The X Factor boss has spoken out about his involvement in the Cheryl Cole X Factor saga, stating 'I'm no monster'
Simon Cowell finally has broken his silence on the X Factor Cheryl Cole saga, hoping to set the record straight on the Geordie singer’s axing from the US show.
Publicly apologising to the Girls Aloud star, he told the Sun: ‘I’m sorry. I’m not a monster.’
It seems the music guru still hopes to make things right with his former pal, claiming he was only looking out for what was best for her during the entire fiasco.
‘I’m sorry. I hope we’re still close friends' he said. 'She’s still a star. The hardest thing to accept is that everyone has painted me as a monster because I embarrassed her.
'But the truth was I was protecting her. I just want people to be in the best place at the right time,' he admitted, ‘I just thought she’d be happier in the UK.'
And despite hearsay that her accent put her on the chopping block, Simon has insisted it has nothing to do with it.
'We noticed she was quieter than normal. The feeling was that she was slightly out of her comfort zone in America. The intention was to do it quietly and say to her she had an option to rejoin the UK show.'
He also denied reports that she had been sacked, insisting he wanted her to go back to her role on the UK show.
'At the end of the day we were saying, 'move to another show for even more money'. There was an offer of around £2.5million on the table including bonuses. How is that sacking someone?' He also revealed that he didn’t tell her to leave the US show - but instead executive producer Richard Holloway delivered the final blow: ‘I wasn’t the right person. I felt she would be more comfortable to hear it from him.’
With Nicole Scherzinger now confirmed as the new judge replacing Cheryl on the US X Factor, it seems Cheryl’s fate has been sealed. But despite this, Simon insists that there are other roles for her on different shows.
Cheryl still hasn't spoken out about her ordeal, but a friend told The Sun: 'If Simon wants to say it wasn't personal, that's up to him. But the reality is he really pushed her into doing the US show. She would have been happy doing another year on the UK show.
'She just wants to take a break from all this and look to the future. It has been completely exhausting but she isn't going to let it get in the way of her life any more.'