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Paula Abdul - Source: Reuters -
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Paula Abdul has decided to quit the top-rated US television show
American Idol,
ending weeks of speculation
about her future
as a judge on the popular singing contest.
Making her announcement on her Twitter feed, Abdul said with
sadness in my heart, she had decided not to return to Idol which is
due to start auditions for its ninth season within days.
She did not give any reason.
Abdul, 47, a singer/dancer turned TV personality, has been a
mainstay of the show since it was launched in 2002 and quickly
became an audience juggernaut for News Corp's Fox network, growing
into an estimated $US1 billion-plus brand.
"I'll miss nurturing all the new talent, but most of all being a
part of a show that I helped from day one become an international
phenomenon," said Abdul, who was known for finding something
positive in almost every performance.
"What I want to say most, is how much I appreciate the undying
support and enormous love that you have showered upon me."
Fox and the show's producers FremantleMedia North America and 19
Entertainment said they were saddened that Abdul would not be
returning to the show as she had been an important part of the
'American Idol' family over the last eight
seasons.
"While Paula will not be continuing with us, she's a tremendous
talent and we wish her the best," they said in a joint statement,
also giving no reason for her departure.
Abdul's future with the show had been unclear since the eighth
season ended in May with speculation rising as producers locked in
new contracts with some of the other key players.
Idol producers renewed host Ryan Seacrest's contract last month for
three years for a reported $US15 million - triple his previous
salary - with the new season to go to air in January 2010.
This week the show's producers announced songwriter and record
producer Kara DioGuardi, who was brought in this year as the fourth
judge alongside Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson to boost sliding
viewership, would be back on the panel.
But the producers had said nothing about Abdul, whose talent
manager said in July that she was upset about not having received a
new proposal and might leave the show.
Reports speculated that she was seeking a hefty pay raise while
other reports suggested she was unhappy with the way she was being
treated.
Cowell, the often-acerbic British judge, has cast doubt on his own
future with the show after his contract expires in May 2010 after
repeated comments that he was getting bored with it.
Jackson's contract also expires in 2010 but he has not publicly
indicated his wishes.
Despite sliding viewership, American Idol is still America's most
watched TV show, drawing an average 26.3 million viewers to each
episode in the
last season that ended in
May
.
American Idol is seen in more than 100 countries and is a joint
production between 19 Entertainment, a unit of CKX Inc, and
FremantleMedia, a unit of British-based RTL Group, which is
controlled by media giant Bertelsmann AG.
