Randy Jackson might be making a surprise appearance on American Idol. Randy was one of the show's three original judges for 12 of the 15 seasons that aired on FOX. Randy sat alongside fellow original judges Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell for eight and nine seasons, respectively. Randy judged with Kara DioGuardi, Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez for two seasons each, and Keith Urban, Nicki Minaj, Mariah Carey and Ellen DeGeneres for one season each. He left his judging role after season 12 but returned in the middle of season 13 as the in-house mentor, replacing Jimmy Iovine. Throughout Randy's entire time on Idol, Ryan Seacrest was the host.
Although American Idol aired what was thought to be its final season back in 2016, Randy has already made an appearance on the ABC revival series. It started with Paula Abdul replacing current judge Luke Bryan for an episode of season 19, when Luke tested positive for COVID-19. Ryan and Paula reminisced about their time together on the show, and later in the episode, Randy made a live video call to greet Paula, Ryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie. Simon was mentioned throughout the episode, but he has yet to make an appearance since the show moved to ABC. All three of the original judges did reunite through a collective appearance during the series finale of FOX's American Idol.
Now there is a possibility that Randy could make yet another appearance on Idol. He was recently a guest on Ryan's radio show, On Air With Ryan Seacrest. They discussed past memories including sharing a hotel room in Las Vegas with Simon. Randy went on to promote his FOX show Name That Tune, jokingly suggesting that Ryan and his radio co-host Sisanie make an appearance. As the interview was about to end, the dialogue between Randy and Ryan seriously suggested an American Idol reunion. Ryan started by saying, "Let's text...I wanna see ya," to which Randy replied, "I think I'm seeing you soon actually...maybe next Monday night." Ryan, after a moment of silence, said, "Oh...cat's out of the bag," and followed up with "[Randy] knows more about what I'm hosting than what I do."
There's even more evidence that Randy may be coming back to Idol. On Camera Audiences, the website where Idol fans can get tickets for the show, is taping on the Monday night that Randy was referring to. And a description of that taping reads, "Live audience shows begin 4/11/22 with a special Idol celebration through the years with surprise cameos!" Perhaps this is the previously announced upcoming episode titled "The Great Idol Reunion." It's set to feature past contestants, and surprise cameos could be referring to past judges.
Whether or not Randy does indeed reappear on Idol remains to be seen. But the undeniable chemistry of Randy, Paula and Simon, with Ryan as the host, is ingrained in American pop culture. So if Randy is coming back to Idol, fans may also wonder if Paula and Simon would be joining him. It's logical that Paula may be willing to show up, considering she sat at the judges' table last season. However, Simon has a similar show on a competing network: America's Got Talent. In fact, according to On Camera Audiences, AGT is taping audition episodes that same day. Simon has also been vocal about moving on from his Idol days and even revealed that he rejected an offer to judge the revival series. At the end of the day, though, no former judges have been confirmed to appear on American Idol.
American Idol airs Sundays and Mondays at 8 p.m. EDT on ABC.
Sources: On Air With Ryan Seacrest/YouTube, On Camera Audiences, On Camera Audiences