When ABC revived American Idol a short time after Fox canceled the show, it made some changes.
The network brought in three new judges to join Ryan Seacrest and all four of them remain with the show as it heads into its 20th season in 2022.
ABC also hired Bobby Bones to be the mentor on American Idol, but after four seasons, he has chosen to leave the show before the 20th season premieres.
Here is what we know about Bobby Bones quitting American Idol.
Bobby Bones leaves American Idol before Season 20
American Idol returns with its 20th season in February 2022, and just over a month before its debut, one of its cast members has chosen to leave the show.
On January 1, Bobby Bones announced that he will leave the series.
The news came via his Instagram Stories. Bones revealed that he will no longer serve as an in-house mentor when the reality competition series returns later this year.
His departure was announced via a Q&A with fans and Bones let them know before ABC even announced the change.
Bones also said that he is moving on to a different show, but he couldn’t reveal what it was yet, although it is filming right now in Costa Rica.
“The network hasn’t even announced the show yet. So I’m going to chill for a bit. But it’s a really good show.”
That new show is also the reason why he left American Idol.
“And some of you noticed I’m not in the Idol promos this season,” he wrote. “My contract with my new network won’t let me do another show right now. Love Idol, btw. Was a great 4 years.”
American Idol promos never included Bobby Bones
Bobby Bones mentioned he wasn’t in any of the American Idol promos for Season 20.
Those actually started last year with American Idol judges putting out their call for auditions.
In that promo, Luke Bryan mentioned that people can now audition from anywhere they want, including at home, and the judges will determine who they bring in from those videos.
There was yet another promo that hit this past week with the American Idol judges and Ryan Seacrest wondering what they would be doing if not for being discovered in the music industry.
There is no word on who will replace Bobby Bones as the mentor in Season 20 of American Idol.
American Idol premieres on February 27 on ABC.