Britney Spears may be retired from her pop music career now, but after reaching such iconic levels of fame, there was a time when she wanted to help others do the same. In 2012 she joined The X Factor as a judge alongside Simon Cowell, but she only lasted one season, writing in her memoir that she "absolutely hated” being on the show. Cowell has now spoken out about why he thinks she had a bad experience.

Why Britney Spears Said She ‘Hated’ Her Time On The X Factor

In 2023, Britney Spears made some wild revelations in The Woman in Me, spilling the tea about her family, the constraints of her conservatorship and her Y2K romance and breakup with Justin Timberlake. One topic she tackled was The X Factor, where she joined creator Simon Cowell, L.A. Reid and Demi Lovato on the judging panel.

She wrote that while people like Christina Aguilera and Gwen Stefani thrived when the cameras were on them, she no longer had the same comfort that she did when she was younger, and she got “very, very nervous” on days when they were filming. Her memoir reads (via the New York Post):

Simon Cowell, seemingly unaware of these comments, spoke to some of these same issues when he discussed Britney Spears with the New York Times.

Simon Cowell Says Britney Spears ‘Wasn’t Happy’ On The Singing Competition

It’s a shame that The X Factor ended up being a bad experience for Britney Spears, because according to the America’s Got Talent judge, she was the one who reached out to him about joining the panel. According to Simon Cowell:

The record executive scheduled a second call to make sure their productive conversation hadn’t been “a fluke,” but it was the opposite. He said their next meeting was “even better,” and he was blown away by how smart and friendly she was. However, things took a turn when they started auditioning artists for The X Factor Season 2. Cowell continued:

I think every artist who’s appeared as a judge or coach on a singing competition has experienced the agony of rejecting hopeful contestants. Carrie Underwood struggled with it when she returned to American Idol, and the whole reason Ariana Grande won’t return to The Voice is because she got too attached to her team members.

Simon Cowell understood that as well, but said he explained to Britney Spears that they simply couldn’t put everybody through to the next round. If she really didn’t want to do the job, he said he’d get her out of it. They talked for hours about it outside of the show, as he said:

When Britney Spears’ comment about how she “absolutely hated” being on the show was brought up, Simon Cowell responded as if he didn’t know she’d written that, saying, “Did she?” and then:

The “... Baby One More Time” artist may not have fond memories of her time on the Fox reality competition show, but Simon Cowell’s opinion of her hasn’t changed. In fact, back in 2023 when it looked like the OG American Idol judge might revive The X Factor, Britney Spears was his first choice to join him at the judges’ table.

Simon Cowell knows talent when he sees it, and it’s not hard to see why he’s insistent that Britney’s star quality, choreography, styling, song choice and knowledge of the business are exactly the qualities that would make her valuable to up-and-comers.

Unfortunately it doesn't sound like a role that she would consider going back to.

Simon Cowell has helped discover many A-list musicians through his work on American Idol and X Factor. However, his biggest success story is probably the formation of One Direction. In the 2010s the boyband took the world by storm, and following their breakup Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne went on to have successful solo careers with some reaching incredible levels of superstardom by themselves. Now, the judge who brought them together is reflecting on signing them after X Factor, and he revealed his one “regret” about their deal.

When it comes to a One Direction reunion, Simon Cowell has said he’s here for it, and every once in a while he throws it back to the old days when 1D was on X Factor to reminisce. However, he also recently said on The Diary of a CEO podcast that he doubts they’ll ever get back together. With that in mind, the America’s Got Talent judge explained that he has one “regret” about the deal he made with them back in the day, and it all comes down to that iconic name:

When One Direction was signed, the five members of the band got the rights to its name. Cowell didn’t get any of it. Now, it sounds like the judge regrets it because he’s not able to capitalize on it since the members are no longer together. 

Now, all five have careers of their own, and the prospect of 1D coming back together is slim to none. With Harry Styles being a megastar, Niall Horan finding success through his solo career and his work as a coach on The Voice, and Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne all releasing multiple solo projects, all of them are thriving by themselves. Therefore, Cowell can’t capitalize on One Direction at the moment. 

He went on to explain this regret further, saying: 

If Simon Cowell had ownership of the name One Direction it seems like he would have continued to keep creating work under it. Whether that’s a TV special or having a few of the members tour without some of the others, he wouldn't have let the name slide into the past as its members moved forward. 

Cowell went on to explain that he believes they all own 20% of the name, and that led him to say that at times he can be “naive.”  The former American Idol judge said:

So, if he goes on to discover another boyband who becomes as big as One Direction, he’ll be keeping the name. However, while he said he has plans to do just that on the podcast, he’s also very busy with his various judging gigs, because America’s Got Talent just kicked into high gear on the 2024 TV schedule. 

With all that in mind, it’s interesting to hear Simon Cowell reflect on one of the most successful moments of his career and point out what he would have done differently. While he occasionally does not like the finalists who end up on shows like the Got Talents and X Factor, sometimes he strikes gold and gets a phenomenon like One Direction. However, even when you reach that level of success, there's still room for regret, as the judge explained. 

To see what all these guys are up to now, you can catch Cowell on America’s Got Talent every Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesdays on NBC or with a Peacock subscription. As for the former boyband, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson are both on tour, Harry Styles is on a break after his massive tour, and Zayn Malik and Liam Payne both released new music this year. 

So, while you can’t hear new One Direction music or see any of the projects Cowell would have made if he owned their name, there’s no shortage of music and entertainment when it comes to these guys. 

While Simon Cowell has been killing it as a judge on America’s Got Talent and Britain's Got Talent for a while now, we can’t forget his iconic runs on singing competitions like American Idol and more specifically the UK’s X Factor. Most notably, he is the guy who took the five boys of One Direction under his wing during their time on the English series. Now, he’s throwing it back to his days working with the boy band, and it hit me right in the feels. Ah, nostalgia.

To show his love for Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne and Zayn Malik, Cowell posted some unseen footage from X Factor on his Instagram. In the video, he notes that he is “quietly confident” in One Direction, saying that he “just got a feeling that we may have something special.” Well, boy did they! After their time on the show, this boy band went on to be an international sensation, so I think it’s safe to say the longtime judge had a very good gut feeling about them. You can hear everything the current AGT judge said about the budding boy band in his adorable video below:

After throwing it back, and making me feel all the feelings about these boys’ beginnings back in 2010, Simon Cowell drove the point home with a sweet message. He wrote:

Not only were these guys a powerhouse boyband, they also seem like genuinely good people, and it looks like that’s one of the primary reasons Simon Cowell has so much affection for them. He’s also one of their big cheerleaders, because like a lot of 1D’s fans, the former American Idol judge is all for a One Direction reunion. 

Along with being a super sweet video, it also is so nostalgic. I was in middle school when One Direction broke big. So, seeing the boys as teenagers is giving me flashbacks to singing along to “What Makes You Beautiful” and seeing my classmates hang photos of their favorite band members up in their lockers. If you really want a nostalgia trip, check out this clip of Harry Styles audition for The X Factor, because that along with Cowell’s video will really drive that point home:

These days, all the members of One Direction have great solo careers, and they have found major success. 

For example, Harry Styles just finished a massive world tour and starred in movies like My Policeman and Don’t Worry Darling. He also performs a song or two from back in the day during his concert, and he was seen rocking a 1D shirt this spring, so it’s clear he still adores the boyband. 

Along with him, Niall Horan recently released his third album, and he’s going to be returning as a coach on The Voice when it premieres on the 2023 TV schedule later this fall. The “Heaven” singer even opened up about how his own time as a contestant on X Factor impacted his experience on The Voice. 

It really seems like Simon Cowell is truly proud of the members of One Direction, and he looks back on his time working with them fondly. It’s pretty wild to think that he discovered the singers over a decade ago. However, looking at where they all are now, it’s clear that they’ve all grown so much as artists and people since their time on X Factor, and that makes me super emotional. 

Back in 2012, up-and-coming musician Lucy Spraggan was 20 years old and experienced quite the life-changing moment via an opportunity to audition for one of the most influential unscripted series of the past 25 years: The X Factor. As created by Simon Cowell, the precedessor to American Idol was as popular as ever, with the wildly successful group One Direction turning their 2010 third-place spot into international fame and fortune. Despite crushing it during the auditions and early weeks of competition, Spraggan bowed out of the season after three weeks of live performances, with an unidentified illness as the reasoning. Now, the singer-songwriter has opened up and revealed the actual reason for her exit is that she was raped after a night of show-sponsored celebrating. 

 After eleven years of holding onto that trauma and the many other emotions tethered to such a damaging experience, Lucy Spraggan is now at a place both personally and professionally where she feels comfortable sharing her story with fans and the public at large. Her entire journey is laid out in her memoir Process (set for release on July 20), from the initial incident to the years of drinking, drugs and partying that served as the aftermath. She spoke at length with The Guardian about that harrowing time in her life, and while she feels that the X Factor producers at the time failed at providing enough support after the fact, she gave credit to Simon Cowell for being an authentic pillar of consolation and encouragement. 

Though he wasn’t part of the judge’s table during Spraggan’s season, as he was busy helping turn America’s Got Talent into a ratings winner here in the U.S., Cowell reportedly reached out to Spraggan through a rep in 2021 after she wrote letters to The X Factor’s corporate powers that be, including ITV, Syco and Fremantle, seeking more information about that time. Cowell shared the following statement about the matter: 

Speaking to that, Cowell and Spraggan are said to have grown closer in the two years or so since they first connected, to the point where her upcoming seventh album, Balance, was revealed to be the first release under the musician's deal with Cowell's record label Syco Music.

Lucy Spraggan admitted that she was initially hesitant to get on the phone with the X Factor creator, especially after responses from ITV and others left her feeling as if she wasn't ever going to get a proper apology from anyone on the industry side. However, she claimed it was exactly what was needed at the time, saying:

During their initial talk, Spraggan said that Cowell shared that he was "truly, truly sorry" that he wasn't there for her in a proper capacity, and that he'd thought about her many times over the years, regretting that he hadn't approached her before. Considering the timing of it all, the singer copped to being slightly suspcious about how genuine the mega-producer's offer to work together was, but says she was convinced that he was trying to do the right thing by her, despite likely being warned against it by others. In her words:

During the fourth week of X Factor live shows back in 2012, Spraggan went out to celebrate the 25th birthday of fellow LGBTQ+ contestant Rylan Clark (with whom she'd recently been booted from the show's go-to hotel and moved to a less secure hotel nearby). At some point, she passed out and was brought back to the new hotel by someone from production, with a porter stepping in to help bring her back to her room. It's alleged that the porter left the lock unlatched, which Clark himself discovered when he stopped by the room to check on Spraggan. Upon leaving, he flipped the latch back inside and closed the door properly.

After this, the porter used one of the hotel's keycards to gain access to Spraggan's room, where he is said to have raped her. The keycard is essentially how justice was able to be served, as the hotel employee was quickly arrested, and was later convcted of rape and sentenced to ten years in prison. But while that was a somewhat straightforward process, it was anything but for the musician in the days, months, and years that followed. She spent more than ten years with that burden weighing heavily, and it started having widespread negative ramifictions. After substance abuse and other questionable actions caused her to get dropped from her label, she attempted suicide in 2014. 

Since that time, Lucy Spraggan has thought many times about going public with her story, particularly after the #MeToo movement gained ground, and after the former X Factor presenter Caroline Flack took her own life in 2020. Part of the fear of speaking out is that she worried she might forever be thought of only in the context of experiencing her reality TV tragedy, and told The Guardian that the working title for her memoir was Are You That Girl? But she built up the confidence to share her story with fans after proving to herself just how successful she's been as an artist. And one that didn't even need the accolades of winning X Factor to make it all happen.

Speaking of the competition series, Simon Cowell has talked in recent years about resurrecting it from its end in 2018, and the current success that Harry Styles is enjoying is another reminder of what reality TV awareness can bring to an artist (even despite auditions that don't win crowds over). Cowell has also talked about bringing Britney Spears into the fold, although he may want to have Spraggan on a shortlist of potential returnees as well.

Here's hoping Spraggan experiences a ton of happiness, validation and support with the impending releases of both her new album Balance and her autobiography Process. 

The X Factor may have only aired for three seasons in the United States, but it still made a big mark in the pop culture scene. If nothing else, we have it to thank for giving us the girl group Fifth Harmony, whose members — including Camila Cabello and Normani — have since gone solo. Meanwhile we have the U.K. series, which ended a 15-season run in 2018, to thank for Harry Styles. Simon Cowell, who created both versions of the show, is apparently talking about reviving the series, and he explained why he would want Britney Spears involved if that happens.

Simon Cowell, the record executive who also created America’s Got Talent, Britain’s Got Talent and was part of the original judges’ panel on American Idol, thinks with the abundance of talent that can be found on social media these days, competition shows like his are especially important. That’s apparently why he’s reportedly in talks to revive The X Factor, ET reports. As for which country he’s got his eye on, the AGT judge said: 

While the American series ran from 2011 to 2013 on Fox, Simon Cowell is reportedly in talks to bring the series back on NBC. The TV personality has worked with some amazing talent over the years across different judging panels, including Paula Abdul, Demi Lovato, Kelly Rowland, but when it comes to reuniting with any former judge of The X Factor, Cowell has one name in mind. It’s Britney, bitch. Cowell said of the Season 2 judge: 

He does have a point about Britney Spears’ well-rounded experience in the industry. This is actually pretty exciting, because not only does Simon Cowell seem to be all-in on reviving The X Factor, it sounds like he’s really into the idea of bringing back the pop sensation. 

His praise of Britney Spears as being “super smart” echoes Iggy Azalea’s feelings, as the rapper recently opened up about their 2015 collaboration, “Pretty Girls.” While Azalea acknowledged that Spears was “limited” by the confines of her conservatorship, she said the “Toxic” singer is “so much more creative than people give her credit for.” Like Simon Cowell, Iggy Azalea said she’d love to team up with Britney Spears again.

Everything is coming up Britney, and I know her fans would love to see her in more projects, after she teamed up with Sir Elton John last year for their duet, “Hold Me Closer.” Now that Spears is calling her own shots regarding her life and career, would she want to return to The X Factor judges’ table? All we can do is wait and hope! In the meantime, see what premieres are coming soon to TV and streaming with our 2023 TV schedule. 

For the past several decades, Simon Cowell has been one of the hardest working people in show business. The music mogul has been instrumental in establishing the careers of notable acts like One Direction and Fifth Harmony and, of course, he’s also been a consistent fixture on TV. Cowell has been part of several popular reality competition programs and currently has gigs on the “exciting” America’s Got Talent and its U.K.-based counterpart. One show that fans still pester him about, though, is The X Factor, which he’s since departed. But now, the star has revealed what it would take for him to return to the series.

