May 3, 2011 14:19 GMT  ·  By
Ryan Seacrest may leave American Idol to develop rival show for NBC, claims report
   Ryan Seacrest may leave American Idol to develop rival show for NBC, claims report

It’s still a long way to go, but Ryan Seacrest may soon be stepping down as host of the ever-popular American Idol. New reports suggest Seacrest is in talks with NBC to develop a rival talent show, which would prevent him from being on AI anymore.

Coming on the heels of a report suggesting that Jennifer Lopez too may walk away from Idol after just one season, PopCrunch reports that Seacrest is looking at a new project, one that would come to compete with AI.

Since Fox has him locked down in his contract until 2012, a contract that also prevents him from dropping out of Idol for another network, it’s safe to say that the departure (if there is one to talk about) will not occur until that date.

“With just one more year left on his $15 million a year contract with the nation’s favorite singing competition, American Idol host Ryan Seacrest is in talks to develop a rival talent hit for NBC,” PopCrunch notes.

Aside from the fact that the new show would be seen as a “rival” to AI, there is also the question of how many more projects Ryan can pile on his place before he cracks under pressure.

Even the “busiest man in showbiz,” as the media calls him, must have a limit to the things he can do, the report argues.

“Seacrest and his production company, Ryan Seacrest Productions, are working on ‘another music concept, which is a totally different kind of competition show,’ Paul Telegdy, NBC’s executive vice president of alternative programming, says,” PopCrunch writes.

“It is self-contained episodes. It is a bit more fun. It’s not contestant-competitive, it’s artist-competitive,” Talegdy notes.

Moreover, as if that wasn’t enough, Ryan and his production company are in talks to develop 8 new shows for NBC, which, again, begs the question of whether he’ll still have time to be on Idol all things considered.

“The new show is in the very early stages of development and it’s still too early to say whether or not Ryan will continue to host Idol or move to NBC to host the new program, Telegdy says,” PopCrunch writes.

So, until 2012, when his contract for American Idol expires, Ryan Seacrest is a fixture on the show – but no farther than that at this point.