"X Factor" Shakeup: Paula and Simon Speak

Yesterday, both Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell released statements regarding Paula’s departure from “The X Factor”…

Here they are courtesy of “The Hollywood Reporter”:

Paula: “Yes, it's true; I won't be returning to ‘The X Factor’ next season. I’ve learned through my longevity in this industry that business decisions often times override personal considerations. Simon and I, along with Fox and Fremantle, have been communicating about this for a while now, and I have absolute understanding of the situation. Simon is, and will remain a dear friend of mine and I’ve treasured my experience working this past season with my extended family at Fox and Fremantle. I want nothing more than for ‘The X Factor’ to exceed ALL of their wildest dreams. This truly has been a blessing and I am most grateful.”

Simon: “I want to say a massive thank you to Paula, Nicole and Steve for being part of ‘The X Factor’ last year. We had a lot of fun making the show together and importantly, we found some real talent and stars. You do develop friendships with the people you work with and Paula, in particular, is a very close friend and I expect to be working with her on another project in the near future. I'm sure all three are going to have massive success in what they do next, but now is the time to thank them all for everything they did last year.”

Mike Darnell, the grand pooh-bah of FOX reality programming issued this statement:

“We love Paula. She is a remarkable talent and we appreciate all of her contributions. We're lucky that she is a part of the FOX family, and we look forward to working with her again soon.”

I think that sounds very much like FOX and/or Simon have plans for Paula, which makes me feel a little better about the whole thing. I wonder if maybe Paula didn’t feel a little underutilized on “Factor” herself and is now looking to do something else herself.

What is that something else? I have to think “So You Think You Can Dance,” another Fremantle show, has an eye on her. And you know that “Dancing With the Stars” has wanted her as a contestant for years, but it sounds like she’s still under contract to FOX, so that probably won’t happen.

Whatever she does, I wish her the very best. She deserves it…

Photo Credit: Michael Becker/FOX