Simon Cowell created The X Factor, which originally debuted as a series in the UK back in 2004. The show eventually spawned a massive media franchise that included spinoffs in different countries around the world. The U.S. version of the show became particularly popular and, as Cowell recently revealed, he still gets recognized for it. While the producer says that he’s content with his other business ventures at the moment, he confirmed that he would bring back the show if he and those involved could recapture the unique essence that the program possessed in the early aughts: 

The man does make a good point. One could argue that these days, many singing competition series put heavy emphasis on the star power it can get for its judges panel. Back in the day, the main appeal of these types of shows was the prospect of seeing a regular person get their big break in the music industry. For instance, it’s easy to remember the first season of American Idol, which marked the rise of Kelly Clarkson (who iced out Simon Cowell during the entirety of that competition).

It honestly wouldn’t be a bad idea if the British TV presenter were to bring X Factor back. As he noted during his interview with The Sun, the show is still very popular online, thanks to YouTube. Plenty of fans go to the account to check out classic moments, such as Harry Styles’ full audition. If a revival could recapture the spirit of the original, there’s a firm chance it could find some success. 

Of course, there is still the matter of Simon Cowell’s schedule. While he has been making an effort to take things a bit slower, he still has a lot on his plate with his commitments to the Got Talent series. An ample amount of creative freedom on a theoretical X Factor revival could entice him to make the time, though, I suppose. (Plus, it would give him less time to fiddle around with e-bikes in the aftermath of his injuries.)

Best believe that if Simon Cowell were to formulate a new X Factor show in the U.S., a network wouldn’t turn its nose up to it. We’ll see if he opts to add another TV project to his schedule or if he manages to keep his schedule as is. 

Over here in the states, you’ll be able to see the veteran star when America’s Got Talent eventually returns to NBC for its new season. You can occupy yourself in the meantime by watching other reality competition shows that are on the 2022 TV schedule.

It may be hard to believe, but it’s been 12 years since one of the biggest boybands in the world was formed on The X Factor: One Direction. And to celebrate the anniversary of the group's formation, the UK singing competition not only posted a never-before-seen video detailing how exactly the boys were chosen to be in a group together but also Harry Styles’ full audition for the first time. And surprisingly, the crowd was not exactly as hyped to see the performer as many are today.

In the video posted by The X Factor UK, a charming 16-year-old Harry Styles sung Train’s hit “Hey, Soul Sister.” Unfortunately, Simon Cowell was not very impressed, and the crowd was as silent as can be. In true Styles fashion, he was still smiling the entire time, despite playing to a quiet audience. Luckily, the tough-as-nails judge gave Styles another chance to sing without music and, of course, the rest is history. Check it out below:

I definitely can't get over the fact that the crowd was dead silent during some of Harry Styles’ performance, and it's even more ironic considering he's arguably become the most successful of his former bandmates, career wise. Though in the video, it sounds like the "Watermelon Sugar" performer quickly won over fans with his acapella version of “Isn’t She Lovely” by Stevie Wonder. Of course, that would only be the first of many rounds of praise that he would receive from an audience.

The video is enough to make fans nostalgic for One Direction's beginnings in 2010, but it can also be used to, just for a little bit, move fans away from some of the drama that has surrounded the since broken-up group over this summer. There has been an ongoing feud between Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson and, in a recent interview, Liam Payne mentioned that he was the intended leader of 1D.

Harry Styles, meanwhile, has been busy with his ongoing world tour and preparing for the release the Olivia Wilde-directed thriller, Don’t Worry Darling, in which the performer stars alongside Florence Pugh. The film is just one of a several upcoming projects that Styles has on the docket, and he doesn’t seem to be slowing down any time soon. Of course, he's playing Marvel's Eros, who appeared at the end of Eternals.

The singer and actor has obviously come a long way since his X Factor audition, as he's become way more confident as a performer -- and gets plenty of screaming fans at his shows these days. It's an amazing come-up, to say the least, and I'm sure he doesn't miss that silent crowd. 

If you still can, catch Harry Styles on the road for Love On Tour now! Don’t Worry Darling is set to release on September 23rd as part of CinemaBlend’s 2022 movies schedule. And you can find more reality competition offerings like The X Factor on the 2022 TV schedule.

Having first broken into the world of entertainment through the UK singing competition series The X Factor, former boy bander Tom Mann shared a shocking and tragic update with fans and followers. Early on the morning of Saturday, June 18,  the same day that Mann was set to marry his fiancée Dani Hampson, she suddenly died for as yet unreported reasons, despite reportedly having no apparent medical issues. This was the couple’s second attempt to make it down the aisle, with their initial 2020 wedding date being delayed due to COVID-related reasons, and so Mann was appropriately heartbroken and emotional in talking about the tragedy on social media. 

With his other most recent post celebrating a BMI Pop Award (Broadcast Music, Inc) as a songwriter fro Tate McRae, Troye Sivan and DJ Regard’s single “You,” Tom Mann opened up about his unthinkable loss on Instagram, sharing a picture of Hampson with their son Bowie, along with a touching message. In his words:

Without knowing the circumstances behind Dani Hampson’s death, or any other details regarding this highly personal situation, one can only assume that it came across as a shock to all involved. Had she been suffering from a preexisting illness, it’s likely the wedding date would have been moved up at some point, though changes might not have been possible. Regardless of how things happened, the outcome was amassed grief and mourning, with Tom Mann speaking to the idea of staying strong so that he can keep raising their son Bowie to keep his mother’s memories in mind. According to Mann:

There’s no doubt that Dani Hampson will continue to loom large in Tom Mann’s life in the years to come, and that he’ll have many stories to tell their son about her, not to mention photos to share and other meaningful memories. And there may come a day where he’ll be able to appreciate that, but for now, the pain is likely too strong. 

Here’s how Tom Mann closed out his heartfelt and intensely touching post:

While he might not be able to stay in constant contact with his followers, here’s hoping kind words and encouragement on social media will help make these trying times as easy to handle as possible. 

Around three weeks prior to her death, Dani Hampson shared photos on her Instagram page of her, Tom and Bowie together and seemingly in good spirits, as they were in just about every image she’d shared with her followers. Below, fans can read through Mann's post in full.

As fans of the competition series will likely remember, Simon Cowell (who’s served as a judge on the original UK iteration of The X Factor among other international versions) wasn’t so high on bringing former football coach Tom Mann into the competition after his Season 11 audition in 2014. Mann, who performed his take on Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way,” may not have made it through to the next round that season, but he and other rejected contestants were still impressive enough for producers to bring together as the boy band Stereo Kicks, somewhat similar to how One Direction was formed. Unfortunately, after they weren’t able to secure a record deal in the first year after forming, the group disbanded, with Mann going on to work as a songwriter and producer with other artists.

The past year also witnessed tragedy befalling another X Factor vet, as former contestant Thomas Wells was killed in a conveyor belt-related accident in October 2021. On a far different note from the year prior, former contestant and X Factor touring musician Phillip Blackwell was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of rape and other related crimes.

We here at CinemaBlend send our thoughts and condolences to the family and friends of Tom Mann and Dani Hampson during their time of mourning.

Thomas Wells, the singer best known for his singing performances on reality competition series like Fox's The X-Factor has sadly passed away. Wells’ death was the result of a tragic accident involving a conveyor belt at the tire factory he worked at in Oklahoma. The performer was 46 at the time of his death. 

News of his death was announced by his wife, Jessica Wells, who confirmed to TMZ that her husband passed away on November 13. Wells revealed that Thomas was working at the plant when part of his body was caught in an automatic conveyor belt. He was then rushed to a nearby Oklahoma hospital before being airlifted to a bigger one in Texas. Though it was reportedly believed that the specials in Tyler, TX could help him, Wells was eventually declared dead at that second hospital. 

Thomas Wells first rose to prominence when he competed on The X-Factor back in 2011, during which many lauded him for his strong singing voice. A few years later, he returned to television as a contestant on NBC’s short-lived vocal game show The Winner Is. He would later go on to appear on both America’s Got Talent and The Voice, where he received similar praises. In the years since his on-air performances, Wells continued to post videos of his song covers on social media. For instance in one of his videos, he performed a rendition of Rascal Flatts' “Changed." You can see it for yourself down below:

Jessica and Thomas Wells had been married since 2003, according to his obituary. It also notes that Wells loved “to joke” and “make people laugh” and also made note of his passion for singing hymns and contemporary music. In a Facebook video, Jessica chronicled her first time visiting her husband’s grave since his passing. It was during this time that she recalled how she and her family sat with him at his bedside and played his favorite song, “I Can Only Imagine.” Although she expressed sadness over her husband’s death, she remains optimistic in one regard:

Thomas Wells definitely solidified himself as one of the most unique talents to ever grace the stage of a reality competition series. While he certainly had powerful vocals, what was even more impressive about the performer is that he was self-taught. Though he’ll certainly be missed by his loved ones, it’s sweet to see that his wife is choosing to remain positive and honor her husband’s memory.

We here at CinemaBlend extend our thoughts and condolences to the family and loved ones of Thomas Wells at this time.

Simon Cowell is one of the hardest-working people in show business. Not only is the music mogul still a record executive, but he also holds down multiple gigs as a judge on reality competition shows like America’s Got Talent. However, the actor’s busy routine had to be put on the back burner for a while after he broke his back last year. Cowell has since recovered but, moving forward, he may be considering how he’s keeping his body. Now, Randy Jackson, Cowell’s former American Idol colleague, has chimed in with a bit of advice for his friend.

Simon Cowell originally broke his back after falling off his newly acquired electric motorcycle at his home. Shortly after, he underwent a five-hour surgery, which was ultimately successful. Randy Jackson is no stranger to back surgery, as he’s previously had work done on his spine. The always jovial Jackson can find plenty of humor in the fact that both he and Cowell now have back problems at this stage in their lives:

Based on his recent comments to ET, it appears Randy Jackson has been in contact with Simon Cowell since the incident, as he emphasized just how well the TV judge is doing. And he’s not wrong, as Cowell was already jet-skiing like a pro before the latter part of 2020.

An incident like Cowell’s is sure to make one seriously consider whether they’re taking proper care of their body. Randy Jackson knows this firsthand, having gone through a 114-pound weight loss transformation over the past few years. With this, he’s offered Cowell a few words of wisdom:

Randy Jackson couldn’t be more correct. Our bodies definitely change as the years go by, so proper rest, exercise and care become incredibly important. Jackson’s fitness journey is just one example of the benefits of treating your body well, and his story is definitely an inspiration for any looking to improve their routine.

Simon Cowell’s back injury appeared to be quite serious, with his friends and colleagues showing concern for him. Thankfully, the recovery has gone smoothly for him. He’s currently throwing himself into new activities and has even lined up a new gig as a judge on The X Factor Israel.

Despite his still active schedule, one would assume that Simon Cowell will heed Randy Jackson’s advice and not overdue things. Because let’s be honest, even world-renowned celebrities need their rest now and then.

For many of us, Simon Cowell has been a consistent part of our TV viewing experience for nearly two decades now. The host and music producer became a true fixture in pop culture after debuting as a brutally honest judge on Fox’s American Idol back in 2002. Since then, he’s gone on to host various shows like The X-Factor and America’s Got Talent. Cowell’s future on the latter program is still up in the air at the moment, and we recently learned that his other show, Britain’s Got Talent, has been cancelled. But the host is still returning to TV in another way.

Britain’s Got Talent was recently cancelled by ITV due to producers expressing concerns about the safety of the cast and crew due to the COVID-19 pandemic, per Deadline. The news comes as a serious blow, given the popularity of the show. With this, it would appear that Simon Cowell doesn’t have any major TV gigs on the docket, but that’s not true. Luckily, it was recently reported that Cowell is set to serve as a judge on The X Factor Israel, alongside his other upcoming projects. The seasoned TV personality will join the fourth season of Israel’s iteration of the franchise Cowell himself helped create.

Leave it to Simon Cowell to always have his next job lined up. Over the years, the host has proven to be one of the most active people in show business, and it sometimes feels as though he never slows down. However, Cowell was recently forced to do just that due to a pretty dangerous situation.

Some may remember that at the end of last summer, Simon Cowell broke his back after falling off his electric bike at his home. Cowell was immediately rushed to the hospital and promptly underwent a six-hour surgery. While he was in pain, he couldn’t help but take to social media to update his fans on his condition and poke fun at himself for hastily trying out his new ride.

Despite concerns from his fans and colleagues, Cowell definitely seems to be doing much better now. Months after breaking his back, he had already begun working on different projects and was happily enjoying outdoor activities, including riding a jet ski like a champ.

Although Simon Cowell is returning in The X-Factor Israel, one still has to wonder what lies ahead for him as far as America’s Got Talent is concerned. Cowell’s back seems to have healed, but the producers are still concerned about the ongoing pandemic and are likely figuring out how best to proceed at this time.

It's sad to hear that Britain's Got Talent is done, and one can only hope Simon Cowell gets another chance to serve as a judge on America’s Got Talent. But in the meantime, it’s good to know that he’ll still be able to carry out his judging duties on X-Factor Israel.

America’s Got Talent Season 16 may not have a set release date just yet, but there are plenty of other shows for you to check out, which can be found in our 2021 winter TV schedule.

Reality TV judge extraordinaire Simon Cowell had to abruptly exit the latest season of America's Got Talent after breaking his back, leading to a slew of guest judges while he recovered. Now, Cowell is on his way back to television, but not for the new season of America's Got Talent next. Cowell will judge a season of one of the international editions of The X Factor.

Simon Cowell is on board to judge the upcoming season of The X Factor Israel, according to Deadline. The Israel version of the hit series that Cowell created in the United Kingdom has aired for three seasons so far, although has been on a break for several years. The last season aired from October 2017 to January 28. Cowell will serve as judge for the fourth season.

Although there are no details about when the fourth season of The X Factor Israel will air on Israel's Reshet 13 network, Simon Cowell has evidently recovered enough from his back injury to return to his work as a reality TV judge (and go jet-skiing). The show has reportedly just gone into production, which presumably means The X Factor Israel will be ready for the airwaves in the first half of 2021.

No other judges have been announced at the time of writing, but previous judge panels included rock singer Rami Fortis, pop singer and songwriter Moshe Peretz, rapper Subliminal, R&B singer Shiri Maimon, and pop singer Ivri Lider. Let it not be said that The X Factor Israel didn't cover its bases when it comes to music genres! Supermodel Bar Refaeli has served as host.

