After three short seasons FOX has cancelled The X Factor leaving the former American Idol judge Simon Cowell without a US home for the first time in more than twelve years.
Announcing the news on Friday afternoon FOX declared they were giving up on the troubled singing series which never seemed to find its footing or its judges panel. Three seasons, three host arrangements, and three different panels of judges to go with it left viewers in a whiplash of what show they were watching.
Was it low ratings that got X Factor cancelled? According to FOX and other reports the decision is a result of Simon throwing in the towel and heading home:
“I’ve had a fantastic time over the last 12 years, both on The X Factor and American Idol,” said Cowell in a statement. “And apart from being lucky enough to find some amazing talent on the shows, I have always had an incredible welcome from the American public (most of the time!). Last year, for a number of reasons, I had to make a decision to return to the U.K. version of The X Factor in 2014. So for now, I’m back to the U.K. and I want to thank Fox for being an incredible partner and I also want to thank everybody who has supported my shows. America, I’ll see you soon!”
However, according to Deadline, Simon remained confident recently that the series would be picked up for a fourth season. FOX was said to have considered bringing the show back with fewer hours each week like we saw happen with SYTYCD. It’s possible Simon was unwilling to let that happen and decided to return to focus on the UK variant as a judge which has found much better success than it did here.
Are you sorry to hear FOX has cancelled The X Factor? I’m not sure I’ll particularly miss it, but it is a big reminder that FOX isn’t willing to drag around shows with poor ratings. Get it together, American Idol!
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Source: EW.com