Simon Cowell is no stranger to earning a reputation for harsh and scathing criticism as a judge on “American Idol.” The record company executive and television personality apologized for some of his comments on the show in a new interview on the New York Times podcast “The Interview.”
“I realized I probably went too far,” Cowell said. “I didn’t particularly like audition days because they’re long and boring. I get tired of them. And of course, out of 100 good comments, what are they going to use? They’re always going to use me in a bad way. I get that. What can I say? I’m sorry.”
When asked what exactly he was apologizing for, Cowell replied: “Well, it’s just a bunch of shit.”
“I wasn’t trying to be stupid on purpose,” Cowell said. “All I wanted at these shows was to find successful artists who would sign me to a label. So when all these people show up and you can’t sing, 10 seconds later you say, ‘You can’t sing,’ not ‘You’re going to be great.’ ”
Cowell was one of the original judges of American Idol, along with Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul, and served as a judge on the singing competition series’ first season from 2002 to 2010. Previously, he was an original judge on Pop Idol, the British series that inspired American Idol. As the US series grew into a pop culture juggernaut in the ’10s, Cowell became a pop culture staple for cutting down celebrity nominees with his gruff demeanor. Its most brutal attitude is to thrive online in the early days of internet video sharing.
“I’m not proud of it, let’s just say that,” Cowell continued. “When you hear about these clips, you think, ‘Oh my god.’ But again, the positive is that this show has become really popular around the world.”
Cowell is currently on the road promoting his Netflix series, “Simon Cowell: The Next Act.” The series will follow the same executive as he searches for a new boy band. The program will be broadcast for the first time on December 10th.