Simon Cowell is arguably best known for The X Factor, although he rose to fame in the United States as the most critical judge on the original run of American Idol. He created The X Factor for the U.K., however, which has run for 16 years so far, although a new season did not debut in 2020. Cowell has appeared as a judge on an international version of the show before, as the face of the American X Factor series from 2011-2013. He explained why he's coming to The X Factor Israel, saying:

As for the original U.K. version of The X Factor, Simon Cowell is contracted for at least one more season of the series thanks to a five-year deal with ITV. He will also return at some point to Britain's Got Talent. As for America's Got Talent, the United States equivalent of Britain's Got Talent is slated to return in the summer of 2021, but whether or not Simon Cowell will be back as a judge has not been announced.

Joining The X Factor Israel is proof that Simon Cowell has recovered from his back injury enough to begin TV judging again, but it's possible that he won't be back on AGT after missing a good chunk of the latest season. AGT has faced many changes in the judges panel over recent years, and it would be interesting to see how the show would go about replacing a giant like Cowell. Still, only time will tell what The X Factor Israel means for America's Got Talent.

For now, be sure to check out our 2021 winter and spring TV guide for the shows that you can look forward to in the new year that have received premiere dates so far.

A former contestant on ITV's The X Factor has been convicted of rape, and is now sentenced to life in prison. Phillip Blackwell competed in the 2008 season of the British reality TV music competition series and went on to tour with the live show in 2009. He had admitted to 31 sex offenses before receiving his life sentence.

The 56-year-old Phillip Blackwell pleased to guilty to rape, attempted rape, indecent assault, assault by penetration, voyeurism, and false imprisonment over a period of 22 years, according to the BBC. His targets were reportedly young women walking alone, and he "plied" victims with alcohol, with some women unconscious when attacked.

In carrying out his attacks, Phillip Blackwell reportedly taped victims' eyes shut, bound their hands, covered their eyes, wore a balaclava to cover his face, used a camcorder to record, and threatened them to prevent them from alerting authorities.

The attacks began in the late 1990s and picked up between 2005-2019. Lawrence English of the West Midlands Rape and Serious Sexual Offences Unit said that Blackwell "serially raped women in the 1990s, and again in the 2000s," citing "recent chilling footage" of Blackwell following women in his car and doubling back toward them after getting ahead of them.

Judge Peter Cook stated that Phillip Blackwell had "no regard whatsoever for [women] as human beings" and that he "must treat them with a level of contempt that is too shocking to even contemplate." Blackwell has been sentenced to life in prison, but not without the possibility of parole. He will be eligible for consideration for parole after serving a minimum sentence of nine years.

Phillip Blackwell did not win his season of The X Factor in 2008, and he continued his attacks through his capture in 2019. He auditioned in Season 5, at which point the judges were Simon Cowell (who created the show), Dannii Minogue, Cheryl Cole, and Louis Walsh. Blackwell went on the show's national tour the next year. Prosecutor Adrian Langdale elaborated on the case and Blackwell's decision to go on a national TV show and tour (via TooFab):

The former X Factor competitor pleaded guilty to 11 counts of sexual offenses against five separate victims of the span of 15 months between February 1997 - May 1998 in his initial court appearance back in 2020, according to The Crown Prosecution Service, but admitted to 20 more counts in May 2020 for crimes between 2005-2019. He was caught in 2019 following a DNA connection to a rape in the 1990s.

The CPS used DNA evidence, witness testimony, and video evidence in building the case against Phillip Blackwell, and Senior Crown Prosecutor Karen Hackett stated that the life sentence "rightly reflects the seriousness of Blackwell’s offending" and "ensures he will no longer be a danger to the public." The prosecution team also commended the victims for their courage during the difficult time of the case.

Will One Direction ever get back together? It's a question many fans have asked themselves since the members of the world-beloved boy band went their separate ways during an indefinite hiatus that began in 2015, and became confirmed for good in 2016. But it's hard to know for sure if the future will find them reunited. After all, the artists haven't been hurting for work in the intermediate years since they stopped working alongside each other. But Simon Cowell, the notorious judge from The X-Factor who brought them to stardom in the first place, might have an answer. When asked if the prominent singers of One Direction were destined to return to the same path, here's what the famous television personality said.

The fantasized One Direction reunion came up when Simon Cowell spoke with Entertainment Tonight. As Cowell notes, the reunion would certainly be welcomed by the band's legion of superfans. It's not a matter of whether it would be well-accepted, but rather when the musicians themselves are ready to work together again and make music together-- just like they did in the old days. Cowell certainly knows a thing or two about One Direction. He was the one who discovered the group in 2010 when he was a judge on The X-Factor. He can certainly see the potential; it's simply a matter of timing.

And while Simon Cowell recognizes the members of One Direction, which comprised of Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne and Niall Horan, are doing well on their own, so judge believes there's a possibility that everyone could be reunited for at least a few future concerts.

At the moment, there are no plans for One Direction getting back together. Henry Styles and Zayn Malik are the busiest members of the bunch, with each of them finding a healthy amount of success in their own individual careers. Styles, in particular, has proven himself adept in a number of different ways, having provided a standout performance in Christopher Nolan's Best Picture-nominated Dunkirk last year. These guys aren't hurting for work right now, and the future prospects of One Direction getting together in any official capacity anytime soon look dim. It also doesn't help that not everyone in the band is getting along famously either. But Simon Cowell is holding out hope, and we're sure many other fans are holding out hope too.

Over the last few years, Mel B has made a name for herself as a TV host in the States on America's Got Talent; however, the former Spice Girl didn't just jump straight into American competition shows without doing a little bit of work across the pond first. For quite a while, Mel B was a host of both the U.K. and Australian editions of The X Factor, and recently footage surfaced of a time she was doing an interview on The Xtra Factor for the U.K. edition of the show and was patted on the butt repeatedly by her fellow co-host Louis Walsh. At one point he even grabbed her butt and jiggled it. You can see the full clip, below.

The video in questions features a conversation between The X Factor judges back in 2014. Mel B, Louis Walsh, Simon Cowell, Cheryl Cole and female commenter Sarah-Jane Crawford can be seen in the footage, although Mel B is the only lady in close proximity to Walsh. While they all chat about contestants, Walsh can be seen repeatedly touching Mel B on the butt. At first she doesn't seem to notice, but once she realizes what is going on her face quickly turns to one of annoyance and she says,

Unperturbed, Louis Walsh moves his arm up her back and onto the back of the couch and Mel B moves away from him. Walsh seems to think the entire incident is amusing, despite Mel B's discomfort, and even mentions he is "looking out" for the popular singer. In the background, you can hear Simon Cowell mention, "honestly you're safer over there," as Mel B shuffles over on the couch. Walsh laughs uproariously at that tact while Mel B gives the camera a totally grossed-out look. Poor Sarah-Jane Crawford tries to get the interview back on track, but it's clear that things have soured in the room.

The video is making the rounds again on social media, with one person calling out the moment as "sexual harassment on live TV." The moment ties in to other recent reports from women in the entertainment industry who have dealt with harassment in the workplace, and may be why the video is being viewed again right now.

Louis Walsh was a judge on the U.K. edition of The X Factor before and after this groping incident, but announced he was quitting the series last month after 13 years with show. He's still a judge on Ireland's Got Talent, a show he helped to launch. As noted prior, Mel B has also gone her separate ways from The X Factor UK, leaving the show back in 2016. America's Got Talent has a female-heavy lineup this season, with Mel B being joined by longtime judge Heidi Klum and female host Tyra Banks. Howie Mandel and Simon Cowell round out the judges on the NBC series. We'll have to wait and see if Mel B decides to return next season, but if I had to venture a guess, she won't ever be heading to Ireland's Got Talent.

Apparently, Simon Cowell took a nasty spill at his London residence around 6:45 a.m. today. The 58-year-old television tycoon allegedly passed out and fell to the floor in his home. The situation was so worrisome that an aide had to phone for emergency medical attention. An ambulance sped to the mansion around eight o'clock in the morning and raced Cowell to the hospital. From the sounds of it, the retrieval was a shocking scene. Paramedics rushed into Cowell's house and brought him out on a stretcher, and he was wearing a neck brace.

As a source for The Sun tells it, Simon Cowell was heading down the stairs to get some warm milk to help him sleep. Allegedly, Cowell had found it hard to sleep after arriving home late from a Little Mix concert. At some point, he got up from his bed and made his way to the stairs. However, Cowell fainted, so an aide called for help.

Throughout the day, Simon Cowell spent the bulk of the day undergoing examinations at the hospital, but he was back home by fore five o'clock. Upon returning home, the X-Factor magnate gave photographers a thumbs up to signal everything was all right. (In fact, some reporters amusingly noticed Cowell forgot to tie his shoes on his way back into his house. They teased, saying he should have been more careful to avoid another tumble.)

Lauren Silverman, Simon Cowell's girlfriend, was in New York City when the accident occurred, but she hopped on a transatlantic flight and rushed back to London when she received the news. Reportedly, Cowell and Silverman's three-year-old son, Eric, was home when the incident occurred, but at least one of Cowell's aides, his security guard, was on hand and could have made sure of the toddler's safety.

It is not clear what prompted the fainting spell. However, it is no secret Simon Cowell is one of the busiest men in the entertainment industry, so there is a chance work-related exhaustion and stress contributed. In fact, Cowell has previously talked about the burden of his intense schedule. For example, in 2012 he described himself as "paralyzed with tiredness" because of all his television work around the world. Cowell even revealed his "immune system was failing" because of the pressure. Similarly, author Tom Bower, who wrote Cowell's biography, said the mogul behind the Got Talent and Idol franchises received warnings from doctors to be kinder to his body by giving up smoking and letting his body repair itself without unnecessary diet supplements.

It is possible Simon Cowell has somewhat been heeding his physicians' advice. We do know Cowell has said he never wants to return to American Idol in the future, so that sounds like a step in the right direction for someone who is a workaholic. However, recent reports also say Cowell is the executive producer behind a new scripted TV show called A&R in the works at NBC. So, he is still signing up for new projects. In any case, here's hoping Simon Cowell can figure out the causes of the fainting spell and fix them. His body will thank him for it (and so will his devoted girlfriend and young child).

Simon Cowell has been on the reality TV circuit for quite some time now. In all of that time, the man has become known for his biting criticism's along with his witticisms, but he's never actually been known for getting super angry or violent around contestants. Until this week, when he punched an X Factor contestant in the face. The good news? The whole thing was totally an accident and not the result of a brief moment of insanity . You can check out the bizarre TV moment, below.

The X Factor was recently narrowing the crews down to the final numbers. Simon Cowell had six members in that group, and went in to huge them all. It can be hard to get six people into one giant hug and Simon Cowell messed this one up royally. In fact, he actually punched 18-year-old contestant Caitlyn VanBeck in the face when she tried to get into the action. I don't know exactly why Simon Cowell put his hand in a fist as he was going in for a big bear hug, but it totally rammed right into VanBeck's face and it was painful looking.

Backstage, everyone was hanging out and Caitlyn VanBeck was even teased when she couldn't seem to force any words out of her mouth related to what happened. She later joked that she might press charges, but clearly the whole thing was a total accident. In fact, in the footage from the show, it looks more like Caitlyn Vanbeck wasn't paying attention and walked straight into Simon Cowell's fist. Still not a good look for Simon Cowell, but intention is almost everything in this particular example. In slow motion, it's such a gnarly punch to the face, though.

Kudos to The X Factor contestant for taking that shot to the jaw like a champ. She didn't let the blow get to her, at all, as she still went in for the hug as it was being offered. Hey, when you get the chance to hug Simon Cowell, you take it.

The X Factor is currently airing its 13th season in the U.K and features Simon Cowell as a judge and mentor, alongside Nicole Scherzinger, Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh. New episodes air there on Saturdays at 8 p.m. Since it will be a while before American audiences get to catch Simon Cowell back in action on America's Got Talent, you can see what else TV has to offer with our fall TV premiere schedule.

Reality TV has been accused of altering reality on more than one occasion. This time however, it seems the situation requires legal action. Sally Hessnice, a contestant on Fox's The X-Factor in 2013 has filed a $2 million lawsuit saying that her performance was changed in order to make her look bad.

According to Deadline the lawsuit has been filed against FremantleMedia North America, Simon Cowell’s Syco Television and Blue Orbit Productions, all producers of the US version of The X-Factor. The legal phrasing of the complaint, which was filled in Los Angeles Superior Court, is that the performance was modified “to create a false and negative portrayal” but you get the picture. It’s a violation of US law to fix a contest, and Hessnice and her attorneys are arguing that the producers intentionally changed her performance in order to make sure she would lose.

Hessnice also wants to be sure that her performance is never aired again on The X-Factor. This should not be an issue as the show was canceled over a year ago. Slightly harder to accomplish, even should she win, is to have clips of her song removed from online media sites like YouTube. On the off chance that part of the lawsuit is successful you may want to see what all the fuss is about while you still can:

The plaintiff did sign a release, which would have allowed the producers to do what they wished with her performance, but Hessnice says she signed it under duress and the complaint also wants to see the release invalidated.

Lawsuits are nothing new to reality TV. It isn’t even the first time Simon Cowell has had to deal with legal troubles on his shows. Most of the time however, the legal issues have more to do with being kept off the show, rather than what happens once you get on.

It will be interesting to see if this actually goes anywhere. Often, these lawsuits are simply settled, or dropped outright, and then never heard from again. While it looks like most of the musical contest shows are on their way out, they make ratings based on the idea that if you have the talent and do your best, you’ll win. If that turns out to provably be untrue then all the luster left will likely be gone. Would a successful lawsuit here actually change anything on reality TV, or does this complaint not say anything we didn't already know?

Reality shows can get pretty rowdy, oftentimes because contestants don’t handle rejections or criticisms very well. Once in a blue moon, however, the people who cross a line are the ones sitting at the judges table, and such was the case on a recent episode of the New Zealand version of The X Factor. You can watch the mean-spirited video, below, but just in case you find it too disheartening, we’ll go ahead and tell you that the two pop stars were totally ousted from the series after their outburst.

New Zealand’s The X Factor is only in its second season. For Season 2, the show added Natalia Kills and Willy Moon, two singer-songwriters who have been in the business for some time and who also happen to be married to one another. They might have a modicum of talent in their professional lives, but as judges, they have a mean girl mentality. In the video, a young man with slicked hair and a suit on performs, and is treated to a tongue-lashing from Natalia Kills, who calls him out for copying her husband, the only man in the universe to be white and rock a suit onstage. Keep in mind that Willy Moon’s biggest claim to fame is having a song that hit #26 on the U.K. singles chart, which is a nice number but not a number that screams "I have hordes of followers who want to copy me."

After the poor kid gets called “artistically atrocious” and “disgusting” by Kills, Willy Moon decides to go a little meaner with his own critique, because why not? Here’s how he compared the kid to a Psycho character.

