The two worked together for years on “American Idol.”

Simon Cowell says he and Ryan Seacrest ‘rarely talk now’

The two worked together for years on "American Idol."

By Raechal Shewfelt

Raechal Shewfelt

Raechal Shewfelt is a writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2024. Her work has previously appeared on Yahoo and in American *Journalism Review* and *The Shreveport Times*.

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December 2, 2025 5:58 p.m. ET

Simon Cowell and Ryan Seacrest were 'American Idol' costars. Credit:

Allen Berezovsky/WireImage; Mindy Small/Getty

Back in his days on *American Idol* judge, Simon Cowell spent *a lot *of time with Ryan Seacrest.

Cowell was a judge and Seacrest host of the reality competition from when it started in 2002 to when the Brit left the phenomenally popular show in 2010. (Seacrest stayed on and continued to host the ABC version of the series that debuted in 2018, minus the on-air banter with Cowell.)

But the two haven't exactly kept in touch.

Asked about the reason that Seacrest, whose hosting gigs also include *Wheel of Fortune* and *Dick Clark's Rockin' New Year's Eve*, is so ubiquitous, Cowell couldn't explain it.

"I can't really answer that one," Cowell told the *New York Times* in a recent interview. "He does work hard."

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Lots of people work hard, the interviewer pointed out.

"He was very, very ambitious," Cowell elaborated. "I didn't follow his career, so I don't know what he's done. We rarely talk now. He was very steely about his career — wanting to be famous. This massive, massive desire about being, you know, very famous."

Just like Seacrest, Cowell has stayed in the public eye. appearing as a judge on shows including *The X Factor *and *America's Got Talent*.

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He departed *Idol* because of the age limitations, he explained to Hollywood Life in March 2019. The rules said only contestants 16 to 28 could compete on the show most of the time he was there, Cowell said.

"How can you say, 'You can't be a star?'" Cowell told the outlet. "And I found the word 'idol' obnoxious to be honest with you. And why isn't a 35-year-old as great as an 18-year-old? I just got to the point where this is not real, which is why I [moved] on."

Former 'American Idol' judge Simon Cowell speaks to host Ryan Seacrest onstage during the Fox finale in 2016.

Kevork Djansezian/Getty

Cowell revealed then that he continued to keep in touch with some of the many artists he'd worked with on that series.

"I mean I still like the show, but I was lucky because I went through the purple period with the artists that I am still friends with now," he said. "And we have remained amazingly good friends, we speak, hangout and talk. So I had the good years!"

The reality star's latest series, *Simon Cowell: The Next Act*, which documents him creating a boy band, premieres Dec. 10 on Netflix.**

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