On Sunday’s episode of “American” Idol, Jim Carrey’s 24 year-old daughter, Jane, was shown auditioning and being advanced to Hollywood week. Jane seemed genuine about pursuing a singing career on her own merits, but the show definitely played up the fact that she had a famous father. They showed photos of Jane with her dad and she shared what it was like growing up with him. She had a decent singing voice, but it’s doubtful that she would have been promoted to the second round just based on her talent alone. Well a new report on Radar online suggests that not only was Jane (perhaps unfairly) advanced, she wasn’t treated the same as all the other hopefuls either. She did have to camp out and wait in line at all and just made an appointment to sing and showed up.

Unlike the rest of the contestants who camp out for days in the hope of trying to convince the judges that they have what it takes, Jane got special treatment.

“She didn’t have to sleep outside and wait for hours hoping to audition like everyone else,” a source exclusively told RadarOnline.com. “She basically had an appointment and showed up!”

The source said they doubted if the judges knew about the special treatment Jane was given, but the show gave her the VIP service.

“Her audition was pre-arranged with the producers. She did not wait and line up for hours or days outside – she had a time, she showed up and went in,” the source said…

According to the source, the last name clearly helped this time: “American Idol always says they don’t give everyone favors, but this time they did for Jane.”

[From Radar Online]

I don’t really have an investment in this story, it just seems typical to me that Idol would do this for a celebrity’s daughter. If I had ever waited in line to be on that show, or if I had a good friend who had waited days for a chance to appear, I would be supremely pissed off. So many contestants are coming from extremely rough conditions and have to go through hardships and lose wages at hourly jobs just to get to Idol. The story this year of the girl who lived in a tent particularly touched me. Here we have a millionaire celebrity’s daughter who claims that she’s waitressed, but who, let’s face it, has probably never had to worry about money in her life. She gets whisked right in and moved on while so many other contestants don’t get that chance. As genuine and down to earth as Jane came across, she’s probably used to that type of treatment and doesn’t see anything wrong with it.

Here’s Jane’s audition if you missed it the first time:

Jim Carrey’s 24 year-old daughter, Jane, was shown auditioning for American Idol in San Diego, the episode for which aired last night. Jane explained in a taped video segment that she is “a mom first, a waitress on and off and a musician.” She said that she’s “been singing for as long as I can remember” and that she’s a big ham. Well it seems to run in her family. As for how it was growing up with Jim Carrey as her father she said he’s “definitely not the most extravagant celebrity so it’s been fairly normal.” Jim was married to Jane’s mom, his first wife Melissa Womer, from 1987 to 1995. Jim and Melissa divorced when Jane was eight. (Then Jim married Lauren Holly for a hot minute in 1996.) Jane explained that she came on Idol to “make my place in the world” and that she doesn’t want people to think her success comes from her famous dad.

Jane sang a brief segment of “Something to Talk About” and she was competent and showed potential but she wasn’t amazing. I don’t think she would have gotten through to the next round if it wasn’t for her famous dad. Here’s more and there’s a video below.

Jim Carrey’s daughter Jane Carrey was among the hopefuls at the San Diego round of American Idol auditions.

Jane, 24, told viewers that she had been singing for as long as she could remember and that her famous father knew that she planned to audition for the Fox singing competition.

“It was definitely fun growing up with him as a father,” she said. “He’s definitely not the most extravagant celebrity so it’s been fairly normal. Fairly!”

Jane added: “The last name definitely helps and hurts. I feel like there is this pressure to maybe be better. If I make it somewhere it runs the risk of people saying, ‘You’re only here because of this’.”

Judge Jennifer Lopez immediately remembered Jane from when she had worked with Jim Carrey several years ago, saying that Jane had only been a baby at the time and jokingly lamenting where the years had gone.

Jane chose to perform ‘Something To Talk About’ as her audition song, earning three yeses from Lopez, Steven Tyler and Randy Jackson.

Randy liked her voice and potential, while Jennifer thought she needed to think more about her ‘performance’ because keeping her eyes shut might be good for the feeling but didn’t help with audience connection.

Steven liked Jane’s melody but told her to work on the volume.

After receiving her ticket to Hollywood, Jane phoned her famous dad who said: “She’s so wonderful and amazing to me, I can’t wait for the world to see… This is going to be an exciting year.”