Look, some people who make it to the main stage on The X Factor are going to be good, and some are decidedly going to stink, but it’s the job of the judge to explain why he or she did not like the performance in a constructive manner. Competition shows are designed so that judges are never going to be able to say positive things about everyone who pops up onstage. Regardless, there’s no reason to be unrelentingly cruel, either.

Following the airing of the episode, the above X Factor video went viral and a petition went up on Change.org demanding the two be fired. The company in charge, Media Works, responded by actually firing the couple from the hit series, also deeming their behavior unacceptable.

The X Factor, much like the now-cancelled US version of the series (and unlike the UK version), has not been wildly popular in New Zealand, and Kills and Moon were brought on in the hopes they could add interest to the series. That has certainly happened, just not in the way that producers expected. Anyone who makes Simon Cowell look like a tame kitty is a frightening prospect, indeed.

After premiering to ratings far lower than some expected, The X Factor's numbers continued to dip steadily over the course of its three-season run and no amount of drama, mentor shuffling or format shifting could get those numbers up. So it's not entirely surprising that the singing competition has been axed by Fox. Simon Cowell will return to the U.K. series.

EW dropped the news, stating that both Fox entertainment chairman Kevin Reilly and FreemantleMedia North America's Trish Kinane issued statements about the cancellation that indicated that the reason behind the decision was linked to Cowell's decision to return to the U.K. series. There was apparently talk of Fox renewing the series for Season 4 and airing fewer hours a week, similarly to Dancing with the Stars' approach, but it seems they've opted to call it quits on the singing competition.

The X Factor's had a big run of success in the U.K. but it failed to follow the same pattern of success that American Idol did. Low ratings wasn't its only issue either. From the beginning, The X Factor struggled with production challenges, the first of which involved the ousting of UK X Factor judge Cheryl Cole, who was replaced by Nicole Scherzinger before the series even premiered in 2011. Scherzinger was originally set to host but joined Paula Abdul, Simon Cowell and L.A. Reid as a judge on the series and Steve Jones hosted Season 1 solo.

There was backlash about Jones' hosting and more backlash later over the judges when the adorable Rachel Crow was eliminated following a deadlock at the judges table. After Season 1, Steve Jones was replaced by Mario Lopez and Khloe Kardashian, and Paula and Nicole were replaced by Demi Lovato and Britney Spears. Britney and Khloe left after Season 2, as did L.A. Reid. Lopez hosted solo and Kelly Rowland and Paulina Rubio were brought in to join Demi and Simon at the judges table. By that point, The X Factor added in the promising four-chair challenge as part of its process of narrowing down the selection, but even that wasn't enough to raise the ratings. Season 3 debuted to 6.45 ratings in September and wrapped up in December to an audience of 6.22 million. There were some episodes that broke 7 million viewers, while others dropped to less than 4 million, so consistency was obviously an issue, and I can't imagine Simon Cowell or Fox thought there was much hope of bringing those numbers up next season.

My two biggest issues with this series were that it clogged up the Fall TV schedule and I'm getting tired of singing competitions. There were too many other things I wanted to watch during the Fall season, with so many new shows premiering. 2-3 hours of singing competition a week was interfering with that. It's hard to get fully invested in a competition if you're missing episodes, so maybe fewer hours per week would've helped. Or not. The second factor for me is that, after a decade of Idol, I've grown exhausted with singing competitions in general. There are so many of them, they take up a lot of time, and the dwindling success rate of its contestants post-series doesn't exactly help either. Not everyone's going to go on to be Jennifer Hudson or Kelly Clarkson, but I have a much easier time remembering the names of contestants from the first five or six seasons of Idol than I do the contestants on The X Factor, The Voice or even recent Idol series. With so many shows on the air, we may have reached our level of saturation. Or maybe that's just me. Millions of people do still watch them. But it seems there will be one less big singing competition to anticipate this fall... assuming Fox doesn't replace The X Factor with some other singing competition.

On the second episode of Juan Pablo, ABC’s latest man-in-waiting on The Bachelor, the ladies vying for his undying love were the central focus, and hoo lord, it’s gotten real hard real fast with this season. You know what I mean? That sad, guilty sink starts to creep immediately following an eye roll or laugh. Right? Or is it just me? I can’t help but feel as though someone behind the scenes is high-fiving over how stupid these women look. There’s no rationalizing this in the name of love and people doing stupid stuff for love. Moon Indigo this is not, folks. Blerg.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. The night was full of hopeful exuberance and overcooked expectations — very similar to last week's premiere. And that’s innocent enough. Right off the bat, the first one-on-one date recipient — Clare — admitted that she doesn’t go on dates, nor does she ever meet men out in the wild, wild world so now that she’s meeting a man, obviously she’s going to put ALL OF THE PRESSURE ON HIM, NO PRESSURE, FUTURE HUSBAND.

But our Juan Pablo is not easily flustered — must be the strength he cultivates through his core — because he loves surprises. So he blindfolded Clare before putting her in the car, which was just so ca-ray-zay and adorable that the rest of the women were all, like, so totally jealous. And off they were to chill. And chill they did, in literal ice and snow! But not before Clare uttered this gem: “All I can do is sit there and smell him.”

And he probably smelled like buttercups and moonbeams because, OMG, Juan Pablo is just so handsome and hilarious, he makes her feel like a kid! (Spoiler alert: it’s probably because he’s a man child woopsies.) Some might even say that's all he is, but she’ll pay you no mind, dissenters, because oh man what love this is blossoming between Clare and JP under the icy glow of a portable hot tub. He’s not just teaching her to skate, he’s teaching her to love!

Clare spent the portions of the date she wasn’t giggling and talking about her daddy issues gushing over Juan Pablo’s body. Why is that all the women seem to talk about on this show? Is it the only feature of his being that’s worth discussing? Which begs another question that might also answer the latter: Why are these dates all voiced-over? Were their conversations that deep and complex? But we’ll get back to that point in a few.

First we have to talk about women being princesses and having high standards — something they both agreed on. Juan Pablo even declared, “I’m having very very much a good time.” Clare told him, “You taste like snow” after they kissed. There was snow artificially strewn about in far-from-chilly Los Angeles while someone from X-Factor came out and sang (I don’t know anything about him other than the fact that he worked at a Chipotle, according to my roommate). As they ran through the snow in their suits, dancing and kissing as the snow began to fall, the truth was clear: THIS IS THE BEGINNING OF THEIR LOVE STORY! You guys!

As if that weren’t enough to make you feel a little bit less intelligent, perhaps Lucy’s declaration (while topless) that she’s “not going to go unnoticed” will.

The next one-on-one date when to Kat, the dancer/sales rep from Arizona and the electricity she purported to have felt from the first moment she saw Juan Pablo was translated quite literally into a date at the Electric Run in Salt Lake City. There was a private jet, red carpet, and everything — something Kat loves and would enjoy in her future man. That character-building ability to — on a whim! — hop on a private jet and jet off somewhere, jettisoning all reasonable though and financial and practical responsibility. I mean, how else is one expected to shoot down to Rio for dinner otherwise? How, pray tell, how?

But tonight’s date is not about excess, it’s about utility: which is exactly why Juan Pablo gets the tracksuit made for winter jogs and Kat got a sleeveless short-short number. OK! The date proceeded on despite the disparity because it wasn’t about all that. It was about running, and dancing, and everything other than talk and get to know each other. “Perfect date for me and Kat,” said Juan Pablo, without missing a beat. It’s so electric!

After that came the group date, which was a further emotional manipulation of the highest order. The women were told they’d be doing a fashion shoot — yay! — that would help out a charity — double yay! — and there were even fucking puppies — OMF-YAAAAAAYYYY! — involved. Puppies! Adorable, adoptable shelter puppies! And then came the assignment of scenarios and outfits for the photos, which was nothing short of a producer-crafted circle jerk to throw these women into an insecurity-fueled tizzy. Cool story!

Some of the girls were in bikinis. Others had conceptual looks, like a dog or a fire hydrant. And others still were dressed to look like that bastardization of Old Hollywood Glamour that literally no one can get enough of these days. Lucy, the free-spirited naked wonder was initially dressed as a fire hydrant; Kelly the dog lover was painted to look like an actual hairless dog. And Andi and Elise — the goddamn district attorney and first grade teacher — were told they must post straight-up naked, because conceptual integrity or whatever.

I mean, seriously? There are not enough blergs in the world (Liz Lemon, you’ve failed me!) for this nonsense, for so many reasons. First of all: COME ON, ABC. This is just obvious manipulation, telling these women whose integrity is very much tied to upholding a particular image. Clearly someone was baiting these girls for a reaction, or at least playing out some tired old sex fantasies. But also, GIRLS: just fucking say no if you don’t want to get naked. Seriously. No guns to your head, it’s just a TV show. Puppies will not die if you’re not comfortable taking a naked photo.

Of course things were remedied: Andi ended up being swayed when she heard Juan Pablo would be naked, too (solidarity), and Elise asked Lucy to switch costumes, which she was more than glad to do (but not before taking a naked and — I shudder at the thought, more so than being naked — barefoot stroll in Hollywood). Though it was far from cute or appropriate for Elise to then have the gall to complain about the fire hydrant outfit not being cute enough or whatever. Girl. GIRL. Perspective. And also shut the fuck up you got what you wanted.

See what I mean from before though? This barely feels fun to snark-watch anymore. It feels like a gratuitous bashfest against women. Mostly because we have barely anything to make fun of Juan Pablo for — he doesn’t talk except in interviews or his fed little introduction lines. (In fact, my roommate also surmised that he’s likely got an in-ear feeding him the names of the girls during the rose ceremony. Which, let’s face it: seems legit.) So it’s all about the girls, and all about how absurd and inane their edited bits of sad-sack desperation come across. Hey, ABC: if you don’t want people to think those that run your little dog-and-pony show don’t hate women, maybe let Juan Pablo look as dumb as everyone else on the show. We’re sure there’s plenty of comedy on that cutting room floor: I mean, c’mon, the guy barely speaks English. All’s fair in love and making fun of each other.

From there things just got sloppy. Victoria the 24-year-old proved herself emotionally incapable of being a mother figure to Camila (imagine that!) following a case of the schwasties that was impressive even for this show. It was, in no short order, a drunkicane of crazy. She was straight up belligerent and completely inconsolable. It almost made me feel bad for how she probably felt about it now, watching it as a viewer. Almost. Juan Pablo sent her home the next morning in what was an admittedly mature moment (hey, at least he let the talking count this time).

But before we say goodbye to Victoria forever, a moment of recognition for the beautiful life lesson she bestowed upon us this evening: “That’s what life is about, straddling people… and things.” I guess that’s the hymen maneuver.

The night went on quite uneventfully form there, with Nikki stating the obvious: “I feel like I’ve never been in a situation like this.” A valid statement, because you haven’t done anything like this before, have you, Nikki? I think us Internetters would know about it if you had.

In the end Amy’s audition for every on-air personality job in America didn’t cut it with Juanie P, as she was sent packing alongside Chantal, who was apparently really falling for our main dude for some reason. I guess that reason is feelings. Or emotions. Or insecurity — whatever! Ahh, sorry, guys, I forgot: desperation for love isn’t sad and pathetic, it’s totally cute and ~romantic~ right? The journey. It’s all about the journey.

The favorite is still Sharleen the opera singer. Renee the perma-mom was also up there. Oh and question: does anyone want to play the “which professional basketball player is the father of Cassandra’s child” game? Because it’s got to be, right? Somebody else who cares more than I could research that and post their findings somewhere and I wouldn’t hate it. Just saying.

I used to love The X Factor. I won’t say it was my favorite show on television, but I watched every episode live or at least the night of for the first two seasons and the beginning of this one. I was not only super on board that ship, I even wrote numerous articles defending everything from hosts to format changes, but over the past few months, I’ve ever so slowly changed my tune, to the point where I’m now ready to admit what so many have long thought: The X Factor is a complete mess that needs change desperately.

There are simply too many problems to overcome, and even worse, those in charge don’t seem to recognize what those problems are. Despite offering several new ideas to the larger singing competition genre, the show puts out a product that, more often than not, is frustrating, repetitive and sophomoric. It’s just not good television and rather than steadily improving, it’s bizarrely getting worse almost by the episode. Simon Cowell has assured fans the program will be back for round four next year, but at this point, I’m not even sure that’s a good thing.

Here are 6 gigantic, X Factor-sized problems producers need to solve immediately if they want the show to stop pissing off fans and start building a wider base of supporters.

Way Too Many Pauses

You know how reality competitions love teasing who is about to go home and then saying, “You’ll find out after the break”? X Factor does that constantly. Even worse, the producers seem to have instructed the judges to take at least three minutes each when figuring out who to eliminate. They hem. They haw. They make all kinds of apologies to who they’re about to eliminate, even when the right decision couldn’t be more obvious. Sometimes one of the judges will even pull this bullshit when he or she is choosing between one of their own players and someone random.

Are you kidding? Honestly. We all know you’re going to choose the singer you’ve mentored for the entire season. Just vote to send the other contestant home and move the fuck on. The dramatic pause only works if the ending is in doubt.

Simon Problems

Simon Cowell is the best reality competition judge in the history of the genre. He’s funny. He has a great sense of what types of performers will actually sell, and he knows when to be honest and heartfelt when giving critiques. A case could be made that he’s the single biggest reason singing competitions took off in America, but more than a decade after he started, he really needs to shake up the formula a little bit. He feels too inside his little zone, and as a result, even his odd little quips and bizarre comparisons don’t feel as biting.

Maybe Simon needs another industry type that’s even more honest then him, thus making him play a new role. Maybe he needs to go for less outlandish comments and start giving full on constructive criticism every time. Regardless, something needs to change because I know at least a dozen people who have stopped watching specifically because they’re sick of his Simon-ness.

Not Enough Weirdos

Becoming a star in the music industry involves so much more than just having a nice voice. You need a personality. You need a genre. You need something that sets you apart. All too often music competitions fixate on the people who are the best singers or the people who are the best dancers. The truth is Hollywood is overflowing with people who can sing and dance. To make a real impact, you either need to be a weirdo that appeals to a specific fan base (like Adam Lambert) or you need to be otherworldly talented (like Carrie Underwood). The crowning of Alex & Sierra was a step in the right direction, but the truth is they really didn’t have much competition this season. No offense to Jeff Gutt, but there are hundreds of people out there who would have made great Night Ranger frontmen.

Producers need to start letting the judges see different types of people, and I’m not talking about older people or fatter people or sob stories with weird diseases. They need to let the judges start seeing people with voices and personalities distinctive enough to sound original.

