Carrie Underwood Reveals Most Exciting Part About Return to ‘American Idol’ (Exclusive)
American Idol is freshening its format for the upcoming 24th season.
With the singing competition show just days away from its Jan. 26 premiere, it was announced that there will be new twists for season 24.
For starters, Idol will allow fans to vote for contestants on social media in addition to text and phone voting, showrunner Megan Michaels Wolflick told Deadline in an interview published on Jan. 22. The move marks the very first time in show history that social voting will be used.
“We have to meet the audience where they are. Back in 2002 when the show began, texting was the new hot thing,” Michaels Wolflick explained. “We also have to meet the technology where it is, as well. We want to make it as easy as possible for people to vote for their favorites, weigh in from their couch with their second screen, in real time.”
Though details are still being sorted, the showrunner said the goal is to entice a younger audience to watch. “If we can get Gen Alpha and Gen Z to weigh in a little bit more in the easiest way possible, that’s very exciting,” she explained. “It could tip the scale.”
Idol—which has been hosted by Ryan Seacrest since its inception in 2002 and currently features Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie and Carrie Underwood as judges—is also relocating its annual Hollywood Week from L.A. to Nashville despite its name, per Deadline.
As Michaels Wolflick put it, “The music industry in Nashville is just as strong as it is in L.A., too. It is a hub and a dream for people to go to.”
Eric McCandless/Disney via Getty Images
Additionally, the long-running series is planning to introduce a new Ohana Round, according to a press release from ABC. The round will be filmed at Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa in Ko Olina, Hawaii, and take place during its three-episode Hollywood Week.
Thirty hopefuls will perform for a group of “industry tastemakers,” who will help the judges narrow down 30 contestants to the top 20. The group includes influencer duo Kaniyia Brown and Terry McCaskill, music creator Anthony Gargiula, actress Loren Gray, podcast host Evan Ross Katz, vocal coach Cheryl Porter, Grand Ole Opry announcer Kelly Sutton and Rolling Stone co-editor-in-chief Shirley Halperin.
Eric McCandless/Disney via Getty Images
In her recent interview, Michaels Wolflick said the goal of Ohana Week is to get a pulse on exactly who fans—and industry professionals—are connecting to.
“The judges have the power right all the way up to America’s Vote of who they want to put through and I thought it’d be interesting to do some sort of focus group before they get to America’s Vote to inform the judges of who people are responding to,” she explained, noting that each of the groups will get a chance to pick their favorite contestant. “Back in the day, Kris Allen would have been the pick of the people and Adam Lambert probably would have been the industry pick. I’m super curious who the [potential] Idols are going to pick because they can’t vote for themselves.”
Idol isn’t the only show preparing to premiere in 2026. Check out the other shows making their debut this year.
MTV/Paramount Networks
RuPaul’s Drag Race (MTV) – Jan. 2
This season, 14 sickening new queens enter the Werk Room to compete for the title of “America’s Next Drag Superstar,” an official makeup collaboration with Anastasia Beverly Hills Cosmetics and a cash prize of $200,000 courtesy of the popular video game RuPaul’s Drag Race Match Queen.
Oxygen
Snapped (Oxygen) – Jan. 4
Season 36 of Oxygen’s true crime series debuts Jan. 4.
Disney/Raymond Liu
The Rookie (ABC) – Jan. 6
Nathan Fillion returns for season eight of the procedural.
Disney/Nino Muñoz
Will Trent (ABC) – Jan. 6
Ramón Rodríguez and team return to solve more cases on season four.
TLC/Warner Bros. Discovery
1000-Lb Sisters (TLC) – Jan. 6
Amy is deep in wedding-planning mode as she prepares to marry Brian in a Halloween celebration that promises to be anything but ordinary. From haunting details to a lively bachelorette bash in New Orleans, Amy is pulling out all the spooky stops to make her big day unforgettable.
Tammy is embracing a life-altering new chapter of her own. Following her transformative skin-removal surgery, she’s officially ‘adulting’ – taking on a volunteer position at an animal shelter, and more responsibilities than ever at nearly 40. She’s also planning to move in with her girlfriend, Andrea, and their relationship takes center stage as Tammy steps into greater independence and new opportunities.
Nevertheless, while love is in the air, tensions between the sisters are boiling over like never before. Family dynamics, envy, and personal growth collide, bringing the drama, heart, and humor that define 1000-Lb Sisters.
PBS/YouTube
Finding Your Roots (PBS) – Jan. 6
Twenty new celebrity guests will sit down with Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. to learn about their genealogical history and the journeys of their ancestors dating back hundreds of years when season 12 premieres.
