x-factor

Less than a week before 'X-Factor' makes its season debut on Fox, entertainment reporter Julie Chang of 'Good Day New York' (weekdays, 9AM ET on Fox) caught up with Simon Cowell at the show's red carpet premiere event. Cowell compared the experience of starting on a new show to his beginnings with 'American Idol' and revealed a celebrity judge.

Chang said Cowell looked "like a new man," and asked him if he had more invested in the new show, since its one he had created. "Well, it's like starting all over again," he said. "When I came here ten years ago, it was a similar feeling. I had no idea what was going to happen. But I did like the show. And this is kind of the same feeling. It's a different show. I've enjoyed it. I don't know what's going to happen. So it's exciting."

It appears that 'Teen Mom' star Amber Portwood will have to face more serious consequences than a stern talking-to by Dr. Drew for the physical altercations she got into with ex-fiance Gary Shirley during the latest season of the MTV show.

According to RadarOnline, an MTV attorney in Indianapolis was served with a subpoena requesting footage from 'Teen Mom' that depicts "all or potentially all physically violent encounters between Amber Portwood and Gary Shirley, in addition to any raw footage of the reunion shows in [which] Portwood and Shirley discuss any such violent encounters on the show 'Teen Mom,' either aired or unaired."

Mitch Carroll, spokesman for the police department in Portwood and Shirley's town of Anderson, Ind., told Radar that "MTV sent all the material ahead of time and once the subpoena was issued they said we could have access to the records."

In other TV news ...

• Production on 'The Biggest Loser' was halted Monay due to a labor dispute. Union representatives allegedly showed up on set and led a crew walkout. Production has still not resumed. [Deadline]

• Yet another scandal has rocked the U.K. version of Simon Cowell's 'X-Factor.' Fans are upset that one judge abstained from voting in this weekend's installment, which forced a fan favorite out of the competition. The judge's vote would've resulted in a tie, which means the fan vote would've determined who stayed. [Guardian]

• 'Battlestar Galactica' showrunner Ron Moore is planning an "ambitious" Coast Guard drama with NBC. The new action-adventure series follows the men and women aboard The McCulloch. [The Hollywood Reporter]

A producer on Simon Cowell's 'X-Factor' has admitted to using Auto-Tune, the pitch-correction software that has become a household name thanks to pop stars and most recently Antoine Dodson and Auto-Tune the News, to improve the sound of auditioning contestants. Well, it sounds like cheating to us.

In response, Cowell has banned the software from 'X-Factor' -- both on the British version and the upcoming American one.

"The integrity of the show is very important to him and so he told production that Auto-Tune cannot be used again. Simon has banned producers from ever using this software again," a source told the Daily Mirror.

Here's what happened on the British show: Contestant Gamu Nhengu sang "Walking on Sunshine" to rave reviews and made it on to the next round, but according to Deadline Hollywood, fans got suspicious and took to Facebook to complain.

Ever since Paula Abdul left 'American Idol' last year over a contract dispute, fans around the world have been abuzz, wondering just what the iconic pop star would do next.

And there have been no shortage of answers, as Abdul has been connected to everything from 'Ugly Betty' to 'Dancing With the Stars' to 'Star Search' in a non-stop rumor mill that has seen her attached to one project or another on just about every major network.

Now word has come that she may be working with choreographer Kenny Ortega to develop a show about enormous flash mobs that create population-sized dance routines in public places around the world. That "too crazy even for Paula" idea somehow seems fitting for a star already mulling over her own daytime talk show along with a reunion with former 'American Idol' foil Simon Cowell on his upcoming series 'X-Factor.'

The ninth season of 'American Idol' is set to premiere on Jan. 12, but lately the show's buzz has had nothing to do with the singing competition -- not when there's so much movement behind the judges' table.

Speculation has reached fever pitch regarding music mogul Simon Cowell's rumored departure from 'Idol' following the expiration of his contract in 2011, but a recent comment from Cowell's brother has added fuel to the fire that everyone's favorite grumpy judge might abandon the show at the end of this season, "to concentrate on bringing the American version of 'X-Factor' to U.S. TV in 2011," Tony Cowell reportedly revealed on his weekly podcast.

But what is this 'X-Factor,' you may ask, and would crotchety Cowell really consider leaving the show that made him a household name on this side of the Atlantic?

Why would 'American Idol' not continue if Simon Cowell left? Is he as powerful or as much of a ratings guarantee as that?

According to the Hollywood Reporter, these two questions are now in the process of being answered. And the verdict seems to be that the future of 'American Idol' will not be predicated on whether the legendary snarkmeister stays on the show or not. As if to underscore the point, Fox announced it is putting the finishing touches on a deal that would keep 'Idol' on the air past 2011, when the current contract between the network and the show's producers is set to expire.

After citing illness as a reason why she should be forgiven for lip syncing on 'Dancing with the Stars,' Lewis needed to prove to us again why Simon Cowell made her a star.
In her appearance yesterday on 'The Ellen Degeneres Show,' it seems like Lewis really deserves to be 'Happy' with her performance.

The jury might be out on whether or not this is a lip-synced performance -- but you can be the judge. Watch this clip of Lewis performing her latest single, 'Happy.'

Watch the video from Daily Drama after the jump.

If you've ever wanted to smell exactly like America's most hated man (please get some kind of psychiatric help immediately), now's your chance.

Simon Cowell, the American Idol and X-Factor judge, will have his own brand of cologne along with the rest of the X-Factor judges, Louis Walsh, Dannii Minogue and Cheryl Cole.

A specific release date hasn't been picked, although it's said they will hit the stores by Christmas. It also looks as though they will only be released in the United Kingdom. And America wept.