ABC revives ‘American Idol’

Ryan Seacrest is expected to return as host

A year after FOX’s American Idol wrapped its 15th season, ABC has confirmed it’s reviving the long-running program for the 2017-2018 season. The network made the announcement on GMA on Tuesday, May 9th.

American Idol is a pop culture staple that left the air too soon,” Channing Dungey, president of ABC Entertainment, says in a statement. “ABC is the right home to reignite the fan base. We are thrilled viewers will once again share in these inspiring stories of people realizing their dreams.”

The show’s host and judges will be announced at a later date, but ABC alludes to Ryan Seacrest returning as host, despite recently relocating to New York City for his new co-hosting position with Kelly Ripa on Live With Kelly And Ryan.

“Seacrest, who was based in Los Angeles during the American Idol run, said he will live in New York during the week and then fly back home to Los Angeles for the weekends,” the network states.

TMZ has reported for the past couple of weeks that Seacrest would likely return as host and the show would be revived by ABC. However, TMZ states the show will still be filmed in Hollywood, something producers Freemantle Media were adamant about, forcing Seacrest to make two round trip flights in as many days.

American Idol has garnered some of the biggest names in music including Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and Jennifer Hudson. The series has produced 14 Grammys, two Golden Globes, an Academy Award and has generated more than 450 Billboard No. 1 hits.

Buddy Iahn
Buddy Iahn

Buddy Iahn founded The Music Universe when he decided to juxtapose his love of web design and music. As a lifelong drummer, he decided to take a hiatus from playing music to report it. The website began as a fun project in 2013 to one of the top independent news sites. Email: info@themusicuniverse.com