[From Digital Spy]

Jane is a talented singer and she seemed sweet and like she was genuine about succeeding on her own merits. I don’t see her going too far on Idol, but we’ll see.

My favorite part of this video is where Jennifer Lopez says she met Jane when Jane was two and just a baby on the set of “In Living Color,” where Jim Carrey got his start and J.Lo was a backup dancer/”Fly Girl.” Lopez’s boyfriend Casper Smart is the same age as Jane, 24. I’m sure that didn’t occur to J.Lo when she told that story.

Jane is shown in 2010 and 2008. Credit: WENN.com

For those of us who reside outside the Hollywood bubble, it’s been a rather transparent exercise to witness Jennifer Lopez negotiate her way into a much higher salary for a second season of judging duties on “American Idol.” As far as Lopez’s strategy goes, Kaiser initially called it; and sure enough, Lopez issued some statements to the BBC merely one week later. In the interview, Lopez used a number of catchphrases, including “on the fence” and “waiting and seeing” to express her (faux-)ambivalence to returning to “Idol.” All the while, I’ve been rather flummoxed that FOX studio heads would fall for this tactic because, honestly, it seems rather unlikely that most “Idol” fans have been tuning into the show for many seasons, and the fact that Lopez is a relatively new judge hasn’t helped ratings at all. True, the ratings have remained level and steady since Simon Cowell’s departure, but I think this has more to do with the show’s content than whomever happens to be judging. Still, FOX has inexplicably rewarded Lopez with a new $20 million salary to perform the same exact duties for a second season of “Idol.” Boy, I bet Steven Tyler is pissed that he made the mistake of signing a multi-year deal, right?

Fear not, Jennifer Lopez fans: the singer is returning to “American Idol” to judge for at least another year, TheWrap has learned through two individuals familiar with the deal.

The pop star will be returning to the singing competition with a contract with the Fox Broadcasting Network that’s “a smidge over” $20 million, according to one of the individuals.

Both insiders said the deal is complete but has not yet been signed.

Another insider close to the show denied that a deal was in place.

Others disagreed. The $20 million was apparently the base minimum for Lopez, and after tough negotations with Fox, ended up just above that number.

It’s a considerable raise from the $12 million she reportedly raked in for handling judge duties last season.

The only hurdle left to be cleared in the deal, according to one of the individuals, is scheduling. Lopez will be working on two major productions — the romantic comedy “What to Expect When You’re Expecting,” which is slated for a May 2012 release, and the thriller “Parker,” currently in pre-production — which will most likely necessitate a shift in audition dates for the upcoming season.

[From Thw Wrap]

Of course, FOX has made the very grave (repeat) mistake of only signing Lopez for one more season, which means that she’ll pull the same stunt next season too. And she’ll keep doing it until she ultimately reaches Simon Cowell’s former salary of $35 million per season. In addition, one cannot help but notice that this substantial salary increase follows weeks of headlines dealing with Lopez and Marc Anthony’s joint divorce announcement. In addition, FOX’s decision arrives immediately upon the heels of that strategically-scheduled Vanity Fair cover. You gotta hand it to JLo — she played this one quite well.

Photos courtesy of Fame

Last week as Jennifer Lopez was in the midst of agonizing over her decision whether or not to return to “American Idol” (that is, holding out for more millions), she took her twins Max and Emme out for a lovely day in a Parisian park. That’s Jennifer’s mother, Guadalupe Lopez, alongside her in the above photo (according to Fame’s caption) — doesn’t she look great? Anyway, Jennifer just wanted to remind us that she’s still here (don’t worry!), and she has predictably become a media monster (literally slipping a boob on live German television) once again, thanks to her exposure from “American Idol.” She’s got a hit single with the related bells and whistles, and she’s now inexplicably in the running for some high-profile movie roles once again. One of the movies would feature Lopez alongside Cameron Diaz in What to Expect When You’re Expecting, but the real groaner is that she’s been tapped as the female lead opposite Jason Statham in a new action franchise. Really?

