FOX Plotted to Replace Mariah Carey

American Idol, FOX Plotted to Replace Mariah Carey with Jennifer Lopez?

Jennifer Lopez could have returned to “American Idol” mid-season and replaced Mariah Carey — if producers and FOXexecutives had their way, claims a new report.

The show reportedly started plotting to make the major judging switch mid-season, after falling ratings and criticism of Carey’s contributions (or lack thereof) to the panel.

The plan was allegedly scrapped when Carey’s legal team threatened to sue if she was replaced.

Producers are still negotiating for Lopez to appear on the season finale, says The Hollywood Reporter.

The magazine further claims that the entire panel could be replaced for next season.

A rep for FOX said the network has “no comment” on the allegations, while reps for Carey and Lopez have not yet responded to Gossip Cop’s requests for comment.

It’s worth noting, however, that “Idol” executive producer Nigel Lythgoe told THR, “I have not been included in any conversation regarding replacing Mariah with Jen this season.”

Lopez left the series last year, after serving as a judge for two seasons.

There are just four contestants left on this season, with the finale slated to air in May.

'Idol' considered dumping Mariah Carey

'Idol' considered dumping Mariah Carey -- REPORT

Disappointing ratings for American Idol reportedly prompted the producers to consider a plan that would involve bringing back Jennifer Lopez as a replacement for Mariah Carey.

A story in THR says that Carey threatened to sue if such a plan was hatched, so the powers-that-be scuttled the idea to welcome back fan fave Jenny on the Block. There are apparently still hopes to have J. Lo return for Idol’s finale, which likely prompted this statement from a Fox spokesperson: ”This is just another ridiculous Idol judge rumor, likely started by talks of Jennifer performing on the finale.”

For what it’s worth, Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe told the trade publication that “I have not been included in any conversation regarding replacing Mariah with Jen this season.”

Fox’s aging talent show has taken a beating in the ratings lately. Last week, in fact, the show was clobbered by repeats of The Big Bang Theory on CBS, which delivered bigger adult demo ratings. Meanwhile, the new judging panel that also includes Keith Urban lacks electricity, save for the occasional bursts of crazy talk from Nicki Minaj. And it probably doesn’t help matters that, across town, NBC has clearly succeeded in updating the judging panel onThe Voice with the appealing duo of Shakira and Usher.

Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon pull out all the stops

They know how to spoil each other! Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon pull out all the stops for week of birthday and Easter celebrations

It was her birthday this week, Easter weekend, and one month until the couple's fifth wedding anniversary.
Loved-up couple Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon certainly have a lot to celebrate, and on Sunday, the 43-year-old singer couldn't help but tell her Twitter and Instagram followers how much her husband spoils her.
Fans were dished out photos of happily the married couple in Easter costumes, as well as Nick's birthday gifts to his wife: a grand piano, and a beautifully decorated cake.

'Classic' love! Mariah Carey Instagrammed a photo of the loved-up pair playing the stunning 'fully restored Steinway piano from 1902', a gift from doting husband Nick Cannon

Mariah made it clear on Wednesday while judging American Idol that she is not a fan of acknowledging her birthday - rather, she calls them 'anniversaries'.
And it seems her doting husband Nick Cannon had taken this into account when he was making plans to spoil her.
Instead of the traditional 'Happy Birthday', the 32-year-old actor and presenter adorned Mariah's cake with the words: 'Happy 327 Anniversary M.C'.
'327', or 3-27, represents March 27th, the date the singer was born in 1970, and perhaps the butterfly is a reference to Mariah's 1997 hit single, Butterfly.

Nick knows how it's done! Mariah's husband spoiled her with a butterfly cake that said happy 'anniversary' rather than birthday, since Mariah apparently can't stand the word 'birthday'

But the loving husband and father of their two children did not stop there, as Mariah informed her Instagram followers.
Nick's gift to the Grammy Award-winning singer was a stunning black grand piano, which he gifted to her in a room full of balloons.
'Nick's 327 anniversary gift..fully restored Steinway piano from 1902! Classic.' - Mariah gushed on Instagram as she uploaded a photo of the piano.
The happy couple sat at the piano for the photo, wearing adorable crown and tiara headpieces.
But the silliness did not stop there for this lovestruck pair in the lead-up to their fifth wedding anniversary.

More anniversary love! Nick and Mariah appeared to be in a love-bubble as they danced the night away in an exotic location in the early hours of Sunday morning

Just hours later on Sunday, the star tweeted a photo of herself and Nick dressed up in playful Easter costumes.
She told her Twitter followers: 'Happy Easter dahhlings...I finally caught the Easter bunny'
With a glass of champagne, Mariah posed while leaning against her comedian husband in a sexy pink tube dress and fluffy bunny ears.
Stuck beneath his wife, Nick played the role of the 'caught' Easter bunny with giant teeth and a goofy expression.

Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj wearing matching dresses

'American Idol': Why are Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj wearing matching dresses?

One of the most notable aspects of "American Idol" Season 12 has been the feud and ongoing tension between judges Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj. But, in two recent "Idol" episodes, the women seemed to get along just fine in one key way: Their dresses matched. Why and how does something like this happen?

First of all, one thing needs to be made very clear. These dresses aren't just a little similar -- they're almost identical in color. We're not talking about a basic black either. One coordinated fashion choice gave us a super-bright red-orange while the other was a lovely (still bright) shade of aquamarine.

Assuming that this is not just a straight-up coincidence, here are a few theories about what's going on with Mariah and Nicki's dresses.

It's part of the rivalry.
These competitive and incompatible women might have decided to turn their feud into a competition over who can wear the same color better. Why not? They argue about everything else.

The producers want to encourage the idea of peace between the judges.
While there's no such thing as bad publicity, the Nicki-Mariah feud came awfully close for "American Idol." For the most part, their disagreements have mostly been uncomfortable to watch. The producers of the show might therefore want to portray a semblance of unity. Similar dresses will do that.

Costume people don't talk to each other.
If this is all an accident, then the respective costumers for Ms. Carey and Ms. Minaj are most definitely not communicating.

It's aesthetically pleasing.
Randy Jackson and Keith Urban tend to wear similar (although rarely identical) colors. Someone might have decided that matching dresses would just look nice with that.

Someone is messing with the lady judges.
This may be a bit far-fetched, but what if there was a disgruntled costumer -- or two -- that wanted to make Nicki and/or Mariah look silly. Making sure that the ladies' costumes were similar could do that, especially if this isn't being enjoyed by the judges.

Could there be another explanation for these color similarities? Is it all coincidence? We may simply have to guess in the weeks ahead.