FOX
Best Medicine (Fox) – Jan. 6
The series centers on Dr. Martin Best (Josh Charles), a brilliant surgeon who abruptly leaves his illustrious career in Boston to become the general practitioner in a quaint East Coast fishing village where he spent summers as a child. Unfortunately, Martin’s blunt and borderline rude bedside manner rubs the quirky, needy locals the wrong way, and he quickly alienates the town, even though he’s all they’ve got. Although Martin can expertly address any medical ailment or mystery in this idiosyncratic town, he’s really just desperate to be left the hell alone. Instead, he keeps getting dragged right smack into the middle of their personal chaos, feuds and fantasies. What the locals don’t know is that Martin’s terse demeanor masks a debilitating new phobia and childhood trauma that prevent him from experiencing true intimacy with anyone. But tenacity is the creed of everyone in their small village, and the people who live there may be exactly what the doctor ordered.
Michael Becker/FOX
The Masked Singer (Fox) – Jan. 7
Season 14 debuts with new mystery celebrities.
Bravo
The Valley: Persian Style (Bravo) – Jan. 8
A spinoff of The Valley, this series follows a tight-knit group of Persian friends who have traded Beverly Hills for suburban life in the Valley. As they juggle marriages, parenthood and thriving careers, cracks in their relationships – both between lovers and friends – begin to emerge. Rooted in their culture that values family, friendships and loyalty above everything else, emotions often take over as these fiery personalities navigate their highs, lows and everything in between.
Peacock/NBCUniversal
The Traitors (Peacock) – Jan. 8
During season four, fate takes the spotlight as contestants tempt destiny inside the castle – where every move, alliance, and betrayal could change the game.
Netflix
HIS & HERS (Netflix) – Jan. 8
Set in the sweltering heat of Atlanta, Anna lives in haunting reclusivity, fading away from her friends and career as a news anchor. But when she overhears about a murder in Dahlonega – the sleepy town where she grew up – Anna is snapped back to life, pouncing on the case and searching for answers. Detective Jack Harper is strangely suspicious of her involvement, chasing her into the crosshairs of his own investigation. There are two sides to every story: HIS & HERS, which means someone is always lying.
NBCUniversal
The Hunting Party (NBC) – Jan. 8
The Hunting Party is a high-concept crime procedural about a small team of investigators led by former FBI profiler Rebecca “Bex” Henderson (Melissa Roxburgh). They’ve been assembled to track down and capture the most dangerous killers the world has ever seen, all of whom have just escaped from “The Pit,” a top-secret government prison that’s not supposed to exist. As Bex races to catch these killers before it’s too late, she’ll discover the one thing more twisted than the dangerous fugitives she’s chasing is the prison itself that they just escaped from…because “The Pit” wasn’t just a prison.
Disney
A Thousand Blows (Hulu) – Jan. 9
Inspired by the true-life stories of a group of characters battling for survival in the brutal East End of London in the 1880s. One year later, Hezekiah’s a shadow of the man he once was whilst Sugar Goodson is estranged from his family and drinking himself to death. Just as Wapping is about to sigh its last breath, Mary Carr bursts back into town with her loyal second, Alice Diamond, to reassemble her gang and reclaim her crown. As always, Mary has a plan; one which will involve all those she holds dearest. And this time it’s riskier than ever.
OWN
Maxxed Out (OWN) – Jan. 10
OWN dives into the emotional and financial chaos impacting families and friends across America with its bold new series, Maxxed Out.
This unflinching eight-episode series reveals how money (and mismanaged money) can strain even the strongest relationships. Each episode uncovers the “What were you thinking?” moments behind financial disasters and the tough love it takes to turn things around.
Hulu/Disney
Tell Me Lies (Hulu) – Jan. 13
Tell Me Lies season three follows Lucy Albright (Grace Van Patten) and Stephen DeMarco (Jackson White) as they’ve rekindled their tumultuous romance in time for spring semester at Baird College. While they promise things will be different this time, past indiscretions hinder their best intentions, and Lucy finds herself embroiled in a controversy she wants nothing to do with. Meanwhile, the disastrous repercussions from the previous year also force Lucy and Stephen’s friends to face their own destructive behaviors. As scandalous secrets fester around campus, vicious consequences threaten Lucy and everyone in her circle.
TLC/Warner Bros. Discovery
Suddenly Amish (TLC) – Jan. 13
TLC’s all-new series follows six non-Amish individuals on a rare journey as they leave behind their modern “English” lifestyle and step into a deeply traditional Amish community in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Seeking a profound change from their present way of modern life, each participant contemplates the possibility of converting into Amish society, as they navigate drastically different routines and a culture defined by faith, discipline, simplicity and community.
