‘American Idol’ Reboot Reportedly Changing Strategy After ‘The Voice’ Snags Alumni

It’s shaping up to be a good old-fashioned rivalry between the recently revived American Idol and singing competition titan, The Voice.

Coming off the news that The Voice has signed Jennifer Hudson for Season 13 and Kelly Clarkson for Season 14, Idol is now looking to nab superstar talent of their own. Hudson and Clarkson are two of the biggest names to come from American Idol, with the latter having previously been rumored to be in negotiations for a spot on the judging panel. This likely puts a dent in any plans Idol may have had for a splashy panel of former contestants, unless they can somehow find other high caliber names who are interested.

“I say, do a reboot and get some of these past ‘Idol’ performers and not just winners to come sit in the judges’ chairs,” suggested former associate music director Michael Orland. “I think there’s more than a handful that would be really great at it.”

American Idol producers are allegedly looking to change their media strategy when it comes to talent negotiations, according to a new TMZ report. After all, NBC announced the big Voice news about signing Clarkson as a coach the same week it was reported that she was in negotiations for Idol. American Idol was not able to sign Clarkson due to salary demands, says the report.

The American Idol source told the site that The Voice went “into overdrive to lock down” Clarkson and Hudson after it was made clear that Idol was interested in them. Now, Idol reportedly has no intention of going public with its list of desired judges, keeping everything secret until things are locked in.

ABC, the network reviving American Idol, is apparently looking to announce the full lineup of new judges on May 16. This is ABC’s day for upfronts, the annual television event where networks hype up their new shows and reflect on the success of the previous TV season.

Both Clarkson and Hudson had been advisers on The Voice prior to this official announcement; in Season 2 and 3, respectively. Hudson also joined The Voice U.K. as a coach earlier this year and went on to win with one of her singers. As for their American Idol experience, Clarkson is remembered as the first-ever champion and has found continued acclaim in pop music. While Hudson did not win in Season 3, she went on to have great success in show business herself, winning an Oscar, a Golden Globe and more for Dreamgirls, her film debut.

Hudson is joining coaches Adam Levine, Blake Shelton, and Miley Cyrus in Season 13, while Clarkson will be coaching alongside Levine and Shelton and a yet-to-be-named fourth coach. Hudson and Clarkson have both expressed their excitement over joining The Voice in the coming TV season.

Let’s do this #TeamJHud!! See you in the fall @adamlevine @MileyCyrus & @blakeshelton! #TheVoice pic.twitter.com/QYs3IazxGD

— Jennifer Hudson (@IAMJHUD) May 10, 2017

“I’m so excited to join ‘The Voice’ at NBC,” Clarkson said in a statement. “We’ve been going back and forth with them for years on joining their team and the timing hasn’t been right until now. Ever since NBC and I worked together on my Christmas special years ago we have established an amazing relationship and I have always loved coming on to either mentor, or perform on ‘The Voice’ over the years. I can’t wait to turn my chair and see the faces of up and coming artists that I may be able to help get that push and support they’ve been needing to break into this industry. Watch out Shelton… I’m comin’ to win!”

Clarkson was Team Blake’s adviser on Season 2, and she went on to collaborate with Shelton on “There’s a New Kid in Town” from the latter’s Christmas album.

The Voice airs Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. The air date for the American Idol reboot on ABC has yet to be revealed.

[Featured Image by Cindy Ord/Getty Images and Jeff Spicer/Getty Images]