Simon Cowell’s blunt honestly continued to make its way to your 2025 TV schedule. Not only did he wrap up judging season 20 of America’s Got Talent with Jessica Sanchez crowned champion, but his 2025 Netflix release of Simon Cowell: The Next Act had him finding the next talented boy band. With Cowell never failing to deliver his unapologetic criticism, would he do the same for his son, Eric, if he had a bad singing audition? In his trademark fashion, the British judge shared his four-worded answer.
Back in 2023, Simon Cowell said he could see his son auditioning for Britain’s Got Talent as he has dreamed of being a singing drummer. In his recent interview with Rolling Stone, the longtime television personality got real on how he’d judge Eric if he gave a bad singing audition. Here would be his sharp four-worded response to the publication:
If Eric, my son, said, ‘Dad, I want to be a singer,’ and he sang to me and every note was outta tune, I would say, ‘Darling, you can’t sing.’ I wouldn’t lie to him.
No, he wouldn’t. Cowell may have been called a “Grinch” on AGT before, and some have reported problems with his criticism, but we all know that the former American Idoljudge will never hold back. It’s clear that Cowell is a firm believer in never sugarcoating feedback if it’ll help someone improve. So, why shouldn’t the same be said even with family?
With Simon Cowell’s signature trademark being his brutal honesty, you wonder if he ever thought he went too far with some of his criticisms. The former X Factor judge, of course, didn’t mince words on standing by his reviews… for the most part anyway:
Look, every one of us is gonna say at one point, God, I shouldn’t have said that. But it’s kinder to be really clear to someone who has zero talent. ‘Do not think that if you carry on doing this, something magical is gonna happen and you are gonna become the biggest rock star or pop star in the world, if you can’t sing.’ The show is supposed to be honest, and I’m not going to bullshit these people and give them fake hope.
I can understand the judging legend’s perspective. While there may be moments of regret in how you say something, you can still stand by the context. You don’t want to tell someone they can sing if they’re off-key. Otherwise, Cowell would be doing a disservice as a judge if he let everyone who auditioned pass.
While there may have been people offended by Simon Cowell’s critiques, there have been plenty who appreciated the honesty. For example, after Cowell called Korean Soul’s song choice “predictable” on AGT, singer Sooyong Yoon said he understood and used it as motivation for their next song to reflect the group’s harmony. Even American Idol alum Clay Aiken said he appreciated the criticism he received to better improve himself. So, I’d like to believe Eric would value his father’s judgment in knowing it’s coming from a good place.
Now we know that even with his own son, Simon Cowell refuses to hold back his honesty if he gives a bad audition. But we need to remind ourselves that constructive criticism is what we need in order to grow. If Eric still has dreams of being in a rock band, I’m sure he’ll thank his dad in the long run for helping him get there, as he did for many others. Make sure to watch Simon Cowell: The Next Act streaming via Netflix subscription.