There has been much speculation over whether Jennifer Lopez will return for another season as judge on “American Idol.” Adding to the intrigue: she is in talks to star in not one, but two feature films. I’m told that Lopez is in discussions to play the female lead opposite Jason Statham in Parker, the Taylor Hackford-directed action film adaptation of the Donald Westlake mystery novel series. Statham will play Parker, a thief who follows a strict moral code, but a hard guy who’s willing to kill if crossed. That character was previously played by Mel Gibson in Payback and Lee Marvin in Point Blank. The hope is to hatch an action franchise. John J. McLaughlin wrote the script and Steve Chasman is producing with Kimmel, Hackford, Les Alexander and Jonathan Mitchell. Lopez plays the female lead, a character named Leslie, who gets involved with Parker as he executes a heist.

The film is being financed by Incentive Filmed Entertainment and Sidney Kimmel Entertainment, and Sierra/Affinity’s Nick Meyer brokered that distribution deal and sold most worldwide territories at last month’s Cannes Film Festival. Production on the film begins in August.

At the same time, Lopez is also circling What To Expect When You’re Expecting, the Kirk Jones-directed Lionsgate film based on the bestselling how-to guide to preparing for childbirth. Cameron Diaz and Matthew Morrison star. Lopez is in discussions for the supporting role of Holly in that film. Neither deal is closed, but talks are underway. Clearly, Lopez is in demand again and that stint on “American Idol” certainly helped.

[From Deadline]

Honestly, this is unbelievably annoying news. After FOX executives chose Lopez (over so many preferable faded female pop stars), who has graced audiences with merely one season on a primetime reality music television show, she’s suddenly an A-list movie star again. It makes no sense at all, especially considering the lukewarm box-office reception that Lopez received for last year’s The Back-Up Plan, that zany romantic comedy turned pregnancy-horror flick. For whatever reason, film studio execs (mistakenly?) believe that “Idol” fans will now show up for Lopez’s movies because she’s such a shooting star again, but that’s not really the case. Lopez might very well be ubiquitous* now, but that doesn’t mean people won’t get tired of her soon. Instead, the fact that she’s seemingly everywhere at once will only encourage another collective Lopez fatique, the likes of which hasn’t been seen since the “Bennifer” phenomenon. Remember Gigli, folks?

* As if to prove my point, I received an email from L’Oreal Paris while I was writing this post with the subject line, “Get Jennifer Lopez’s smooth, sleek hair with EverSleek!” Delete.

Photos courtesy of Fame

Last week, Kaiser predicted that Jennifer Lopez would be asking for more money to return for a second season as an “American Idol” judge. And guess what? In an interview with BBC Radio 1, J-Lo has now made a strategic admission that she hasn’t yet determined whether or not she’ll return for a second season: “I don’t know. I haven’t been forced to make a decision and I’m glad about that because honestly I’m very on the fence about it.” Because, naturally, J-Lo is holding out for a raise over her puny $12 million salary for her current one-year contract. So the relevant question here is not whether or not Lopez will return to the show but, instead, why FOX was that incredibly stupid to believe that she wouldn’t pull this stunt in the first place? After all, this is the same diva who called a hotel desk 20 times in one hour with the same demand. Here’s some more from that radio interview:

You get to know [the contestants]. You get to know their hopes and their dreams on camera, off camera. You’re helping them off camera, you’re helping them on camera and it’s this crazy ride you go on together. You definitely get involved, I definitely get involved. I am very emotional as you can see from the show. That’s just how I am.

I had an amazing time doing it and I loved it but I have a lot other things happening, and it’s going to come down to me making a choice of what I want to do for the next year and we’re not really at the breaking point of “You have to make a decision right now!” I’m just really enjoying the time of just waiting and seeing.

[From BBC Radio ]

Yeah, J-Lo is enjoying “waiting and seeing” just how much money will be tossed her way, and the Hollywood Reporter seems to believe that J-Lo is holding out for Simon Cowell’s former salary. Certainly, she couldn’t really be that greedy, right?

Lopez’s current salary: a reported $12 million. How high could her demand ultimately go? Another $23 million, if the Simon Cowell budget is your barometer.

That’s right, Idol’s top-earning judge for eight years running commanded $35 million per season at the end of his tenure, or about $642,201 per hour, using season 9′s total airtime. And while Lopez is a proven entity with some box office cachet and a current hit on the Billboard charts (thanks, in large part, to its premiere and multiple plugs on Idol), is her contribution to the show really worth that much?

