Mariah Carey is joining Simon Cowell on X Factor

American Idol is actually having a decent year, mostly thanks to Steven Tyler, but Pop Idol was a huge smash in the UK too before Simon Cowell left to start a show that was damn near identical, the X Factor, and forced it off the air. Now he’s putting together an American version.

Last month he somehow convinced LA Reid to be a judge, then yesterday it was reported he won’t be on the UK show this season to focus on being the second judge here, and just in case American Idol still wasn’t ready to hang themselves, then he went on the radio and said…

“I think Mariah will have a role on the TV live shows. I met her recently and she was on great form. And her idea was to be the judge of the judges, which only Mariah could come up with. She’ll be involved in some form. I literally adore her. I love her to bits.”

Carey is still 8 months pregnant with twins, so she probably won’t be a weekly judge, though I would assume that’s Cowells ultimate goal. For now the rumored names as a third judge are Paula Abdul, Jessica Simpson, Nicki Minaj and Cheryl Cole, with Nicole Scherzinger as a potential host. Basically the only way Cowell could own Idol any more would be to build a trap door under their judges table and drop them into a pit filled with strobe lights and snakes.