Too Much Crammed Into Each Episode

God, how many times did we hear Mario Lopez say, “I need an answer now” this season. Thirty? Fifty? It’s like whoever made the schedule each week completely forgot to factor in that nothing ever runs as quickly as expected on live television. How could you not know this? Lopez is a consummate professional. He should be asked to kill a minute here or there when the show is running a little short. That’s what Ryan Seacrest does. I’m sure he could more than capably do it, but because he always has to be the time police and move everything along, he comes off like an annoying dick and the show comes off like it’s amateur hour. We don’t have to have a guest performance every week. We don’t have to put up cutesy little segments involving “Annoying Juice”. Less is more.

The timing problem has to be fixed because it’s agonizing to watch, and even though I know Lopez will shout at everyone until they move it along, I’m still convinced my DVR will cut off before I find out who went home.

Judges Without Chemistry

Why is this hard? Bring in a dozen possible choices and tape each one of them critiquing five contestants alongside Simon and whoever else you want to bring back. Then, pick the ones who actually play off each other well. Paulina was a black hole this season who brought nothing to the table and was never on the same page with the other judges. Kelly actually tried to stir the pot a little bit and have fun, but she never completely gelled with Demi or Simon. More famous is not necessarily the answer. We need people capable of making interesting comments and people who play well off one another.

I get that Britney Spears probably won’t agree to audition for X Factor, but I’m pretty sure a whole host of music’s most trend-setting producers and behind the scenes executives would love to do the show for a season. They would definitely audition, and even better, they would actually know what it takes to break into the modern day music scene.

Judges Don’t Disagree Enough

Whoever the judges are, they need to disagree. We got entire audition round episodes this season in which every single judge either all voted yes or all voted no for every single contestant shown. What is the fun in that? You know why Idol worked so well back in the day? Because Randy and Simon disagreed quite a bit. Paula would almost always say yes. Simon would almost always say no, and Randy would use his judgment to either give the person another chance or send them packing. So many contestants went home on two to one votes. Meanwhile, damn near every single person shown on Factor either breezes through or gets cut.

I don’t want to always know whether someone is going to get through. Beyond that, viewers would like to disagree with some of the judges every once in awhile. Can you believe _____ only got one vote and didn’t get through? That was shocking. I would love to be able to say that. Love it.

Reality singing competition shows frequently cycle through judges due to changing budgets, but also the numerous projects people in the music business are juggling at once. Fox’s newest singing competition series, The X Factor, has not proved to be an exception to the rule. Paula Abdul, Nicole Scherzinger, L.A. Reid and Britney Spears have come and gone in the show’s three seasons on air, and soon it looks like we’ll be adding the spunky Demi Lovato to the list.

A report over at People indicates the “Skyscraper” singer is ready to call it quits. Of course, this news hasn’t come from the singer directly. She’s been enthusiastic and full of good critiques during Season 3 of The X Factor and she hasn’t taken to the airwaves or Twitter to announce she will be quitting, yet. However, People’s source indicates Lovato is extremely busy with her singing career and has plans to headline her first arena tour this winter, beginning with a Vancouver tour date on February 9. The X Factor helped to introduce her brand to a wider audience, but after two seasons on the show, it may be time to move on.

Plus, she could be bowing out while the going is still good. The X Factor hasn’t exactly been a success story during the Fall 2013 TV season on Fox. The singing competition’s Season 3 premiere was down 22% from the first Season 2 outing, and the numbers haven’t looked any prettier since. In fact, they’ve been dropping steadily from the 7 million that tuned in for this season’s first episode. On Halloween, we actually called the ratings a “horror story” and they really aren't looking any better at this point. A recent episode only garnered a 1.0 rating and 3.75 million total viewers.

If I had to venture a guess, I’d say Lovato’s potential exit could be a means to save face rather than face the cancellation from Fox that feels pretty inevitable (at least where I’m standing). While the show might seem cheaper than its first two seasons, Simon’s schtick might be getting old, and new judges Kelly Rowland and Paulina Rubino might be worthless with critiques, the good news is that Lovato has nothing to be ashamed of. She’s been youthful and occasionally goofy during her tenure as a judge, but she’s also been full of advice and understanding when it comes to the contestants she has mentored. In short, she hasn’t sucked. So, whether or not she decides to leave or Fox decides to cancel the singing competition series, The X Factor has only built her brand and helped her to make inroads on television and with Fox (she recently also popped up in Glee). That’s not too bad for a few months of work over the last couple of years.

On Thursday, Fox opted to air a brand new episode of its flailing reality competition series, The X Factor, despite the fact that it ran opposite Thanksgiving specials and football, which tend to do quite well. To amp things up a bit, the reality series put together a special double elimination that was designed to keep fans glued to the edge of their seats. Unfortunately, that backfired, leading The X Factor to yet another poor night in the ratings.

Fox had both The X Factor and Glee on the roster last night, and neither did particularly well. The X Factor pulled a 1.0 rating, and Glee did a little worse, bringing in a .9 rating. According to Deadline, that’s way off from the numbers the two programs pulled last year. Last year, Fox earned a 1.5 rating for Glee and a 2.8 rating for The X Factor. I guess executives should be given a little credit for the novelty of running original programming on a holiday, but it didn’t really work out.

Last night was a pretty low point for The X Factor. The singing competition has been in a downward spiral for quite some time. Facing budget cuts, the programming quality of The X Factor has gone down some in Season 3. The show opted to go with cheaper judges, cutting out the frequently boorish Britney Spears after Season 2 ended. While the changes were meant to economize the show’s expenses, it has affected the ratings. The Season 3 premiere was down 22%, and the ratings have continued to go downhill from there. On Halloween, The X Factor brought in a .8 rating. While the Thanksgiving ratings are a slight improvement, you have to think at this point that The X Factor is on its way to cancellation.

The other networks didn’t falter as much in the ratings. CBS smartly opted for reruns, although football ran a little bit into primetime, helping the network to an average 2.1 rating over the night. ABC successfully aired A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, which earned a 1.6 rating. However, nothing could touch NBC’s special edition of Sunday Night Football, which probably should have gotten a rename for the night. Regardless, the programming did quite well, nabbing a whopping 5.6 rating and 17.6 million total viewers, according to THR. Despite a lack in original scripted or reality programming, most of the networks managed to entice a good amount of viewers after the turkey was carved and the pumpkin pies were eaten.

Something tells me FOX will update its approach to the holiday next year, while the other networks will opt for much of the same.

More is not always better. Contrary to what those fine folks over at AT&T would have you believe, there is a limit to the amount we can handle of most things. Remember that chubby kid from Matilda? He learned there’s such a thing as too much cake after that heinous principal force fed pounds of it to him. Remember Augustus Gloop? He learned there’s such a thing as too much chocolate after he swam in a river of it and got sucked into that tube. And remember the esteemed writers here at TV Blend? Each and every once of us has learned recently that sometimes getting more of a good TV show isn’t what it’s cracked up to be.

Whether by forcing out a spin-off featuring too similar of a premise, not taking a long enough break between seasons or simply airing the show for too many damn hours during the week, television networks can get a bit greedy when it comes to on-air products they think can bring in eyeballs. So, almost invariably, they add more episodes, add more time or do something to increase the exposure. For fans, those increased orders are typically a good thing, at least until they get to a certain point and the show starts feeling less like a relaxing activity and more like a chore.

After some preliminary conversations (or bitch sessions) between our writers, we quickly concluded everyone has at least one show they would love to have less of; so, we decided to each put our thoughts down in writing. Without further ado, here are five good television shows we would love to have less of…

Kelly’s pick: The X-Factor

The X Factor arrived a couple years ago, not as an alternative to American Idol, but in addition to the long-running singing competition, filling the void in the fall season where there were no singing competitions cluttering up the line-up. And that’s just what The X Factor did. Sure, it gave us a modified format to the standard Idol mix, and it gave Simon Cowell back to us, but it also filled hours of the TV line-up each week, forcing us to choose between singing and scripted programming.

As much as I love the singing competitions, The X Factor requires three hours of its audience each week, which is too much for me to give for a show that isn’t nearly as must-watch as Idol was in its better seasons, especially during the fall when there are new shows to watch and returning favorites to keep up with. In the end, I decided at some point last season to stop trying to stay up to date on The X Factor at the expense of too many other shows I was enjoying more. Now, if The X Factor was an hour -- an hour and a half max -- each week, I might be more willing to make time for it. In the meantime, I’ll stick with American Idol.

Alicia’s pick: The Voice

This isn’t so much a tirade as it is a cautionary tale: The Voice is on its way to OverDoingItVille by hopping on the same train tracks that brought American Idol to its knees. Why? Well, because after season five ends on December 17, season six is slated to pick right up again in February. Which might seem great on paper, but if The Voice isn’t careful, it’s going to overstay its welcome and ruin the good thing its got.

Singing competition shows are slowly becoming an entertainment property of the past. So much of it is the same, dull format — which is where The Voice stands ahead of the pack, given its structure and the rotating judge dynamic. It is, however, still a show where the talent comes second to the twists, turns, and dramatics. Meaning, the audience will realize — with no clear Kelly Clarkson or Carrie Underwood level success in their midsts — that the talent isn’t really important. They’ll shrug their shoulders, figuring “eh, it’s still a fun show!” and continue watching. Therefore putting an increased pressure enjoyment on the judges’ banter and general presence. Only that’s where the trap gets set for inevitable failure and over-saturation: just look at Idol and The X Factor.

Shows like The Voice work well because they feel special — almost event-like. Take away said specialness by making it too readily available and the audience will take it for granted. And with that goes the ratings. So slow your roll, The Voice, because ain’t nobody like an overeager beaver: you’ve already got enough of that on your hands with Adam Levine.

Jessica’s pick: Once Upon A Time

Bringing fairytale characters to life on the small screen was a fun and inventive idea when Once Upon A Time first hit the schedule. It helped the drama that many of the characters appearing on the show also happen to be part of the Disney canon, which has basically proved to be free advertising for the company. Then, someone had an idea to air a limited series focused on Alice and Wonderland that would air during network TV’s winter break. That could have been a good way for ABC to get some original programming on the air during winter hiatus while maintaining interest in a popular series. Regardless, the idea was later turned Once Upon A Time in Wonderland into a full-fledged series, creating two nights of television chock full of fairy tale characters on ABC.

Unlike the original OUAT, the spinoff is a self-contained story, which means it simply feels like a side narrative from Once Upon A Time, rather than a separate idea within a completely separate world. It’s true that Wonderland its own distinct place, but since that place has also appeared on Once Upon A Time, it’s ideas don’t break the mold enough to feel like a separate narrative, despite its completely separate storyline. Beyond this, there are simply too many fairy tale characters on ABC throughout the week. The Once Upon A Time/Once Upon A Time in Wonderland duo may not be the worst offender on this list, but it’s not doing anything to improve ABC’s schedule, and if it does return for a second season, I’ll eat the OUAT Mad Hatter’s hat.

Jesse’s pick: The Walking Dead

With Breaking Bad now off the air and Mad Men about to embark on its final season, AMC decided to pick up the slack by milking its highest rated series for a spin-off. How inspired. From a business angle, creating a companion series to The Walking Dead seems like a home run (and likely will be) but it does nothing except hurt the brand. I can't see the series bringing in too many new eyeballs. And with the inevitably of the companion show getting its own companion show in The Talking Dead 2, well, that's a lot of zombie centric programming.

I haven't even addressed the fact that simply having The Walking Dead: Georgia (retroactively added location based subtitle) and The Walking Dead: Michigan (subtitle in no way based on fact, simply where I would set the spin-off... companion series) will dilute the power of the original. Just ask CSI: Las Vegas. I feel the same way about the two versions of Anchorman 2 announcement. Why not put the funniest material all in one film? AMC and Robert Kirkman should be putting all their creative efforts into making TWD even better not robbing it of potential characters, storylines and set pieces. Soon Hell on Wheels will probably be getting zombies. Same goes for Low Winter Sun. Thank God for Better Call Saul. What? At least its source isn't still on the air.

Mack’s pick: Project Runway

I love Project Runway. Love it. It’s such a snappy watch, and for me, it’s the perfect balance between actual competition and goofiness/ drama between the reality show contestants. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say Tim Gunn may well be the most likeable and kind-hearted personality on television, and while the show has only produced one honest to God fashion superstar in Christian Siriano, it regularly churns out talented winners who go on to great careers dressing celebrities and making custom high end dresses. That being said, I could still use a damn break between seasons.

PR used to take a few months off between seasons. One year it even put forward a spin-off series called Project Accessory, but recently, the show has alternated between a normal season and a season of Project Runway All-Stars that begins the Thursday immediately after. I’m all for bringing people back, but it’s nice to start missing a show a little bit. It’s nice to watch the opening credits and think, “Boy, I’ve really missed this.” That doesn’t happen without a break, and contrary to what the producers might think, an all-stars season isn’t a real break.

Thursday’s ratings are usually pretty interesting, considering that night offers some of the most-watched programs of the week, and is filled with some of the most interesting TV fodder. This Thursday, NBC aired a special episode of The Voice as part of a plan to extend the Battle Round of the hit show, and hopefully improve the network’s ratings. While NBC was up in the ratings last night, the same cannot be said for a few other network shows.

Although there was no new Parks and Recreation last night, thanks to the hour-long episode of The Voice, NBC’s remaining Thursday comedies were all up in the ratings. Additionally, Parenthood even did better in the ratings than it has in the 10 p.m. ET slot in recent weeks, achieving a 1.5 rating, which bumped the show up 25% from last week.

Over at The CW, things also looked pretty swell, with The Vampire Diaries coming in at a 1.2 rating in the 18-49 demographic. This, unfortunately, had no effect on the network’s soapy drama, Reign, which was even with last week. However, The Vampire Diaries’ 1.2 rating conveniently leads us to this week’s big ratings loser, The X Factor. Fox’s singing competition series did manage to improve in the ratings after last week’s disaster of a clip show, which only pulled in a .8 rating. According to TV Line, this week, The X Factor managed to tie TVD in the ratings with a 1.2 in the 18-49 demographic. Since last night’s episode was not a clip show, you have to come to the conclusion that people are over the reality series. I loved the competition’s four chair challenge this year, but it did little to improve the ratings, and you have to think that show is inching ever closer to cancellation. We’ll see if the ratings improve moving forward, but there's no doubt show has certainly been a disappointing competitor for Fox this year.

Last night, Shonda Rhimes’ Scandal and Grey’s Anatomy were both fairly even performers, with the former dipping just a wee bit in the ratings to a 2.7 and the latter inching up, also to a 2.7. Over at CBS, the network’s comedy block was still solid, although Two And A Half Men only managed a 2.0 rating. Elementary also dropped in the ratings, but to a much lesser degree, nabbing a 1.7 rating, down from last week’s 1.8 rating.