Let’s consider: The Bronx beauty has the crabby Brit beat in the looks department, as viewers tuned in just to see what Lopez was wearing or how her hair was done, but when it came to commenting on the performances, it took all season for her to work up the courage to be anything less than fawning. Were it not for Casey Abrams’s surprise peck and the occasional cooing “baby” that she would bestow on a contestant, and, dare we say, J Lo sometimes bordered on dull.

With that in mind, who’s really getting more out of this relationship? True, Fox was able to avert a season 10 ratings disaster by enlisting Lopez for a year on the panel (judge Steven Tyler is signed on through season 11), and the numbers stayed flat, but after nine months of work plus that hefty paycheck, J Lo also walked away with a resurrected career and a radio smash (“On the Floor”) on her hands – her first in nearly a decade.

[From Hollywood Reporter]

The thing about most of these musical reality-show judges (like Paula Abdul and Christina Aguilera) is that no one would be paying attention to any of them otherwise. Stephen Tyler is certainly well aware of this fact, so he was all up in a multi-year contract when it came time to sign last season. J-Lo, on the other hand, probably thinks she’s now indispensible to “Idol” and will hold out for as long as she possibly can for more money. And make no mistake, she’ll eventually sign no matter what.

Photos courtesy of Fame Pictures

American Idol winner announcement

Country crooner Scotty McCreedy, 17, was named the American Idol last night to conclude the show’s tenth season. Lauren Alaina, 16, was the runner up. Both teens were country singers from the south. There was a lot of drama ahead of the finale when Alaina lost her voice temporarily, but she pulled through and was able to compete, ultimately coming in second.

Doesn’t it seem like we just welcomed Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler to the American Idol judges table? That Randy Jackson just said that Jacob Lusk gave one of the best-ever performances on the Idol stage? That they just saved Casey Abrams from Top 11 obscurity? That J.Lo just wept over Pia Toscano?

But heading into Wednesday’s Idol finale, the only opinion that mattered belonged to “America,” which was tasked with choosing between Lauren Alaina and Scotty McCreery, both cutie-pie teens with country roots and aw-shucks charm.

We can’t speak for the passage of time, but we can say that a record 122.4 million votes were cast last night in favor of…

Scotty McCreery, 17, became the fourth fellow in a row to win American Idol. Upon hearing the news, the teen from Garner, N.C., burst into an ear-to-ear grin that wouldn’t quit and was immediately enveloped in a bear hug from his runner-up. (And did they share a quick smooch on the mouth? Cute!)

“It’s been a year since Lauren and I tried out,” Scotty said in disbelief. “We’ve been together since day one and we’re going to stay together. Never in my wildest dreams…I’ve got to thank the Lord first, he got me here.”

That, and millions of fans who were probably won over by his booming voice and baby face from the get-go.

[From E! Online]

I’ve only watched about three episodes of American Idol this season, and I’ve found Scotty really cheesy. He’s got a great voice but he lays on the charm so thick and he’s always curling up his lip. I’ve heard that he’s curbed that sneer since the beginning, though. Lauren was a more versatile singer by far, but I guess people liked what Scotty was selling, and boy did he sell it.

There were plenty of performances last night. Beyonce, Bono, Carrie Underwood, Lady Gaga, Tony Bennett, Judas Priest and Gladys Knight were among the acts, and many of them were accompanied by this season’s contestants. You can see the videos of the performances here, with a song from Scotty and Lauren each below.

We also have some pictures from the finale. Check out J.Lo’s ridiculous jumpsuit. There are also photos of this year’s contestants Naima Adedapo, James Durbin, Jacob Lusk, Pia Toscana, Paul McDonald and Haley Reinhart. Past contestants Sanjaya Malakar, Jason Castro, David Archuleta, Carrie Underwood and Adam Lambert are also shown. Adam and his boyfriend look like they’re auditioning for a stage version of Nightmare before Christmas.

Scotty McCreary – I Love You This Big

Lauren Alaina – Maybe it was Memphis

Photo credit: Juan Rico/Fame Pictures

After a lot of speculation, Paula Abdul has joined Simon Cowell’s X Factor as a fellow judge. Accompanying her on the panel will be Cowell, British singer Cheryl Cole and American music producer Antonio “L.A.” Reid. Nicole Scherzinger of the Pussycat Dolls and British TV presenter Steve Jones will co-host the show, which premieres in September and just started filming on Sunday, with Paula there.

