The FOX singing competition will end after the upcoming 15th season which is scheduled to begin in January next year.
- May 11, 2015
AceShowbiz -
"American Idol" is coming to an end. The singing competition has been canceled by FOX ahead of the current season's two-part finale on May 12 and 13. "It was not an easy decision," the network's chief Gary Newman said during a conference call.
The 15th season will start in January 2016 and "pay tribute to the past 14 seasons." Ryan Seacrest is announced to return as a host while Keith Urban, Jennifer Lopez, and Harry Connick Jr. are confirmed to reprise their roles as judges for the final cycle.
"Yes next year will be our final season of @AmericanIdol :( this show's been a big part of my life for so long... hard to imagine it w/out it," the host reacted to the news on Twitter. "You guys I was 27 when we started idol...just a kid."
Some of the "Idol" graduates also weighed in on the cancellation. "Changed the game and changed my life. Thanks @AmericanIdol," tweeted 2009 winner Kris Allen. The runner-up Adam Lambert told Billboard, "They had a great run. And thank you, Idol, because I wouldn't be here without you."
Seacrest is the mainstay on the talent show since it started in 2002 with Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson as juries. The panel has since undergone several changes that include Kara DioGuardi, Ellen DeGeneres, Steven Tyler, Mariah Carey, and Nicki Minaj. The contest has helped launch the careers of Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, and Jennifer Hudson among others.
"We'd welcome any of them back," Newman said of the alums. "We really wanted to do it in a way that felt special and celebratory," he explained, adding that they wouldn't move it back to summer. "The right way to send this show out is ... in the time period it's had for the last few years."
