Were Jennifer Lopez & Steven Tyler Fired? Who Will Replace Them As Judges?
July 16, 2012 by Hollywoodite
Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler resigned from American Idol on Friday. The former judges claimed to be over it and leaving of their own volition. Tyler wrote a bizarre statement explaining the return to his band Aerosmith; Lopez just said she wanted to focus on other things. Except it’s moot that Tyler quit suddenly and that Lopez flip-flopped for weeks, especially in the final days, before rushing to quit so Tyler wouldn’t steal her shine. Because they were probably fired.
That’s according to TheWrap.com, whose sources claim to know Tyler’s “option was not picked up,” Idol wasn’t interested in him anymore. And Lopez got greedy: her first season was a $12 million payday, her second season earned her $15 million, she requested another pay rise to $17 million and reportedly expected it would be met. However, Fox reportedly “surprised her” by walking away. Randy Jackson is probably leaving/ being fired too, with only Ryan Seacrest remaining as host.
And now possible replacements are being named as people try to guess who would be a good fit.
One favourite: Mariah Carey, whose husband Nick Cannon says Fox cannot afford her. Cannon told TMZ.com (while overestimating Lopez’s second season pay by $5 million): “I don’t know if they can afford Mariah Carey. That’s a lot of money. If they gave JLo $20 million, they might have to double that!”
Other random options people are naming: Mary J. Blige, Aretha Franklin, Kanye West (who’ll make the show about him and Kim Kardashian), and Lenny Kravitz. The only option who seems interested is Franklin, who told TMZ: “Yes, I am interested as a judge.”