Paul Abdul lands new dance show, may battle American Idol

After a great deal of speculation it’s now been revealed that ex American Idol judge, Paula Abdul has scored a new show.The 47-year old dancer will be the lead judge in CBS’s long-overdue venture in the primetime dance genre, with a show that’s already a huge hit in Europe – ‘Got to Dance.’ Created by the same team who brought you ‘Top Chef’ and ‘The Biggest Loser’ Paula’s new dance bonanza is billed as network TV’s first all-ages, all-genres dance show — “From ballroom to break-dance, bhangra to ballet, and tap to tango,” says the press blurb. In what sounds like the same basic format as ‘Idol,’ dancers will compete before a panel of judges, with viewers voting for their favorites in the semi-finals and the big finale.And CBS plan to air the new show in mid-season – which could put it directly against Simon’s final season on Idol.


Since her announcement via Twitter that she was leaving ‘Idol’ Paula has been the focus of a great deal of attention from all three network’s suits; ABC offered her a space on “Dancing With the Stars” back in January, and Fox was also reported to be mulling her for Simon Cowell’s next big thing – “The X Factor.” But CBS won the day.And Paula scored quite a package – THR says the new show sees her cast not only as lead judge, but also executive producer, creative partner, mentor and coach to the dancers.

Some say that makes her CBS’s version of Simon Cowell. Could this be partly revenge?And if you think there’s now no chance Paula will be on X-Factor, don’t be concerned – Her reps made it clear to CBS that their star had to be free to do other jobs – like serve as a judge on the rival show. It’s not clear if CBS agreed, but there’s also no news they dropped her, so that looks like it’s done.CBS has now ordered eight episodes of the new show, but it won’t get on the air right away because other unscripted shows (like ‘Undercover Boss’) are scoring well in the ratings and the CBS bosses are keen to keep it that way.

The official announcement of Paula’s involvement could be made as early as today. Keep your eye on this page – and her Twitter account – and one of us will bring you the word…