“American Idol” will return to the airwaves on the ABC network, the company announced today.
In doing so, Entertainment Weekly (EW) noted, Disney-owned ABC took a dig at competitor Fox, the original home of the singing competition.
“American Idol is a pop-culture staple that left the air too soon,” ABC executive Channing Dungey said, reported EW. “ABC is the right home to reignite the fan base. We are thrilled viewers will once again share in these inspiring stories of people realizing their dreams.”
“America, get ready for the return of a bigger, bolder and better-than-ever Idol,” agreed Disney Media Networks co-chairman Ben Sherwood, reported EW.
In February, it was reported that NBC was working hard to buy the rights to air the program from production company FremantleMedia. In addition to NBC, the Fox network, where the series originally aired for 15 seasons from 2002 to 2016, had also been bidding to resurrect the show, EW reports.
ABC executives have yet to lock down either host or judges for “Idol,” and didn’t announce a tentative launch date, although sometime in spring 2018 with a Sunday night air date is a good bet, according to USA Today.
“Idol has a built-in (if faded) fan base, and the reboot will likely be heavily promoted during ABC’s Oscar telecast, typically the highest-rated entertainment program each year,” said USA Today. “Except for that time Idol beat it.”
• Ken Shepherd can be reached at kshepherd@washingtontimes.com.
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