Judge Dread

Image credit: AMERICAN IDOL: Ray Mickshaw/FOX

No. What's important about both [Bo and Carrie] is they know exactly who they are. You ask Carrie Underwood who she wants to be and she says, ''I am a country star, I want to make a country album.''

Shouldn't she have just been on Nashville Star?
I hate that show, so no. I think Carrie is reflective of what's going on in this country. There are a lot of girls who are saying, ''I'm bored of girls dressing like sluts. I'm bored of regressive rap lyrics. I actually just like a clean-cut girl because I'm a clean-cut girl.'' There's a difference between what the record industry thinks and what Wal-Mart customers think. That's one of the reasons why Carrie is doing so well.

Okay, let's assume Bo, Carrie, and Vonzell are top 3. We know what you think about Bo and Carrie, but does Vonzell have a future?
I'm with you on the top 3. Vonzell is a wonderful, sweet girl. Vocally, the problem is I don't think she has a distinct voice.

When you sign Bo, are you going to make him cut his hair?
No, and thank God he hasn't done a makeover. I think that would be awful.

You're contracted through next season's American Idol. Are you already talking renegotiations?
I'm always talking. I'm very lucky in that I run a very successful record label and TV company. If I could be paid as much to stay behind the camera, I'll take the check. I've gotten over the big thing of being on TV.

You're heading back to London immediately after Idol wraps to begin taping the second season of The X Factor, another televised singing competition. Does that mean the lawsuit brought against you by Idol executive producer Simon Fuller, claiming X Factor ripped off the Idol format, is settled?
I've been in conversations with the other Simon for three weeks. We have always had a strange relationship — very competitive. But at the end of the day we both understand we work better together than at each other's throats. I think the chances are we'll resolve everything and end up making some new shows together.

Will X Factor come to the U.S.?
No, by choice. If [Simon and I] were getting on badly, of course I would have brought it here.

The failure of your CBS dating show, Cupid, didn't seem to scare you off of producing TV. What else are you developing?
We just sold a show to another network — I can't say much about it because I haven't signed the contract — that will go on in January. It's not a music show. We have 12 other shows in development. My guess is over the next 12 months we'll have sold at least another three shows here and another five or six in the U.K.

Will you be on camera for any of those?
No, no. I don't want to be on camera on anything else.

You sound a little weary. Given everything that's happened, are you at all worried about the future of American Idol?
If we weren't successful, people wouldn't be having a go at us. I've been in the business long enough to know most people hate us for being successful. We'll survive this. End of story.