14 DAY TRIAL // Simon Cowell is still to announce the members of the judges panel for the US version of the X Factor but word in the industry has it that Cheryl Cole has been deemed a loose cannon and been replaced with Mariah Carey.
Ever since the music mogul announced he’d be leaving American Idol to focus on bringing X Factor to the US, speculation has been running rampant that Cheryl Cole would certainly tag along for the ride.
As fans must know, Cheryl is also on the British X Factor, while also being a close friend of Simon’s, so picking her would make sense in more ways than one.
However, Simon has decided that he cannot sacrifice the potential audience for the sake of having Cheryl with him – and will go with Mariah Carey instead, the Mirror reports.
“Look, I’ve said I’d love Cheryl out there but whether it will happen, who knows? Mariah Carey would be an amazing addition to the US show,” Simon said the other night, regarding one of his older interviews.
“And she’s exactly the right caliber of star that we want for the show. I can’t say more because it’s too early and I can’t say. But there will be surprises,” Cowell added.
A source familiar with plans for the US X Factor confirms that, indeed, producers have been in negotiations with Mariah for a position on the panel, with everything going in the right direction.
Simon, though, is still rooting for Cheryl, but the producers won’t even hear of it because they believe she’s not a big enough star to bring in the good ratings.
“They’re saying that together with her accent being difficult to understand, and nobody knowing who she is, she doesn’t have the star qualities to draw in an audience,” dishes a spy.
“They are going to be competing with American Idol’s star-studded panel of Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and J-Lo, and Cheryl just doesn’t cut it compared to them. She’s not a name,” adds the spy.
On the other hand, Mariah Carey is an artist everybody has heard of. Plus, she has extra experience and is also saucy enough to make for a super-entertaining judge.
“Mariah Carey’s people say she’s fully behind the idea and they’re very interested in taking talks further. Mariah has already had the initial meeting with Fox so she will more than likely take the spot Simon wanted for Cheryl,” the same spy explains.