Nicole Scherzinger To Replace Cheryl Cole On ‘The X Factor’

Idolator Staff | May 26, 2011 4:15 am

Nicole Scherzinger is no stranger to the dizzying dance that is televised talent competition, but the latest news out of The X Factor may have thrown even the lead Pussycat for a loop. Just weeks after Simon Cowell’s new show appeared to lock in its lineup of judges and began shooting, judge Cheryl Cole has been ousted, and Scherzinger has been tapped to take her place. Was she booted for her too-sexy tattoo? We can’t imagine, but the reported reason for her ouster is just as ridiculous. Check below for details.

TMZ reports that Cole was cut from the judges’ panel in part because “producers were concerned her English accent would be too difficult for an American audience to understand”. Right, because that really posed a problem for Cowell as he raked in a fortune from TV and music ventures during the past decade.

Beyond Cole’s accent, The X-Factor producers reportedly felt she lacked “chemistry” with fellow judge Paula Abdul, and in the end, Cole was considered the more expendable of the two. There’s speculation that producers may push for her to return to the British version of the show, but she’s evidently too miffed about the whole situation to even consider such a move.

All of that drama created an opening for Nicole, who had initially been hired to co-host the show with Steve Jones. Some critics had suggested that Cole would emerge as “a smart, sympathetic mentor who gets as much attention for her glamour as for her criticism,” and producers may now hope that Scherzinger can fill exactly the same role.

But the very idea must be driving Cole batty (er, catty?). She’s rarely had kind words for Nicole, stretching all the way back to this 2006 interview, in which Cole and her Girls Aloud posse were asked their opinion of Nicole’s talent. Rawr!

Will fans still have “killer love” for The X-Factor amid all the instability?

Let us know your predictions in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.