Summary

In an interview with Collider, Sofía Vergara says she has to calm down Simon Cowell before America’s Got Talent seasons, likening it to the movie Moonstruck.

Cowell feels nervous before the season premieres but values telling contestants’ stories to connect with viewers.

Cowell reflects on AGT evolution, praising international talent and social media’s impact on acts going viral.

Even Simon Cowell needs a reality check sometimes — just ask Sofía Vergara, who says she has to tell him to “snap out of it” before every America’s Got Talent season. “I have to calm him down sometimes,” Vergara tells Collider. “Remember that movie Moonstruck where Cher slaps Nicolas Cage and says ‘Snap out of it?’ I have to slap Simon.” Cowell, for his part, admits he spirals before each premiere, convinced it’ll be a “disaster” and no one will show up. “I was saying to Sofia, this is it, it’s over it’s going to be a disaster,” he admits. “I always get really super nervous. I mean, look, thank God, people still care. And someone asked us earlier on, what’s the difference between this and TikTok? I think the difference is this show has almost become like a filter for all the millions of clips out there that you can get on our show, and we show their story. You really get to know them as a person, as well as their talent. That makes a huge difference to someone’s career.”
Simon Cowell Promises a “Whole New Show” for ‘AGT’s 20th Season

“There was a time when I genuinely thought, why am I doing this, because everyone was terrible.”

Cowell is so invested in AGT that the producers made a huge format change for Season 20. “We made a decision about a year ago that we have to show more of the process this year, particularly because it was actually the 20th anniversary,” he says. “So we made a decision that we were gonna really go behind the scenes and show the audience at home what it’s like to be a contestant on this show. What’s it like when something goes wrong or you lose your nerve or the act you’re following has had a golden buzzer just before you, and what does it feel like? And finally we’ve actually opened up everything to the audience this year, so you’re gonna see a whole new show because I’ve watched this a long time and I’ve been on it a long time, and when I saw the first episode, I said wow, this is the closest I’ve ever seen to what it actually really is like and even stuff we don’t know about, we got to see.”

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The show is bigger and better because Cowell believes the talent has significantly improved through the years. He reflected on the early days of American Idol to today, but also how the game changed. “There was a time when I genuinely thought, why am I doing this, because everyone was terrible,” he says. “I was just like, this is a disaster and was frantically praying for one good person to walk in the door. Now I think because people want to come from all over the world, fortunately, they have a lot of choice. So we do get to meet people not just in the US but from all over the world, and we’re seeing stuff we’ve never seen before. Thank God everything has evolved for the better over the years.” Plus, with social media, acts can go viral in a matter of hours. “In the list of the top 5, they go viral. I mean, they’re so good,” Vergara says. “And you can sort of feel it when that happens on the day, which is, God, you have no idea what your life’s gonna be like tomorrow.”
Sofia Vergara Says Judging ‘AGT’ Feels Like a Front-Row Seat to Chaos

“Sometimes I really forget I’m a judge.”

For Vergara, witnessing one wildly talented act after another is what brings her back to the judging table. “Honesty, I’m having so much fun on the show, sometimes you forget,” she says about her job as an AGT judge. “I mean, it is the best and worst job in the world and I always say you’re being entertained by the best and the worst in the world. So it’s exciting and sometimes it’s surprising. So sometimes things are so good that you know they blow your mind away, and sometimes I really forget I’m a judge.” Vergara doesn’t just judge — she rides the emotional rollercoaster with the audience, white-knuckling every act as it soars or crashes. “I feel like I’m in the audience being entertained, so it’s really, really so cool to be a judge an AGT,” she says. Cowell jokes that his right arm is practically a casualty of the show — scratched and grabbed daily by Vergara whenever things get too intense. “Because there’s stuff that you don’t want to watch,” Vergara says defending why she’s got a death grip on his arm.” It’s just people doing horrible things to themselves, like swallowing things and pulling things from their eyes and, you don’t believe sometimes that these people can actually can do these things with their bodies, and you know most people watch it on TV. It’s not the same when you’re there in person. It’s really crazy, so I get scared sometimes.” So buckle in as Cowell, Vergara, Mel B, Howie Mandel, plus Terry Crews return for the landmark 20th season of America’s Got Talent, packed with jaw-dropping talent, outrageous stunts, and laugh-out-loud surprises, premiering Tuesday, May 27 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC.