Simon Cowell and Sofía Vergara are back for another season of America’s Got Talent on NBC, but this is no ordinary season; this is the landmark 20th season of the talent competition.
The two judges talked to Deadline about how they approach the show, with Cowell telling us he gets “very nervous before we start filming the first day.”
Cowell told us that after filming on the first day he thinks “it’s over,” but when day two comes, “you have these moments … when you just go, ‘Oh my God, where did you come, up.”
Vergara added that as judges they’re “always surprised, which is super weird because you think think after 20 years, I mean, I’ve only been [doing it for] six seasons…”
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Cowell interjects jokingly, adding, “I thought it was six minutes.”
After the duo laughed it off, Vergara continued, “It feels amazing to be surprised because we’ve seen it all. Magic is magic. You think dancing is dancing. But no, they figure out how to make it feel fresh and new and still wow us.”
A lot has changed since AGT started with social media so ingrained in our culture, many people showcase their talents on platforms like TikTok or YouTube, and Cowell notes that “one leads to the other.”
“We might see an act on TikTok and then they come on our show and it’s a different experience,” he adds. “You’re doing something in your bedroom, and then they come in front of 4,000 people, and it’s completely different. Followers or views can go from thousands to hundreds of millions, so it’s almost like one helps the other.”
Vergara notes that the audiences from social media and traditional media are different, adding, “I don’t see a grandmother sitting watching TikTok or like a younger kid, but AGT is watched by families. Because every time I get approached, it’s a whole family, like grandmothers, kids… So they get exposed to that audience that they’re not exposed to on TikTok.”
Cowell recalled that he first realized the impact of social media platforms with Susan Boyle, saying, “No one knew who this lady was. She was from Scotland, a little village, and she goes on Britain’s Got Talent and within 48 hours the clip had 500 million views. You have to think about that and go — it’s hard to describe, but it’s the most unbelievable feeling. We sold the show to 30 more countries after that. It was unbelievable.”
Season 20 of AGT also marks the return of Mel B to the judges panel following Heidi Klum’s exit. Mel B’s return to the NBC competition show was the first time Vergara would share time with her which had her a little “worried” at first.
“At the beginning, I was a little worried because I had never met her in person,” Vergara said. “Of course, I knew who the Spice Girls were. I loved her but I was working with Heidi for the first five seasons. So I was a little bit scared.”
Vergara continued, “But the moment we started filming the first day, I realized that because she’s done it before, she’s approachable. She already has a relationship with Simon, a relationship with Howie, with everybody in the group. So it was very easy for her to melt in everything that we were doing before with Heidi. It’s been a great experience with her.”
Cowell has worked with Mel B longer and he describes working with her is “like sitting next to a firework and not knowing if someone’s going to light up the firework, because when the firework lights up, you feel it big time. She’s so unpredictable. Genuinely, I have no idea what she’s thinking. There were times where I should love something, Sofía would love something, and we could throw to Mel, and she’d be sitting with her arms folded, saying, ‘I don’t like it. I don’t understand it.’ I’m like, ‘What?’ But I think [that] is why it was good for her to come back. I think it’s always difficult when you’re swapping people, but as Sofía said, she’s a good friend of mine. I had a feeling the two of them would get on well, and it kind of worked. I could feel it from day one.”
America’s Got Talent airs Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC.