Author: Shirley Halperin

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The new American Idol judges panel is slowly coming together.

As The Hollywood Reporter first reported on July 25, Idol alum Jennifer Lopez and hitmaker Will.I.Am are at the top of producers’ wish lists for the 13th season of the Fox show, and, according to sources, are inching ever closer to joining the official lineup. Lopez’s deal is expected to be signed any day now. Will’s, however, is looking a little further off. 

Lopez had served as judge for two previous seasons, in 2011 and 2012, while Black Eyed Peas frontman and prolific producer and songwriter will.i.am held a seat on the U.K. version of The Voice.

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On Aug. 2 it was announced that Keith Urban, who sat alongside departed season 12 judges Nicki Minaj, Randy Jackson and Mariah Carey, would be returning to the show.

Talks with Idol alumni Jennifer Hudson, a season three finalist-turned-Oscar winner, and Adam Lambert, runner-up for season eight, fizzled after many weeks of internal debate.

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According to a source, will.i.am and Lopez are “hilarious together.” Choosing the two international pop stars also seems to appease new executive producer Per Blankens, who came over from Swedish Idol to take over for longtime EPs Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick. An insider tells THR that the Swede was “looking for big names” to fill out the panel.

Although an official announcement of the new judges typically doesn’t go out until September, when the second round of auditions bring hopefuls face-to-face with the pros, this year may prove to be different as new executive talent steps in to freshen up the 12-year-old series. Among them: Den of Thieves co-founders Jesse Ignjatovic and Evan Prager, who will produce the show, and News Corp. veteran David Hill, who’ll oversee Idol along with Fox’s other singing competition show, X Factor.

Twitter: @Idol_Worship

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The behind-the-scenes reboot of American Idol is starting to pick up steam. A source tells The Hollywood Reporter that the Fox show is closing in on its season 13 judges lineup. At the top of producers’ wish list: singer, actress and mini-mogul Jennifer Lopez, who was a judge on Idol for two seasons, in 2011 and 2012.

But talks between producers and Lopez’s representatives seem to have reached an impasse over — what else — money.

While on Idol, Lopez earned an estimated $15 million per season. It was reported that her successor, Mariah Carey, got $3 million more than that. No doubt Lopez’s manager Benny Medina, who, another insider says is “pushing hard to do a deal,” is asking for a hefty pay raise for Lopez. (Also worth noting: Midway through Idol‘s lackluster season 12, producers approached Lopez’s team with a plan to replace Carey with Lopez.)

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Meanwhile, Idol is also talking with season three alum-turned-Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson, who has long been believed to be close to finalizing a deal. Keith Urban, the well-liked country star and season 12 judge, looks set to return, and the show might add Will.I.Am, who spent the last two seasons as a coach on the U.K. version of The Voice (though a source says the Black Eyed Peas frontman still hasn’t decided if he’s returning to The Voice). Dr. Luke, pop hitmaker (Kelly Clarkson‘s “Since U Been Gone,” Katy Perry‘s “Teenage Dream”) and newly minted label head (his Kemosabe Records is a joint-venture with Sony Music), was also in the running, but a source says Idol has cooled on him.

Even at this late stage — auditions for season 13 of Idol are taking place now, with some 8,000 turning out for try-outs in Detroit; the next stop is set for July 26 in Atlanta — the new powers-that-be seem to be wavering. J Lo makes sense in light of the fact that new executive producer Per Blankens, who came over from Swedish Idol to take over for longtime EPs Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick, is “looking for big names” to fill out the panel. The Swede’s thinking: this is “American” Idol — the biggest of the franchise. The judges should be the same.

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On the other hand, a salary north of $20 million for four months’ work would set a bad precedent in a TV sector that’s seen ratings nosedive of late. Idol’s season 12 finale, for instance, only saw 14.3 million people tune in, down from 21.5 million the year before. That drop of more than 40 percent contributed to the show’s lowest rated finale ever and the first time since the series launched in 2002 that it didn’t hit 20 million viewers.  

Among the other ideas floated is an all-alumni panel. Sources say Blankens and newly arrived producers Jesse Ignjatovic and Evan Prager — whose past experience producing live television events like VH1’s Divas special and the MTV Video Music Awards is seen as a major asset the a reboot — have somewhat soured on the all-alumni idea. Still, as recently as two weeks ago, another sources said talks with Adam Lambert were still ongoing. The season eight fan favorite has said on multiple occasions that he would be “thrilled” to join if asked.

Veteran judge Randy Jackson said before the season’s end that he won’t return in 2014, as have Carey and hip-hop star Nicki Minaj.

Reps for Lopez and 19 Entertainment did not respond to THR‘s request for comment. FremantleMedia, which produces Idol, and Fox would not comment.

Twitter: @shirleyhalperin

Scott Kirkland/PictureGroup for Fox

Less than a week before his death, Glee star Cory Monteith tweeted that he had one song on repeat: Friendly Fires’ “Paris.”

The upbeat, synth-heavy track comes from the British band’s 2008 self-titled debut, released on XL Recordings (home to Adele and the xx, among other critics’ darlings) and nominated for the prestigious Mercury Prize. The song’s lyrics point longingly at life in the French capital, with lines like: “One day we’re gonna live in Paris / I promise” and “Every night / The city lights / They’ll be out for us.”

Singer Erika Forster of Brooklyn indie trio Au Revoir Simone, whose vocals are featured on the track, says she and her bandmates saw it as hopeful, even forward-looking. “It’s a really universal song because it has longing bit to it, but also this innocence,” she tells The Hollywood Reporter. “It’s really sweet — the message of, ‘Let’s run away together.’”

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When asked to sing on the track, Forster adds, she connected with the spirit of the song because of how it tied into the group’s name — the Simone in Au Revoir Simone pays homage to the character in Pee-wee’s Big Adventure who dreams of a life in Paris. “The story of our name went along with the song, and again as a symbol of love and running away together…”

Forster, a Glee fan who says she first got interested in the show “from a musical perspective — the fast turnaround, the song selection, the production and the choreography …. I’m always so impressed by that show,” also took note of the camaraderie between the characters, which she’s certain extended to the actors off-set too.

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Monteith, who played Finn Hudson on the beloved Fox musical, was found dead in a Vancouver hotel room on July 13. He was 31 years old.

On July 7, Monteith tweeted a screen grab of his phone which showed he was listening to the remix version of “Paris,” which Forster describes as having “a disco feel to it that a really fun, positive dance party vibe.” Not exactly what one would associate with feeling down or depressed, but that’s the overwhelming emotion many thousands are no doubt are experiencing right now — Forster, who calls Monteith’s death “so sad,” being one of them.

Friendly Fires, who are currently in the studio working on their third album, have yet to react to Monteith’s Twitter name-check but interest in the song has increased, as evidenced by comments on YouTube and other sites.

Au Revoir Simone’s new album Move In Spectrums, is due out on Sept. 24.

Twitter: @THRMusic