The ‘X Factor’ judging panel is complete, with the final chair to be filled by Paula Abdul, who just closed the deal in last-minute negotiations, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Abdul will take her seat alongside Simon Cowell, reuniting the former ‘Idol’ stars once again. Cheryl Cole and Antonio ‘L.A.’ Reid have already been named as the other ‘X Factor’ judges.

Meanwhile, Pussycat Doll and former ‘Dancing With the Stars’ champ Nicole Scherzinger has been hired to host the U.S. talent competition when it premieres on Fox in September.

But Scherzinger will have a co-host, according to EW.com: Steve Jones, British TV personality. Jones, 34, is a Welsh-born former model and a virtual unknown in the U.S. (Of course, Ryan Seacrest was largely unknown when he was tapped to emcee ‘American Idol,’ and the gig seems to have worked out for him!) Jones reportedly was down to the wire competing for the ‘X Factor’ job against ‘High School Musical’ star Corbin Bleu.

Scherzinger, 32, wowed producers when she was a guest judge on a recent episode of the ‘X Factor’ in the U.K., where she also released a hit single this year, ‘Don’t Hold Your Breath.’

Abdul, 48, reportedly hammered out her new contract just in the nick of time: The judging rounds of ‘X Factor’ begin taping in Los Angeles today. [Sunday]

[From Popeater]

Well Paula will certainly make things more interesting, if not harder to understand. Cowell needed a big name to join him on the panel and while Reid and Cole are both famous they don’t have Paula’s name recognition. I like her and find her very sweet, but she’s definitely loopy as hell. She’s a fun sidekick for Simon though and he’ll be recreating the most interesting judge dynamic from Idol by having her join him on X Factor. Idol producers really screwed up the panel by bringing in Kara DioGuardi in 2009 and kind of forcing Paula out. I kind of understand why they did it though. She can’t be easy to work with.

These photos are from outside the X Factor taping on 5/8/11. I find them kind of mesmerizing and I love Paula’s goofy purple dress and shoes. They’re perfect for her. Credit: WENN.com

This story is in the National Enquirer, but they’ve had some Idol scoops this year and Mike Walker seems to kiss Ryan Seacrest’s ass a lot, so I’m betting they have decent insider information. American Idol has some kids who are normal-looking competing in the finals, and according to the Enquirer they’re “threatening to bring in personal trainers” and are “pushing for a few of them to shed some pounds.” They’re supposedly pressuring James Durbin and Lauren Alaina to lose weight, but have not said anything to gospel singer Jacob Lusk. He’s heavier than anyone (which really isn’t saying much in this case) but they haven’t been bothering him about it for whatever reason.

American Idol producers have warned some of the shows contestants they need to slim down – and they are threatening to bring in personal trainers to whip the pudgy performers into top form for the finale, sources tell the Enquirer.

“The execs don’t want a dumpy looking ‘Idol’,” revealed an insider. “They think that some of the contestants are a little too beefy, and they’re pushing for a few of them to shed some pounds.

“They want to make sure the winner will have a great look to go with the great voice.”

On top of the too-heavy hit list are James Durbin and Lauren Alaina.

“James was told to lay off fattening appetizers and beer in order to get rid of the spare tire he’s acquired,” divulged the insider, “but James [22] loves to eat big meals and constantly snacks on junk food…”

Lauren, 22, stopped eating breads and potatoes earlier in the season because she thought she looked heavy on TV, but now “Idol” honchos are asking [her] to forgo her favorite cheesecake and spend more time in the gym between rehearsals.

Like physically fit Stefano, finalists Casey Abrams, Scotty McCreery and Haley Reinhard don’t need to worry about dropping pounds.

And surprisingly insiders say gospel singer Jacob Lusk – who may be the chubbiest in the bunch – didn’t get a weight loss ultimatum…

“It would have been futile,” added another source. “Jacob would resist any attempt to remake himself into something he’s not.”

[From The National Enquirer, print edition, May 2, 2011]

We just heard that whole controversy about how a heavy woman was told that she would have to leave her front row seats at Idol because she wasn’t cute enough. I believed her story and a couple people there supposedly told her she wasn’t skinny enough to be in the front. So this story seems very plausible to me.

