According to The National Enquirer, Justin was offered a whopping $25 million to become Idol’s third judge—but, sadly, he had to say no because of “upcoming commitments and touring.”
“They offered him many more millions than Mariah Carey—and double what [Jennifer Lopez] made to start,” an “insider” tells the mag. “That’s because executive producer Nigel Lythgoe’s so hot on Bieber he approached him even before Steven Tyler announced he was quitting. Nigel was willing to make Justin the highest-paid judge ever! Why? Because he’s convinced he’d bring in a younger demographic and put the show back in the No. 1 position.”
Idol hasn’t been the same since Simon Cowell left, so bringing Justin in would be a great idea. He’d probably be an entertaining judge and he’s already had a hand in getting Carly Rae Jepsen’s career off the ground, so it’s too bad the timing doesn’t work. Maybe he can reconsider Idol’s offer when he’s done touring and sign on for the 2014 or ’15 season.
Idol’s offer to Justin might bode well for Nick Jonas’ bid to be a judge. Nick has been campaigning hard for one of the open spots, and considering the Jonas Brothers just sold out an October concert at Radio City Music Hall in minutes despite not releasing any new music for a few years, he’s obviously still popular and could bring in the “younger demographic” that Idol wanted the Biebs for. So maybe the youngest JoBro will sign on instead.
But you know Mariah is pissed about this. Her Idol deal is reportedly worth between $15 million and $18 million. So not only is her deal significantly less than what the Biebs was offered, but she’s also not even worth as much as Katy Perry, who reportedly turned down $20 million to judge Idol next season. You totally know Mariah’s fuming and wishes she’d waited to sign a deal until she knew what everyone else was getting paid!
What do you think? Would you watch American Idol if Justin Bieber was a judge? Would you prefer to see Nick Jonas? Sound off in the comments!