'The X Factor' Axed After 17 Years As Simon Cowell Pulls Plug On Talent Competition

Jul 29, 2021 by apost team

ITV announced on Thursday that the British version of “The X Factor,” the original iteration of Simon Cowell’s worldwide reality TV phenomenon, will not be renewed for another season. Cowell launched the series in 2004, building on the success of "Pop Idol" and “American Idol.” In the U.K., it is responsible for launching the careers of international pop stars like Leona Lewis, One Direction and Little Mix. And since it first aired in the U.K. 17 years ago, the show’s format has spread far and wide across the globe, with active series in Belarus, Denmark and Italy.

The U.S. also had its own version of “The X Factor,” though it too was axed in 2014 after Fox, the broadcasting network behind the American version, could not match the ratings of Cowell’s earlier success, “American Idol.” The 2014 announcement came three years following Cowell’s exit as a judge on the show.

ITV released a statement on July 29 regarding the British show’s future in the wake of an exclusive report from The Sun, which claimed that Cowell had axed the U.K. version of “The X Factor,” potentially pausing it for at least five years.

Back in 2017, The Guardian reported that “The X Factor” had received its lowest ratings since the show began back in 2004. The show’s 14th premiere drew 6 million viewers compared to the nearly 11 million that it attracted during one of its most popular phases in 2011.

Although “The X Factor’s” departure is big news for the television mogul, Cowell still has a considerable number of TV shows on the air, including “America’s Got Talent,” “Britain’s Got Talent” and “American Idol.”

"There are no current plans for the next series of The X Factor at this stage,” an ITV spokesperson said of the show’s future.

ITV’s announcement confirms a July 28 story from The Sun, which broke the news of the show’s indefinite cancellation.

“Globally, it is still a phenomenon and rakes in millions every year. But in the UK, there is no question it has become slightly stale,” an insider is said to have told the publication.

“Simon remains at the top of his game and knows how to make a hit. He owns the rights to the show, and it’s his call — not ITV’s — whether or not he drops it,” the source reportedly added.

Cowell started the “The X Factor” series as a replacement for “Pop Idol,” the TV show that inspired other countries to take up the idol name and format. At the time, Cowell was a judge on “Pop Idol,” but he wanted to own the rights to his own show, and so launched “The X Factor.” For the show’s first season, he joined Louis Walsh and Sharon Osbourne on the panel.

The show memorably launched the careers of   Zayn Malik, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson — the boy band better known as One Direction or 1D. At the start of the seventh season, they had all auditioned as solo acts, failing to advance beyond the bootcamp stage of the show. In a twist, however, the five singers joined forces, allowing them to compete in the “Groups” category of the show. Today, One Direction is one of the most popular boy bands of all time with 70 million worldwide record sales.

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“(Simon) finds the talent, he crafts it, he picks the songs, he handles the image. If you look at the revenues and number one hits that Syco has created, Simon should be considered the biggest music act in the world,” said Karren Brady, the vice-chairman of West Ham United football club and television personality, in an interview with the Financial Times in 2014.

According to Sky News, Cowell put “The X Factor” on pause during 2020 with plans to star as a judge on a new reality TV show, “Walk The Line.”

Deadline reports that the new ITV series “will combine a talent contest with a gaming element, as singers decide whether to stay in the competition or cash out.” In other words, a panel of judges (including Cowell) will decide on the top acts of the night. But rather than simply advancing to the next round, the top two performers will have a choice: either they choose to advance to the next episode, getting even closer to the grand prize, or they cash out, earning a tempting payout. 

“We wanted to develop a show which will give the contestants a life-changing cash prize if they win,” Cowell said of the new show. “Each show there will be a champion who must make a vital decision: either cash out then and there or stay in the contest to compete again the following night and have a chance to claim the huge prize. It’s the kind of decision that will have viewers on the edge of their seats – real event TV.”

Syco Entertainment, Cowell’s multimedia entertainment company, is also responsible for “America’s Got Talent,”  “Britain’s Got Talent,” “The Investigator: A British Crime Story” and “La Banda” — all of which are still on the air. 

What do you think about ITV’s announcement? Do you miss the show? Let us know — and pass this news on to friends and family members.