Which leads us to the second big loser of the night, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, the fairy tale romance that has not managed to catch the hearts of viewers. Two nights of redrawn fairy tales seem to be proving to be too much for viewers. The spinoff series was initially conceived as a winter hiatus replacement for ABC’s Sunday night drama, and I wish we could have seen whether that format would have been successful. As things stand, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland only managed a .9 rating last night. With ABC’s other Thursday night show’s doing two times better in the 18-49 demographic, Once Upon A Time in Wonderland may not have the ending it was hoping for. The good news is that the show was put together as limited series and the whole storyline will wrap up neatly at the end of the season, so if the drama does get cancelled, it won’t be on a cliffhanger.

Halloween is a good night for everything but TV ratings. A lot of the usual TV watchers are out and about carting their children from door to door before eating a late dinner and falling, exhausted, into bed. Grandparents are busy snapping photos of grandchildren and people in their twenties often use the holiday as an excuse to dress up and go out if they don’t already have kids. All of these things are generalizations, of course, but the fact that last night was a holiday that kept a lot of people out of their homes did lead to poor ratings. And none were more dismal last night than the ratings for Fox’s The X Factor.

The X Factor brought in 3.2 million total viewers and a .8 rating in the 18-49 advertising demo, tying Fox’s singing competition series with last night’s episode of The CW’s The Vampire Diaries. We can give The X Factor a little bit of a pass, thanks to the show not being a normal episode. Since there was no seventh game in the World Series, the show put together a weird “Meet the Top 12” sort of episode that clearly piqued nobody's interest. Still, we’re talking about a reality program with a fairly big budget that offers a $5 million prize to its ultimate winner. If you thought American Idol’s ratings were a disaster last season, I bet The X Factor would prostrate and beg for those ratings at this point.

Elsewhere, it was not a great night for TV, either. ABC aired its annual repeat of It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, which did decently but is a little lacking when compared to A Charlie Brown Christmas, a program that routinely dominates in the ratings. This year’s outing of It’s the Great Pumpkin pulled in just under 7 million total viewers and a 2.2 rating. Over at CBS, the network’s dominant comedy block was down, which also could have been affected by the fact that The Big Bang Theory aired a rerun. NBC ran an SNL Halloween special, which somewhat helped the network’s faltering Thursday night slot, but the Michael J. Fox Show was still down in the ratings. I’m wondering if the network is regretting signing on to air all 22 episodes of the half-hour comedy, yet. (That sounds kind of negative, but for the record, I support and watch the show.)

Still, there was one vaguely bright point during the night’s programming. I say vaguely because Scandal only managed to match last week’s season low of 9.2 million total viewers. Tying a season low is never music to a network’s ears, but in this case, it doesn’t seem so bad. If Scandal managed to match last week’s numbers on a night when far fewer people were watching television, those numbers should grow when the next episode airs (theoretically). Plus, it’s easy enough to spin that “season low” note on its head. According to EW, last night Scandal also managed to win the ratings in the advertising demo. The show will likely be unseated when The Big Bang Theory airs a new episode, but the little victories still count. At least Scandal can be comforted in the knowledge The X Factor is no longer a formidable foe.

Last night, NBC’s ratings darling from last year, Revolution, premiered its second season on the network. Today’s ratings came in and they weren’t particularly pretty for the post-electricity drama, which came in fourth place during its brand new timeslot. This means the show got beat by ABC’s comedy block, CBS’ Survivor, and Fox’s The X Factor, a show that also has not been faring so well in the ratings this season. Apparently, The X Factor is still doing well enough to beat out Revolution, which only brought in 6.8 million total viewers during its premiere, a drop of 56% from last year’s opener, per EW. Here’s three big reasons why Revolution didn’t fair so well last night.

First, the new timeslot is a killer. The 8 p.m. Wednesday hour has been a tough one for NBC to compete in over the last few TV seasons. Last season, the network chose to launch Animal Practice--a show which didn’t even make it for a full month on the network before getting cancelled—in the slot. Wednesday’s a pretty big night for television, and somewhere along the line, it got hard for NBC to compete.

The new timeslot is also not particularly great for Revolution, which earned an added ratings boost last year, thanks to airing directly after The Voice. This wouldn’t have been nearly as big of a deal if NBC hadn’t completely screwed Revolution during the second half of the TV season last year. The show developed a decently loyal audience during the fall season and then NBC opted to just stop airing the drama until The Voice returned in the spring. By the time Revolution returned to the schedule, it was during a weird time in the spring when audiences had pretty well settled into their viewing schedules. Plus, by the time the last few episodes aired, some people were already into their summer vacation schedules. The weird hiatus for the first season of the series was ill-planned and showed that NBC had no faith in the series pulling in viewers on its own merit.

It’s not all NBC’s fault, however. While I personally have trouble with the fact that the drama will just kill off characters all willy-nilly, and frequently without rhyme, reason or purpose, that’s the least of Revolution’s problems. Recently, Eric Kripke revealed that the biggest mystery surrounding the series, the fact that the power has been shut off, would not take front and center during the second season of the drama. (If you want more details on where the electricity is going, you can read more on our sister site GFR.) If you caught last night’s premiere episode, which jumps a short time ahead in the future, you will find that Kripke is not lying. The show is headed in a new direction, leaving the electricity mystery as a thing of the past. While this should open the drama up to the exploration of some of the other territories that have been created out of what used to be the United States, it’s also expanded the drama and it means the show is already dealing with a more convoluted plotline during the second season. I sense Once Upon a Time problems cropping up, and soon.

There’s a lot that did go right in Revolution’s season opener. The characters have changed and grown in some cases, and there is a mystery with fireflies, an invading nation and more. Revolution might very well end up being a better show in its second season, but I worry that viewers may never show up to find out.

NBC’s Revolution airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET.

Simon Cowell and the executives over at FOX have basically spent X Factor’s entire time on American television endlessly tinkering with the formula. They’ve tried incredibly famous judges. They’ve tried industry executives. They’ve tried current stars and former stars, Brits and Americans, and at no point have they ever had a four person panel that’s actually worked. They've always carried one or two pieces of dead weight that simply repeat everyone else and spit out cliches. During the first season, the show had Nicole Scherzinger. During the second season, it had Britney Spears, and now, there's a distinct chance viewers will be forced to sit through two snooze-fests in Paulina Rubino and Kelly Rowland.

The network heads would have us believe finding the right judges is a long and complicated process, but the truth is, it’s not. Finding the right judges is profoundly simple. Since no one actually involved with the show seems to get it, let me spell it out as simply as I can.

The goal is to hire people who have something to say and don’t rely on the same stock phrases. The goal is to hire people who can communicate effectively on television, not those who simply look cute or used to appear on television.

That’s it. It doesn’t matter whether they’re Britney Spears famous or complete and utter unknowns. The trick is to pick out people who don’t endlessly repeat themselves. You know why Cowell works? Because he comes up with fresh metaphors when he’s interacting with the contestants. He also doesn’t bullshit them. If they suck, he tells them. If they should be proud of themselves, he tells them. He actually analyzes the situation. Think of the judges like coaches of a high school sport. What you want is someone who offers very specific and very pointed comments, both positive and negative. What you don’t want is a fucking drone who says, “Play harder” or “Get ‘em next time.”

During the first episode, Simon told two teenage girls they needed to stop performing with their mother if they were going to continue. He told a recent high school graduate who sang “My Heart Will Go On” that he did a better job of crashing the Titanic than an iceberg. He commented on choreography, clothing choices and vocal ranges and even compared one contestant to Carrie Underwood. Demi Lovato, the only other holdover from last season who has shown great promise at times, told another her voice was Whitney-esque and called a quirkly couple “nerdy sexy”. She also openly talked about the pros of being placed with a certain group and tried to interact with the crowd. The rest, however, offered a whole lot of nothing. From “pitchy” to generic “I love yous” and “I’m a believers” to overly nice yeses, new judges Rowland and Rubio offered almost nothing of value during the entire hour. They didn’t have any unique phrases. They didn’t disagree with their fellow judges. They just uttered the same bullshit cliches and opinions we’ve all heard ad nauseum.

It’s still very early in the competition. It’s entirely possible Rowland and Rubio will greatly improve over the next chunk of episodes and become judges of real substance, but if that doesn’t happen, Cowell needs to get his head out of his ass and hire opinionated people willing to speak their mind and actually analyze what they’re seeing. I love X Factor. I think the format of its live episodes are the best of any singing competition on television, but this judging problem is an easy fix that needs to get worked out sooner rather than later. As the ratings indicate, something needs to change because obviously, people aren't interested in what they're getting.

The X Factor returned to Fox’s schedule last night, with a couple of new judges on the panel and less behind-the-scenes bitchiness from contestants. Last year’s Season 2 opener spent a lot of time introducing the judges and giving fans different insights into how stuff actually goes down before contestants try out on that big stage. I have no idea what happened with last night’s Season 3 premiere, but there was nothing remotely exciting about the format, and it showed in the ratings.

Last night’s Season 3 opener pulled in a 2.1 rating on Fox, as well as 7 million total viewers, which means it was beaten by CBS’ Big Brother in the timeslot. According to Deadline, that’s 22% less than the viewership that tuned in for last year’s big season opener. Sure, the program is missing L.A. Reid and Britney Spears, but that shouldn’t explain the full 22% loss in the ratings, especially since the ratings didn’t spike after Spears became a part of the show.

Ratings may have been down last night due to The X Factor starting earlier than a lot of other fall programs. Last year, there was a lot of hype and marketing surrounding Demi Lovato and Britney Spears’ introduction on the series and advertising was everywhere. This year, I didn’t see much of that from Fox. Maybe some viewers just aren’t aware that the program is back, even though it started in mid-September last season.

A second, and I think more compelling, reason is that The X Factor, unlike most singing competition shows, is actually better during the actual competition phase. The early introductory rounds on The X Factor have always come across as contrived, since we only get to see the best of the best and the worst of the worst. Since Idol’s been around forever, fans have gotten pretty savvy about what they can expect when a contestant first walks on the stage. There are some surprises, of course, but compared to The Voice’s spinning chair format, the early rounds are a yawnfest. Where The X Factor is the judges houses rounds and the live shows, where the judges/mentors are on the hook for the performance, as well as the performers. Costumes, lighting and song choice are all under the tutelage of one of the judges on the panel, and it’s always interesting to see whether or not the mentor “gets” his or her contestant.

The market is saturated with singing programs, when you factor in Idol, The Voice, The X Factor, The Sing-Off, and to an extent, even America’s Got Talent. The third possibility is that people are already tired of The X Factor, and even if new judges Paulina Rubino and Kelly Rowland manage to be assets to the series, I’m not sure if they will be able to help the ratings a whole lot.

One episode with neutral ratings isn’t enough for me to declare this show is sinking, but if you are a fan of the competition series, tonight’s episode would be a good time to tune in. Are you watching Fox’s The X Factor? The series airs Wednesday and Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET.

September is upon us, and with it comes the return of our favorite TV shows, as well as the premieres of many of the new series on deck to debut on network and cable TV. From the early starters, including Boardwalk Empire, Sons of Anarchy and The Legend of Korra, to the October arrivals, including Grimm, American Horror Story: Coven and The Walking Dead and everything in between, we have plenty to look forward to this fall!

This schedule is a work in progress, and dates are subject to change as we head into the fall season. In the meantime, if there's a new or returning show you don't see on here, feel free to leave a comment and we'll see if we can dig up the date for you!

Which show are you most excited about seeing? Let the TV networks know by casting your vote here.

Wednesday, September 4

10:00 p.m. - Ghost Mine - Syfy

10:00 p.m. - It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia - FXX

10:30 p.m. - The League - FXX

11:00 p.m. - Totally Biased - FXX

Sunday, September 8

9:00 p.m. Boardwalk Empire - HBO

Tuesday, September 10

10:00 p.m. Sons of Anarchy - FX

Wednesday, September 11

8:00 p.m. The X Factor - FOX

Thursday, September 12

8:00 p.m. The X Factor - FOX

Friday, September 13

7:00 p.m. - The Legend of Korra - Nick

10:00 p.m. - Haven - Syfy

Monday, September 16

8:00 p.m. Bones - FOX

8:00 p.m. Dancing with the Stars - ABC

9:00 p.m. SLEEPY HOLLOW - FOX (Review here)

