Time will tell who will fill the recently vacated judge's chairs on "The X Factor," but one thing's for sure — it won't be Beyonce Knowles. At least, if Simon Cowell is to be believed.
Fox's recently minted competition series had a major shakeup last week, with judges Nicole Scherzinger and Paul Abdul — along with host Steve Jones — getting the heave-ho. And while the rumor mill swirled with scuttlebutt about Cowell offering "Single Ladies" singer Knowles an astronomical sum to come aboard, the famously cantankerous Brit says it's not happening.
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"I have no idea where this rumor came from," Cowell said in an interview with "Extra." "I read it online that I offered her $100 million a year. It's complete nonsense."
Cowell also revealed that executives at Fox began talking to him about a shakeup "[a]t the beginning of the year– and we were told it had to happen straight away."
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He also took responsibility for the perception that "X Factor" has been a lukewarm success, admitting that his declaration that the show would be bigger than his last gig, "American Idol," set the bar too high.
"It's only because I opened my big mouth and said we were going to get 20 million [viewers]," Cowell said. "If I hadn't said that, everybody would be saying the show was a huge success."