National Geographic
Pole to Pole With Will Smith (National Geographic) – Jan. 13
This January, Will Smith takes audiences on the ultimate journey of discovery in the new National Geographic original series. Five years in the making, the series follows Will across all seven continents, taking him from the icefields of Antarctica to the jungles of the Amazon, the mountains of the Himalayas, the deserts of Africa, the islands of the Pacific and the icebergs of the Arctic.
FOX
Fear Factor: House of Fear (Fox) – Jan. 14
Hosted by Johnny Knoxville, the iconic reality competition Fear Factor is coming back bigger, bolder and more daring as Fear Factor: House of Fear! Dropped into an unforgiving, remote location, a group of strangers will live together under one roof, and face mind-blowing stunts, harrowing challenges and a twisted game of social strategy where trust is fleeting—and fear is a weapon. Only one contestant will conquer all their fears and walk away with the massive grand prize!
BritBox
Riot Women (Britbox) – Jan. 14
A teacher, a police officer, a pub landlady, a midwife and a shoplifting freeloader: Five menopausal women form a punk rock band to take part in a local talent contest, and suddenly find they have a lot more to shout about than they ever imagined. As they become closer, the teacher, Beth, and freeloader, Kitty, discover a surprising, heartbreaking connection.
Pamela Littky/FOX
Going Dutch (Fox) – Jan. 15
Season two debuts.
Pamela Littky /FOX
Animal Control (Fox) – Jan. 15
Season four debuts in its regular time slot.
HBO
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (HBO) – Jan. 18
From the world of Westeros comes an endearing tale centered on the adventures of an unexpected duo.
FX
The Beauty (FX & Hulu) – Jan. 21
Evan Peters stars as an FBI agent alongside Rebecca Hall as the pair work to understand the sexually transmitted virus that transforms ordinary people into visions of physical perfection, but with terrifying consequences. Created and written by Ryan Murphy and Matthew Hodgson, Evan described the new series to E! News as an “international sci-fi satirical body horror action thriller.”
Also starring Ashton Kutcher and Jeremy Pope, with guest stars including Bella Hadid, Isabella Rossellini, Ben Platt, Jessica Alexander and Vincent D’Onofrio.
Apple TV+
Drops of God (Apple TV+) – Jan. 21
In season two of the multilingual drama, Camille and Issei are thrust into their most perilous challenge yet: to uncover the origin of the world’s greatest wine, a mystery so profound that even their legendary father, Alexandre Léger, could not solve it. What begins as a pursuit of legacy, becomes a search for truth that spans continents and centuries, unearthing forgotten histories, hidden rivalries and secrets buried for generations. As the search pushes them to the edges of the world, and to the darkest corners of themselves—Camille and Issei must decide how much they are willing to sacrifice. The answer could shatter their bond as siblings…or destroy them both.
Disney/Gizelle Hernandez
American Idol (ABC) – Jan. 26
American Idol premieres its ninth season on ABC and 24th season overall. Music superstars Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie and Carrie Underwood return as judges alongside Emmy Award-winning host Ryan Seacrest. For the first time ever, Idol will bring the iconic Hollywood Week round to Nashville. Hollywood Week: Music City Takeover will feature one round only as the hopefuls from all musical genres take the stage for a make-or-break performance, facing the biggest Hollywood Week cut in Idol history.
Getty Images/FOX
Memory of a Killer (Fox) – Jan. 26
Inspired by the book and 2003 award-winning Belgian film De Zaak Alzheimer, Memory of A Killer is a dramatic thriller starring Emmy nominee Patrick Dempsey as a hitman, Angelo Doyle, leading a dangerous double life while hiding an even deadlier personal secret.
FOX
Extracted (Fox) – Jan. 26
Season two of the family reality competition series debuts.
Apple TV+
Shrinking (Apple TV+) – Jan. 28
Shrinking follows a grieving therapist (Jason Segel) who starts to break the rules and tell his clients exactly what he thinks. Ignoring his training and ethics, he finds himself making huge, tumultuous changes to people’s lives…including his own.
Netflix
Bridgerton (Netflix) – Jan. 29
The fourth season turns its focus to bohemian second son Benedict (Luke Thompson). Despite his elder and younger brothers both being happily married, Benedict is loath to settle down — until he meets a captivating Lady in Silver at his mother’s masquerade ball.
Brian Bowen Smith/FOX
Next Level Chef (Fox) – Jan. 29
The cooking competition series returns for season five.
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