Tuesday, September 17

8:00 p.m. DADS - FOX

8:30 p.m. BROOKLYN NINE-NINE - FOX

9:00 p.m. New Girl - FOX

9:30 p.m. The Mindy Project - FOX

Wednesday, September 18

8:00 p.m. Survivor - CBS

Friday, September 20

8:00 p.m. Last Man Standing - ABC

8:30 p.m. The Neighbors - ABC

Sunday, September 22

8:00-11:00 p.m., ET/ THE 65TH PRIMETIME EMMY® AWARDS- CBS

Monday, September 23

8:00 p.m. How I Met Your Mother- CBS

8:00 p.m. The Voice - NBC

9:00 p.m. 2 Broke Girls- CBS

9:30 p.m. MOM - CBS

10:00 p.m. HOSTAGES - CBS

10:00 p.m. THE BLACKLIST - NBC

10:00 p.m. Castle - ABC

Tuesday, September 24

8:00 p.m. NCIS - CBS

8:00 p.m. Marvel's Agents of SHIELD - ABC

9:00 p.m. NCIS: Los Angeles - CBS

9:00 p.m. THE GOLDBERGS - ABC

9:30 p.m. TROPHY WIFE - ABC

10:00-11:00 p.m. LUCKY 7 - ABC

10:00 p.m. Person of Interest - CBS

10:00 p.m. Chicago Fire - NBC

10:00 p.m. Fangasm - Syfy

Wednesday, September 25

8:00 p.m. Revolution - NBC

8:00 p.m. The Middle - ABC

8:30 p.m. BACK IN THE GAME - ABC

9:00 p.m. Modern Family - ABC

9:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU - NBC

9:00 p.m. Criminal Minds - CBS

9:00 p.m. South Park - Comedy Central

10:00 p.m. Nashville - ABC

10:00 p.m. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation - CBS

Thursday, September 26

8:00 p.m. Parks and Recreation - NBC

8:00 p.m. The Big Bang Theory - CBS

9:00 p.m. Glee - FOX

9:00 p.m. THE MICHAEL J. FOX SHOW - NBC

9:00 p.m. THE CRAZY ONES - CBS

9:00 p.m. Grey's Anatomy - ABC

9:30 p.m. Two and a Half Men - CBS

9:30 p.m. THE MICHAEL J. FOX SHOW - NBC

10:00 p.m. Parenthood - NBC

10:00 p.m. Elementary - CBS

Friday, September 27

8:00 p.m. MASTERCHEF JUNIOR - FOX

8:00 p.m. Undercover Boss - CBS

9:00 p.m. Hawaii Five-0 - CBS

9:00 p.m. Dateline NBC - NBC

10:00 p.m. Blue Bloods - CBS

Saturday, September. 28

10:00 p.m. 48 Hours - CBS

11:30 p.m. Saturday Night Live - NBC

Sunday, September 29

7:00 p.m. 60 Minutes - CBS

8:00 p.m. Once Upon a Time

8:00 p.m. The Amazing Race - CBS

8:00 p.m. The Simpsons - FOX

8:30 p.m. Bob's Burgers - FOX

9:00 p.m. The Good Wife - CBS

9:00 p.m. Homeland - Showtime

9:00 p.m. Revenge - ABC

9:00 p.m. Family Guy - FOX

9:30 p.m. American Dad - FOX

10:00 p.m. The Mentalist - CBS

10:00 p.m. BETRAYAL - ABC

10:00 p.m. Eastbound & Down - HBO

10:00 p.m. Masters of Sex - Showtime

10:30 p.m. Hello Ladies - HBO

Monday, September 30

8:30 p.m. WE ARE MEN - CBS

Wednesday, October 2

9:30 p.m. SUPER FUN NIGHT - ABC

10:00 p.m. IRONSIDE - NBC

10:00 p.m. Top Chef - Bravo

Thursday, October 3

8:00 p.m. The Vampire Diaries - The CW

8:30 p.m. THE MILLERS - CBS

8:30 p.m. WELCOME TO THE FAMILY - NBC

9:00 p.m. SEAN SAVES THE WORLD - NBC

9:00 p.m. THE ORIGINALS - The CW

10:00 p.m. Scandal

Sunday, October 6

7:00 p.m. America's Funniest Home Videos

10:00 p.m. Witches of East End - Lifetime

Monday, October 7

8:00 p.m. Hart of Dixie - The CW

9:00 p.m Beauty and the Beast - The CW

Tuesday, October 8

8:00 p.m. THE ORIGINALS - The CW

8:00 p.m. The Biggest Loser - NBC

9:00 p.m. Supernatural - The CW

Wednesday, October 9

8:00 p.m. Arrow

9:00 p.m. THE TOMORROW PEOPLE - The CW

10:00 p.m. - American Horror Story: Coven - FX

Thursday, October 10

8:00 p.m. Once UPON A TIME IN WONDERLAND

9:00 p.m. THE ORIGINALS (Episode 2 Encore)

Sunday, October 13

9:00 p.m. The Walking Dead - AMC

Thursday, October 17

9:00 p.m. REIGN - The CW

9:00 p.m. White Collar - USA

Friday, October 25

8:00 p.m. The Carrie Diaries

9:00 p.m. Grimm - NBC

9:00 p.m. AMERICA’S NEXT TOP MODEL: GUYS AND GIRLS - The CW

10:00 p.m. DRACULA - NBC

Sunday, November 3

8:00 p.m. It Takes A Choir - USA

Thursday, November 14

10:00 p.m. Ground Floor - TBS

Friday, November 15

9:00 p.m. Raising Hope - FOX

Sunday, November 17

8:00 p.m.ALMOST HUMAN - FOX (2-night debut, also Monday, November 18)

Saturday, November 23

The Day of the Doctor (50th Anniversary Doctor Who special) - BBC One/BBC America

Sunday, December 15

Psych: The Musical - USA

Monday, December 25

Doctor Who Christmas Special - BBC One/BBC America

Not set yet

Sherlock - BBC One

The Sing-Off - NBC

Coming Midseason: Downton Abbey - PBS Masterpiece (January 5)

Shameless - Showtime (January 12)

Being Human - Syfy

Helix - Syfy

Black Sails - Starz

Girls - HBO

Game of Thrones - HBO

Star-Crossed - The CW

The Hundred - The CW

Suburgator - ABC

Mind Games - ABC

Killer Women - ABC

Resurrection - ABC

Mixology - ABC

Wayward Pines - FOX

Gang Related - FOX

Surviving Jack - FOX

Us & Them - FOX

The Night Shift - NBC

Chicago PD - NBC

Undatable - NBC

Community NBC

About a Boy - NBC

Believe - NBC

Crisis - NBC

Crossbones - NBC

Mike & Molly - CBS

Hannibal - NBC

Bates Motel - A&E

The Following - FOX

Warehouse 13 - Syfy

Psych - USA

ENLISTED - FOX

Lost Girl - Syfy

This poll is no longer available.

The girls of Fifth Harmony may have only placed third on the second season of Fox’s singing competition The X Factor, but the girl’s first single “Miss Movin' On” recently nabbed over a million YouTube views, pushing the girls ever closer to tangible stardom. On Thursday, the girls headed to the stage of Today to banter a little about the group’s upcoming album and perform the second single off of the album, “Me & My Girls.”

The track is roughly as catchy as the group’s first single, although it does serve as a nice follow up. “Miss Movin' On” is a track about life after a bad romance and the girl power needed to pull yourself back together. “Me & My Girls” is more about spending time out on the town with your girlfriends, exuding confidence and dancing like nobody’s watching. The girls still need to work on putting together a more complicated dance routine, but overall, the group's second single projects exactly the image the girls have been hoping to stand for all along, at least sans the stupid bow Camila Cabello used to wear.

The Today performance is especially amusing, thanks to NBC still pushing Matt Lauer out of his comfort zone and forcing him to head to the outside stage to talk to the young women. It’s not as awkward as Lauer’s presence onstage a few months ago, when the Today crew had him do the “Gentlemen” dance with Psy, but it’s close. I really, really wish he could have tried the “dance like nobody’s watching” move at the 2:42 mark, but maybe that’s just me.

After placing third on The X Factor, the all girl group signed with Sony Music Entertainment and Epic Records to produce the group’s first studio album. So far, details on the full album are scarce, but Lauer does note the endeavor should be hitting outlets sometime this fall, which would make sense, considering the timeline of the singles. Personally, I was never a huge fan of Fifth Harmony on the show, but The X Factor needs to create a legitimate star to maintain relevancy and whether Fifth Harmony or Emblem 3 earn the distinction first, I’m sure Fox and Simon Cowell will be extremely happy.

You can check out the girls’ first single, below, or nab a copy of Fifth Harmony’s music over at iTunes.

Fox is the fourth of the five major networks to announce their Fall 2013 premiere schedule, and for the network that recently brought us American Idol, there's a lot of X Factor on the menu. Fortunately for those who aren't looking for more singing, there are some returning dramas and comedies, and some promising looking new programs joining the lineup later in September.

Fox's fall schedule begins September 11 with the returns of The X Factor and Masterchef. Things get a bit more scripted the following week when Bones returns, followed by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman's new drama Sleepy Hollow. And it looks like Fox is getting the jump on NBC and CBS in debuting the their new comedy line-up a week ahead of premiere week (Sept. 22), with a September 17 start-date for Dads, Brooklyn Nine-NIne, New Girl and The Mindy Project. In fact, Fox has almost nothing premiering during the week of September 22, excluding Masterchef Junior, which is set up on Friday, September 27, ahead of an encore episode of Sleepy Hollow.

It's interesting that Fox is pushing Almost Human off to November and giving Sleepy Hollow such an early start, mainly considering how suited Sleepy Hollow would be for a Halloween-season debut. Then again, the series likely stands to gain a bit more traction with an early start, which may be the intention. Comedy series Enlisted is also coming in late in the game, with a November 8 debut.

Yet to be added to the schedule and presumably joining the line-up during midseason are Rake, Surviving Jack, Us & Them and M. Night Shyamalan's Wayward Pines limited series.

Sharon Osbourne has finally made her next career move. Last summer, the veteran judge on America’s Got Talent bowed out of her contract, citing a problem with NBC’s treatment of her son, Jack, on the now-defunct Stars Earn Stripes as the catalyst of her decision. She may have been replaced on the NBC series by a Spice Girl, but she’s already moved forward, signing on to judge the U.K.’s popular program The X Factor.

Osbourne should be familiar with The X Factor’s format. The longtime TV personality was actually a jusge on the long-running series during its infancy, remaining on the panel from 2004 to 2007. Interestingly, 2007 was the year Osbourne switched gears and joined NBC’s America’s Got Talent. This is actually a good year for Osbourne to return to the U.K. series, as it is the show’s 10th Anniversary, and her appearance should be a nice reminder of the show’s origins.

According to THR, Osbourne will replace Tulisa Contostavlos. The other judges rounding out the U.K. version of the panel include Gary Barlow, Louis Walsh, and Nicole Scherzinger. For Season 10, the show has a few changes planned, including an added set of auditions.

While the Stars Earn Stripes deal was a little shady, I was sad that Osbourne blamed America’s Got Talent for something that seemed to be about the network not wanting to be liable if Sharon’s son's MS troubled him during a show full of strenuous activity. I get the “punish the big guy” mentality, but I think her skills were extremely well-suited to America’s Got Talent, and I guess now we can just hope she’ll bring the same talent to the U.K.’s X Factor stage.

Just a few hours after officially announcing Kelly Rowland and Paulina Rubio would be joining The X Factor, Fox has put out a first look at next season’s judging panel. The first round of auditions with the judges present commenced today in Charleston, South Carolina, where the image was taken at the North Charleston Coliseum during today’s big event.

What is most revealing about this first look is the seating arrangement for the new season. Things may not be set in stone at this point, but one of the memorable things about Season 2 was the way that returning judges Demi Lovato and Simon Cowell poked fun at one another when sitting side by side later in the season. Perhaps audiences actually found those silly comments to be annoying and thus producers opted to separate them. Obviously, I’m speculating, but if those conversations were popular, you would think the two would sit near one another again this year. In a musical chairs move, Rubio has taken over L.A. Reid’s slot, Lovato is in former judge Britney Spears’ seat, Rowland is in Lovato’s, and Cowell is in his usual chair.

THR first reported the news, also noting the fashionable attire the three ladies are wearing. That’s one thing audiences have to look forward to. With one less male on the panel, costumes are about to get a whole lot more colorful. Hopefully, the new judges’ personalities will be as vibrant as their individual looks.

The X Factor’s Season 3 online auditions will continue until June 15. The series is expected to return to Fox’s schedule this fall.

Photo Credit@ Ray Mickshaw / FOX.

Fox has officially announced that The X Factor’s third season will be chock full of girl power. After rumors began circulating that former Destiny’s Child member and U.K. X Factor judge Kelly Rowland and Latina singer and actress Paulina Rubio would join the team, we guessed it wouldn’t be long before confirmation came down the pipeline. Both Rowland and Rubio will be joining the singing competition series as judges and mentors during the show’s third season, which will begin airing this fall.

Since audition production is set to kick-off in Charleston, South Carolina today, it’s no surprise that Fox and The X Factor producers would want to make sure they had the official judging panel in place. The one remaining male on the panel, veteran judge Simon Cowell, said in a statement that he is happy about having three ladies as mentors next season.

During Season 2, The X Factor’s judging and mentoring group looked markedly different, with Britney Spears, L.A. Reid, Demi Lovato, and Cowell filling out the table. Cowell was a given for Season 3, and recently, Lovato announced she would be returning to the series, while Reid moved on to pursue other projects and Spears quit the series, as well. Additional changes are coming to the hosting portion of the series. While Mario Lopez will return, Khloe Kardashian will no longer be a part of The X Factor. That should bring you up to speed on what The X Factor's third season will look like, and hopefully, we’ll get some images of the new judges, soon!

While Demi Lovato and Simon Cowell will be returning to judge Fox’s other singing competition series, The X Factor, during Season 3, mum has been the word on which other celebrity personalities would be filling the remaining two judging slots. On Sunday, reports surfaced that former Destiny’s Child member Kelly Rowland and Mexican singer and actress Paulina Rubio might take over the remaining two mentoring slots.

Fox has yet to confirm either woman as a go for Season 3, but according to EW, Rowland, at least, seems to be in advanced talks for the new season of the The X Factor. This wouldn’t be a huge surprise given Rowland has appeared as a judge and mentor during Season 8 of the U.K. version of The X Factor. Additionally, she’s had experience as a judge on So You Think You Can Dance. Despite sort of jumpstarting her career by bashing Beyonce on a new track, there’s no reason to think the singer won’t have the time to do The X Factor.

Additionally, rumor has it that Rubio will also fill a chair on The X Factor, although it hasn’t been confirmed that she is actually in talks with Fox’s show, which makes her participation less of a sure thing. Although Rowland should be a good fit for The X Factor, I’m not certain that the outlet will want three female voices on the judging panel. It’s certainly an interesting idea, and one that hasn’t been accomplished on a singing competition show (at leastthat I can think of) before, and bringing a lot of girl power to the judges table could be really interesting. Since female judges on competition shows have historically had more to say than the dudes (here’s looking at you, Mariah Carey), one thing is for certain: Mario Lopez should have his hands full getting the cuts to commercials to work out.

We’ll keep you posted as Fox confirms the final additions to the judges table. As shooting for Season 3 begins on Tuesday, we should be hearing the news sooner rather than later.

Fox announced their 2013-2014 lineup this morning, along with the planned schedule, which sets up new comedies on Tuesday nights and adds a number of other new series to the schedule, along with the returning shows. Among the new series is J.J. Abrams' sci-fi cop series Almost Human, Seth MacFarlane's new live-action comedy Dads and new animated comedy Murder Police.

As you'll note in the schedule below, Raising Hope has been pushed off to late fall and may end up airing on Friday nights along with new comedy Enlisted. Of course, that situation could change, depending on how things go for Dads and the cop comedy starring Andy Samberg, Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Fox also found a place for the recently announced Junior Masterchef on Friday nights. And for Mondays, it's Sleepy Hollow, and eventually, the robot-cop drama Almost Human.

As always, the schedule is subject to change as fall approaches.

Sunday nights seem to be business as usual, with Fox's Animation Domination block remaining intact. Yet to be added to the schedule but ordered to series are Gang Related, Surviving Jack, Us & Them and Murder Police. Fox also has their first event series set to go for 2014. M. Night Shyamalan's Wayward Pines, a limited series based on Blake Crouch's Pines, which is described as a mind-bending thriller. As mentioned, that's on deck for next year, and hopefully it'll be one of numerous event series set for Fox.

We'll be sharing more information, photos and hopefully some videos for all of Fox's new projects soon enough, so keep an eye out for that.

Demi Lovato didn’t have the best run as a judge and mentor on her first season of The X Factor, arguably having the best talent but losing contestants early in the game. However, that doesn’t seem to be deterring the talented singer and judge, who passionately defended the contestants she believed in. Lovato will be returning to Fox’s hit singing competition for Season 3.