It’s ridiculous that they’re telling these kids to lose weight. The appeal is that they’re normal kids with talent plucked form obscurity (although that’s often not the case, some of them have been seasoned professionals) and people want to see “average” looking people win Idol. These kids are all very cute and attractive already, a few pounds here or there isn’t going to make a difference. The fact that they’re not telling Jacob to lose weight is just an example of Idol wanting their singers to look a part and giving him a pass because he draws comparisons to Luther Vandross. Vandross died of a damn heart attack at 54, and that’s why an employer should be concerned about their employee’s weight, but obviously this has nothing to do with health. (And really, none of these people needs to lose weight for health, although it could benefit most people, yada yada.) It does look like Jacob has lost a little weight recently, though. He looks thinner in more current pictures. (Gray jacket photo is from 3/14, blue jacket is from 3/3.)

Photo credit: WENN.com

This story has been happening at Radar Online for a few days but I didn’t know if any of you would be interested. I find it worth repeating now that the young woman at the center of it has gone on Good Morning America to tell her story. Ashley Kauffman, a 19 year-old American Idol fan, was banished from her front row seat during one of the competition shows when a staffer came by and told her to get the back because she was “too big and too heavy to be there.” Ashlee went with about six girlfriends, but she and two of her friends were told that they were being reseated. An usher took her ticket and contemptuously told them “It makes sense why you’re not with the skinny girls… you’re in the back row.”

Ashley wasn’t taking that and she’s been telling Radar Online about her mortifying experience and has now gone on national television. On GMA, Ashley clarified that she was sent to the back of her section five rows behind their other friends, not the back of the auditorium entirely. Idol issued a statement saying that their group had agreed to be separated as those seats at the front are hard to come by.

Ashley said that she is not out for money or fame and she just wants an “apology” and for it “not to happen to anyone else.”

I believe this girl. She seemed really upset and got choked up when she described how the woman looked at her like she was disgusting.

It seems like Idol isn’t a very welcoming place for larger female contestants, either. We’ve had Jennifer Hudson and Frenchie but were there even any larger women at Hollywood Week this year? I don’t remember anyone, but I could have just missed them. As ABC News points out, former judge Simon Cowell ridiculed season five contestant Mandisa over her weight, quipping “Do we have a bigger stage this year?” Cowell apologized later.

I doubt the Idol bigwigs are going to acknowledge this, but I bet you we’ll see some larger fans in the front row at the next taping. Just wait.

I guess we can’t accuse Twilight’s Nikki Reed of pulling the same famewhore stunts as her co-stars and hooking up with the most high profile guys she can find. Nikki is dating American Idol’s Paul McDonald, the guy who looks like a blonde Chris Kattan and who I could have sworn batted for the other team. But these two supposedly locked eyes on a red carpet last month and have been going strong ever since. There’s even video of the two of them meeting for the first time. (It’s at :52 into that linked video.)

The Idol cameras were rolling as Nikki, in a strapless dress and flowing hair, gushes to Paul, “You’re amazing. I’m blushing, I should go.” Paul then says, “Wow, thank you” and the two awkwardly hug goodbye.

As soon as Reid is out of ear shot, Paul turns to the camera crew and asks, “Was she a famous actress or something? I’d hang out with her!”

And it turns out, the two have been “hanging out” since then. No word on who got whose digits, but these two are totally into each other!

So while Reed has been busy off filming Breaking Dawn and McDonald is obviously preoccupied trying to win American Idol, the two have been keeping in close contact via Skype.

[From E! Online]

That’s cute! We’ll have to see how far McDonald gets in Idol. I’ve been following it sporadically, but I haven’t seen it in about a week. The show lasts too long and doesn’t have enough drama to keep my interest. They drag out the results forever. I guess this week’s elimination was a real upset (spoilers for past shows obviously) and everyone is shocked about it. I probably won’t watch the show again until the final week though. I can see this guy making it that far, especially if he stages a few well photographed dates with Nikki Reed. That will raise his profile.

Nikki is shown on 3/7, 3/9, and 10/6/10. Credit: WENN. Paul is shown on 3/7. Credit: PRPhotos