American Idol's Next Season Will Be A Blast From The Past, With Jennifer Lopez Back On The Judging Panel

Turns out Jennifer Lopez’s time on American Idol really has been the show’s most entertaining run to date. It’s no wonder that the show is bringing back the opinionated singer (hopefully with her majestic top knot in tow). According to a report by Deadline, Lopez has just signed a $15 million deal with Fox to return to the next season of Idol, along with longtime judge Keith Urban and of course everyone’s favorite Idol host Randy Jackson.

Jennifer Lopez made for one of Idol's most entertaining seasons to date.

Lopez and Idol have a long and storied history together. The singer came on Fox’s talent competition in 2010, at a low point in her own career. She managed to save the show’s ratings after the departure of the judge everyone loved to hate, Simon Cowell. Now, Fox seems to be hoping for the same kind of turnaround, after the network wasted some extremely high paychecks on Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj last season. All the diva spats in the world couldn’t save American Idol from a ratings nose dive and almost losing the competition to NBC’s brand new shiny contender, The Voice.

Even Mariah couldn't rescue the show's plummeting ratings last season.

Now is definitely a good time for Lopez to step in and save the day. As for the third seat on the panel, nothing has been decided yet. Will.i.am still seems like a possibility. Jennifer Hudson, who seemed like a likely contender up until recently, has all but stopped being an option after Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood refusing offers has ruined the possibility of an Idol alum panel. 

Lopez is reportedly being paid somewhere in the neighborhood of $15 million to return.