It appears Simon Cowell is finally reflecting on his role as American Idol’s main villain, telling the host of “The Interview,” a New York Times podcast, that he’s “not proud” of how he behaved on set.

Cowell admits that filming American Idol was, at times, a boring enterprise. Specifically, the days spent auditioning thousands and thousands of wannabe singers and songwriters.

Simon Cowell apologizes for "being a dick" on #AmericanIdol.

“I did realize I’d probably gone too far. I didn’t particularly like audition days, because they’re long and boring. I would get fed up. And of course, out of a hundred nice comments, what are they going to use?… pic.twitter.com/p2tX2sycSw

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— Variety (@Variety) December 1, 2025

So yeah, he got “fed up” and would come off as rude or condescending, but according to him, it’s not his fault the producers always choose the clips of him “in a bad mood,” as they were trying to make engaging television.

Cowell thinks being direct with the bad contestants was better than leading them on, which, sure, is true, but that doesn’t make ridiculing them on national TV the right thing to do either.