American Idol Panel of Judges to be Changed Yearly

American Idol Panel of Judges to be Changed Yearly

American Idol Executive Producer Nigel Lythgoe has come out with a bright and interesting idea to change the judges panel at least every year.

In his interview with AI host Ryan Seacrest on his On Air with Ryan Seacrest radio show, Lythgoe said the American Idol may utilize this new format in which it could have a completely different set of celebrity judges yearly or they may opt to do another round based on their availability following a season's conclusion, "At the end of the day, I think what we've seriously got to talk about is just using people for a year, because if we do want these big stars - and we do - you cannot take them away from what they do. That's depriving the public of a star, for a start, but also stopping them from earning a lot of money. You can always get them back for another year, and I think the public would like that. The public is going to say, 'Oh she's not as good as Jennifer Lopez,' or, 'I don't like him as much as Steven Tyler,' or, 'Aren't they great?!' Either way, you're just constantly keeping things moving and it's interesting to see."

Lythgoe also revealed that Idol's producers have many possible replacements in mind but making selections is difficult.

Although Lythgoe is excited to revamp American Idol and consider trying a new judging-panel format, he admitted he's very upset about Lopez and Tyler's departures and it apparently wasn't his choice to let them go.

However, whether longtime Idol judge Randy Jackson will reprise his judging role remains unclear, although recent reports have suggested he may move to a mentoring role instead.