New 'American Idol' Judges Won't Be Announced Monday

There was speculation that Fox would confirm Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler, but 'no deals are signed' yet, source says.By Gil Kaufman





"American Idol" Season 9 judges

Photo: FOX




As the tumble of "American Idol" casting news piled up late last week, speculation was rife that producers would announce the makeup of a revamped judges' table on Monday (August 2) at the annual Television Critics Association press tour.
But according to the Hollywood Reporter unnamed sources at the Fox network said there would be no news about the judging changes. "No deals are signed," the source reportedly said.
A spokesperson for "Idol" could not be reached for comment at press time.
While it's possible that a last-minute signing could lead to a big reveal on Monday afternoon, the Los Angeles Times reported that a deal to sign Jennifer Lopez to take over the seat recently vacated by single-season judge Ellen DeGeneres has been completed "in principle," but Lopez has yet to sign off on the proposal.
Spokespeople for "Idol" offered a no comment on the J. Lo rumors, and the "Jenny From the Block" singer's reps didn't return requests for comment, though an unnamed source told the Times that Lopez's camp is holding up final negotiations by trying to sweeten her package with perks including a development deal at Fox. Her camp is also reportedly waiting to gauge public reaction to the leaking of the news about her possibly joining the "Idol" cast.
MTV News had also not received confirmation at press time that two-season judge Kara DioGuardi had been let go and that Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler was in negotiations to fill the vacated Simon Cowell seat on the judges' panel for the upcoming season, two rumors that popped up around the time the J. Lo story broke late last week.
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