With Spears out on Season 3, L.A. Reid leaving, and Khloe Kardashian reportedly getting nixed, It’s no surprise Simon Cowell would want some semblance of stability on the program and has stated numerous times that he would like Lovato to return to The X Factor. So, if you did enjoy Cowell and Lovato bantering, you’ll be getting a lot more of it when the new season premieres.

For her part, Lovato really seems excited about returning to the judges panel.

Lovato is only 20 years old and was the youngest judge on the panel last year. She may not have had the greatest track record as a judge, but she does know what is current in the industry and what sacrifice it takes to become a huge star. Hopefully, with a little more experience under her belt, she’ll do better this time around.

Open auditions are already underway for Season 3 of the series, with dates set for April 14 in New Orleans and Long Island, NY on April 25. You can learn more over at The X Factor’s site.

The X Factor is going to go through plenty of changes before Season 3 airs. Britney Spears is already out, L.A. Reid needs to focus more on his business as a record producer, and Khloe Kardashian has been rumored to have been fired. According to Simon Cowell, though, the show would really, really like to keep Demi Lovato around—if she’s willing.

Cowell hung out with Ryan Seacrest on his radio show on Wednesday to talk about the upcoming season of Fox’s fall singing competition show. Cowell and Lovato had a pretty teasing-based relationship when they judged together during Season 2, but Cowell says he likes the 20-year-old singer and would like her to be part of the judges panel again next year.

While there will certainly be a couple of new judges to replace, hopefully Demi will be back to talk the talk on the judges panel. Unfortunately, Cowell isn’t saying who might take one of those coveted mentoring positions on The X Factor. However, Cowell and Seacrest did discuss the possibility of the American Idol judge signing on for a guest hosting position for one episode of the hit show. I would pay to see Mario Lopez and Seacrest host together, even if it’s only for one night.

Auditions started this week for Season 3 of The X Factor, which means those bigger castings should start getting announced sooner rather than later (hopefully). We’ll let you know if Demi decides to return, and more.

Britney Spears may not be the only Season 2 newcomer to exit The X Factor. Word is that co-host to the Fox singing competition Khloe Kardashian is also set to depart the series. Though, unlike Spears, who left the show after one season as judge in order to work on her music, it sounds like Kardashian's exit from the series is the show's decision.

NY Post states that an insider confirms that The X Factor plans to ask Mario Lopez to return to host for Season 3, "but not Khloe." Of the duo, Lopez has much more hosting experience under his belt, with America's Best Dance Crew and Extra among his hosting credits, while Kardashian was new to the role, and came off as a bit stiffer by comparison to Lopez.

In fairness to Kardashian, based on her appearances in the various E! Kardashian reality shows, she's proven to be a funny and charismatic woman, who might have been right for this role if she had a bit more experience with live television and hosting. But The X Factor is a huge production, and even with a more seasoned host at her side, it was still a challenging endeavor for a first-hosting job, and it showed.

Between the judges and its hosts, The X Factor has been in a constant state of flux, beginning with before the first season began airing, when judge Cheryl Cole was sent packing not long after the series began production. NY Post says Cole is in talks to return to the series as one of the new judges, joining Simon Cowell and Demi Lovato. That would certainly be an interesting twist, considering the controversy (and lawsuit) that followed her exit. Nicole Scherzinger was Cole's replacement as judge in Season 1, moving from her originally set position as co-host with Steve Jones, to the judges table. Scherzinger was let go after the first season, along with Paula Abdul (and Steve Jones), making room for Britney Spears and Demi Lovato, the latter of whom is expected to return for Season 3, along with series creator Simon Cowell. Along with Spears, L.A. Reid is also set to depart the series.

Officially, no decisions have been made on the matter of talent replacements. While it seems likely that they will fill the two vacated judges chairs, it's possible that Mario Lopez will host solo next season, assuming he's confirmed to return (and assuming Karashian is confirmed to leave).

If you're over the age of 12 and think you have the singing talent to compete in the third season of The X Factor, start warming up those vocal cords. Fox announced the audition schedule for Season 3 of the singing competition series, and they start in less than a month.

Unlike American Idol, which focuses entirely on solo acts and has a higher age limit, The X Factor allows younger singers to get in on the competition and features a whole category for music groups. The vocal groups didn't fare so well in Season 1, but the category did much better in the second season. Auditions for the third season kick off in Los Angeles on March 6 at the Galen Center. After that, auditions move to South Carolina, New Orleans, New York and the Colorado. Not all of the venues are set yet, but the dates are locked in for the spring. Here's what Fox released today.

Can't get to one of the audition cities? The X Factor is also holding online auditions. More information on how to enter online can be found at TheXFactorUSA.com.

There's all sorts of fine print about audition eligibility, including that you have to be 12 years of age or older as of January 1, 2013, you must be a U.S. citizen or eligible to work in the U.S., and do not currently have a music recording contract. Go here for more specifics on auditioning and eligibility.

When Demi Lovato exited rehab, she came out of the gate quickly, working on her fourth studio album and then taking a job with The X Factor on Fox. While the young mentor brought a more youthful appeal to the show, the 20-year-old singer says she may have jumped back into work a little too soon, especially with the reality competition show.

Lovato’s the cover girl for this month’s Cosmo on Campus. According to the Daily Mail, the young diva says she may have made a hasty decision when choosing to join the show as a judge and mentor.

As a young mentor, Demi held her own for a while, but eventually lost all four of her contestants while the other three mentors each had at least one contestant left. Maybe her youth is at fault for some of the choices she made during the show and maybe she just had trouble committing to a program requiring such high levels of investment.

Now The X Factor has finished out its second season, Lovato’s interview makes it unclear whether she’s gotten into a groove with work and will return for another season of the show. With neither judges L.A. Reid or Britney Spears returning next season, it would be really nice to see her come back, but I’m not sure that’s in the cards. Either way, it’s good to know the young star has gotten her life under control and is happier and healthier.

It’s very beneficial to “team up” with Simon Cowell. The X Factor contestants formally known as LYLAS and now rolling with the title Fifth Harmony have landed a record deal with none other than their mentor label, Syco Records. In a surprise move, the girls are also signed with L.A. Reid’s Epic Records.

Reid often had trouble understanding the girls’ stage performances throughout the competition, frequently noting that for a group that had “harmony” in its name, the harmonies were not often present. However, the girls certainly over-achieved throughout the competition, beating out rivals Emblem 3, who were generally the highest-ranking group throughout the competition and who, subsequently, have also been signed to Syco Records. Having come together rather quickly and progressed beyond most people’s wildest dreams, I would not be the least bit surprised to see the girls continue to sing better, dance harder, and achieve some hits.

To help them work toward this goal, producer Julian Bunetta has signed on to help the girls create their very first album. Additionally, the ladies of Fifth Harmony-- Ally Brooke, Camila Cabello, Normani Hamilton, Dinah Jane Hansen, and Lauren Jauregui—will have a little help. According to Yahoo Canada, Autumn Rowe and Lil’ Eddie will also lend a helping hand to Fifth Harmony’s first studio album. Since the girls were just signed, we’re still a bit early to predict when an album we’ll hit the market, but if I had to guess, I’d say the freshman endeavor will street around the same time promotions for Season 3 of The X Factor hit.

In the interim, what do you think Vegas odds are Fifth Harmony will find themselves with a hit song?

This shouldn't come as a huge surprise, given recent reports, but Britney Spears has confirmed that she is, in fact, leaving The X Factor after serving as a judge and mentor on the Fox singing competition for the show's second season. In addition to confirming her exit, she expressed enthusiasm for returning to doing what she loves most, which is performing.

Just yesterday, it was reported that Britney was exiting The X Factor so that she could return to the studio to reportedly record another album, and maybe even do another tour. Spears doesn't get into specifics on her post-X-Factor, but she does hint that music is her focus as she leaves the Fox series behind. Here's her statement, which was posted at EW:

EW adds on that a Fox rep confirmed the news, which makes it about as official as it's going to get. Spears' confirmed exit opens the floor for a new round of "Who will replace her?" We played this game after the first season of The X Factor wrapped up and it was confirmed that judges/mentors Nicole Scherzinger and Paula Abdul were not coming back. It'll be interesting to see if Simon Cowell or anyone else from the show talks about what their plans might be, whether it's to replace Spears with another pop star or go with someone with a different musical background.

There was a lot of hype and buzz leading into The X Factor's second season over who would fill the seats vacated by Season 1 judges/mentors Nicole Scherzinger and Paula Abdul. Pop star Britney Spears was one of the replacements, with Demi Lovato filling the other empty chair, but based on rumors and recent reports, Spears is on her way out.

TMZ is reporting that Britney Spears won't be returning as a judge on The X Factor for Season 3. The site says their "unimpeachable sources" say Britney loves the show but is looking to focus on her music going forward, so it sounds like this is her decision. She's reportedly working on her 8th album right now. TMZ also says she's "seriously considering going on tour again" once the album is complete, which may come as some consolation to her fans, who are likely disappointed by her reported departure from The X Factor.

Assuming this is the real deal, Spears would be walking away from a $15 million contract, but if she's serious about her music, moving on from the TV show would likely give her more time to focus on that. It would also mean another major change-up for The X Factor, which saw its ratings slip down a bit in its second season. Spears' exit means the series will have to find another musician to fill her place, and that means more rumors and speculation about who that might be. Will they look for someone high profile (and costly) to take her place? Or will the series take a different approach to casting her replacement since it doesn't seem like bringing in a successful (but pricy) pop star did much to help the show thrive in its second season. It's too soon to say, but we'll have to see what develops from this and whether or not there's any confirmation from Spears, Simon Cowell or Fox about Spears' exit.

Much in the way NBC is having The Voice winner Cassadee Pope perform on their New Year's Eve special this year, Fox has also decided to tap the talent and recent popularity of their own singing competition winner. The network announced this week that Tate Stevens will perform on New Year's Eve Live!, which is set to air this Monday night.

Country singer Tate Stevens took the grand prize in the second season of The X Factor, and it looks like Fox has plans to make even more use of the singer's talent, as they've added him to the roster of the New Year's Eve Live! special set to air Monday, December 31 at 11:00 p.m.. Stevens joins the previously announced performers Lifehouse and Carmen Electra.

Fox's countdown to the new year will include more than one winner this year, as Stevens isn't the only reality show contestant performing on the special, which is hosted by Carson Daly. Fox also has American Idol winner Phillip Phillips lined up to perform, which should be a nice bit of promotion for the upcoming season of the returning winter singing competition. Between Lifehouse, Electra, Phillips and Stevens, it looks like Fox's line-up is shaping up to be pretty well rounded in terms of music style. And those who were fans of Stevens during the recent season of The X Factor will likely appreciate the opportunity to see him perform at a major venue like this. And it's certainly not a bad way for Stevens to ring in the new year, either.

Another season of The X Factor came to a close tonight, with one of the three remaining acts earning a sizable record contract and the glory of being the second season's winner. Going into tonight's bulky finale, it came down to 13-year-old Carly Rose Sonenclar, country singer Tate Stevens and girl-group Fifth Harmony. Following a number of performances and flashbacks from the second season of the singing competition, a winner was crowned.

The all female group Fifth Harmony was eliminated first during tonight's results episode. I can't say that I'm especially surprised by that, however, given how quickly the groups were picked off in the series' first season, Simon Cowell deserves some credit for getting two of the three groups as close to the final two as he did this season. That left L.A. Reid's contestant, the 37-year-old Tate Stevens and Britney Spears' contestant, 13-year-old Carly Rose Sonenclar standing side by side in the season's final moments.

The winner of the $5 million record contract and Season 2 of The X Factor is Tate Stevens. Following the announcement of his win, Stevens tearfully thanked "the man upstairs" for taking care of him, his family, and the country music fans for all of the votes. And there were surely plenty of those over the course of the season. Carly was gracious in her defeat, keeping her head up and giving Tate a hug following the announcement of his win. Considering her age and her demonstrated talent, it won't be a surprise if we hear more from Carly in the future. In the meantime, Tate closed out the show with Chris Young's "Tomorrow."

And that wraps it up for Season 2 of The X Factor. It'll be interesting to see what becomes of this season's contestants as they move forward in their careers.

Last night, after a few fun performances from Brigit Mendler and Bruno Mars , Fox’s The X Factor got down to business. Thursday’s episode was an elimination episode, meant to wheedle four finalists down to three. Tate Stevens, Emblem 3, and Carly Rose Sonenclar were considered to be the frontrunners, while Fifth Harmony was expected to go home. Instead, the night delivered a doozy.

After hemming and hawing for a while, hosts Mario Lopez and Khloe Kardashian announced that Fifth Harmony had made it into the final 3, which meant one of the favored three would be going home. At that point, it was a little inevitable that the votes for Simon’s groups had been split, and unfavorably for Emblem 3 (although I had my fingers crossed Carly Rose' poor showing on Wednesday would knock her out). Still, the boys handled their dismissal with aplomb, with Wes stating they would be sticking around in the music biz.

I personally liked Emblem 3 (as a group, less so as people), and was disappointed that they lost out to the final contestants when they performed such an exciting rendition of Peter Frampton’s “Baby I Love Your Way” on Wednesday. Just like The X Factor U.K.’s boy band, One Direction, Emblem 3 won’t be winning the competition, but hopefully they will find the same level of success in the States.

Next week, we’ll get to see whether Carly Rose, Tate, or Fifth Harmony take home the whopping $5 million dollar contract prize. Since Tate and Carly have been frontrunners all along, I’m guessing one of them will nab the win, but Fifth Harmony has been sneaky successful so far, and I wouldn’t put it past them to have a great run next week.

After two weeks of emotional double elimination episodes, The X Factor is ready to showcase its top eight contestants, and they plan to do so in a stylish episode that will include Alicia Keys and one of last season’s favorite contestants. Fans of the scruffy, sincere musician and singer, Josh Krajcik--who earned second place in the singing competition show’s first season--will be happy to hear the man will be performing during next week’s episode.

The X Factor airs each week on Wednesday and Thursday, and while Wednesday’s episode is totally focused on the contestants performances, on Thursday producers usually like to shake things up a bit. After last night’s dismal performance from the British X Factor contestant Cher Lloyd--whose singing was actually less attractive than her high-cut shorts--I’m happy to hear the November 29 episode of the series will feature some less-annoying talent.

According to THR, the episode will feature Keys previewing a track from her upcoming album, Girl on Fire. It sounds like she won’t be singing the album's namesake track, ”Girl on Fire”, a song that I enjoy, but that wouldn’t really supplement the already dismal mood of the room on an elimination day. Krajcik, too, will be performing new material. The former contestant will be performing his brand new single, “One Thing She’ll Never Know,” off of his debut album, which is set to street in 2013. It should be a good night for everyone, excepting the poor contestant who gets the boot.