ABCSeacrest out…or in? Right now, there’s no confirmation as to whether or not Ryan Seacrest will return as the host of American Idol when it debuts on ABC next year. But Seacrest appears to be leaning toward rejoining the show. He told Variety, “I think it’s doable.”
At issue is Seacrest’s other job as the co-host of ABC’s Live with Kelly & Ryan. If he also hosted Idol, he’d have to fly back and forth from New York to LA. He says working that out — as well as negotiating the terms of his contracts — is a “puzzle.”
“I love the show. I have great affection for the show, and I think the show will be tremendously successful on ABC,” he told Variety.
As for how he sees the show updating itself for 2017, he says, “I think there are tweaks that the show will make and can make…but at the core, the format is the format — that’s the strength of the show: the storytelling and the talent. …So I don’t think you reinvent the wheel.”
Ryan also wouldn’t be drawn into a diss of Kelly Clarkson, who decided to join NBC’s rival show The Voice as a judge, rather than do the same for Idol.
“Was I bummed? I’m happy if she’s doing what she wants to do and she’s happy,” Seacrest said. “She’s going to be great on The Voice.”
Copyright © 2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
