“American Idol” has hired a new director whose experience can help them beef up the series’ live elements.
Louis J. Horvitz will direct the Fox competition for the upcoming Season 13.
The television director has helmed the live broadcasts of the Academy Awards, the Emmy Awards, the Grammy Awards and the Kennedy Center Honors. During his career spanning four decades, he has won five Emmy Awards for his work on the Academy Awards and two for his work on the Kennedy Center Honors.
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“We are incredibly lucky to have Louis joining ‘American Idol’ this season,” said FremantleMedia North America president of entertainment programming, Trish Kinane. “He is a true talent who has overseen some of the most glamorous and entertaining productions on U.S. television. He is focused on helping our ‘Idol’ contestants achieve their potential and we are thrilled to have him on the team.”
Horvitz added: ‘American Idol’ is the gold standard of music competition shows and I couldn’t be more excited to be a part of the team, bringing this show live to millions of living rooms across the country.”
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In addition to directing, Horvitz also executive-produced “An Evening of Stars” for 14 years, for which he and his team won three NAACP Image Awards.
The move to hire Horvitz further plays into the various changes made on “Idol,” which has included the termination of founding producers Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick, which TheWrap exclusively reported first.
TheWrap was also the first to report that “Idol” hired Den of Thieves duo Jesse Ignjatovic and Evan Prager. The producing pair also brought with them a formidable list of live show experience, including MTV’s Video Music Awards, VH1’s “Divas” concert and the CMT Music Awards.
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Returning over two nights on Wednesday, Jan. 15 and Thursday, Jan. 16, “Idol” went through various judging panel plans before landing on returning judges Keith Urban and Jennifer Lopez along with crooner Harry Connick Jr.