’s table, proved an awkward fit.
Cowell exited after last season to prepare his own talent contest, “The X Factor,” for a Fox run later this year, and DioGuari and DeGeneres did not return, leaving Randy Jackson as the only remaining original judge.
“In the past couple years, it was like so much oxygen seemed to be consumed by everything going on the judges’ panel that the poor kids hardly had a chance to introduce themselves,” said Richard Rushfield, author of the forthcoming book “ ‘American Idol’: The Untold Story.”
Perhaps as a result, the last few crops of “Idol” singers haven’t broken through to mainstream success the way earlier performers did, such as Season 1’s Kelly Clarkson, Season 4’s Carrie Underwood and Season 5’s Chris Daughtry (who did not win or make the finals of the contest).
“The biggest thing that ‘Idol’ needs to do this year,” Rushfield said, “is produce a major recording star. They haven’t done that in a lot of years, and it’s sort of the premise of the show.”
Whether Tyler, J-Lo & Co. are up to the task remains to be seen. Early promos have given little indication of their style
“(Cowell) was the master of brutal honesty, but he really knew the business,” industry analyst Shari Anne Brill said. “If the replacements and the new formatting of the show (don’t) get people from the beginning, it’s going to hurt.”
NEXT WEEK
“American Idol” returns with a two-hour season premiere starting at 7 next Wednesday on Fox. The results show follows on Thursdays.
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