He believes that there are ways that a new network could reduce costs right off the bat, including keeping production in-house and only producing “a short run.”
All things considered, the former executive producer isn’t altogether pessimistic about the ABC reboot; he just seems to think that it was unnecessary at this point.
That said, Nigel Lythgoe did go on in his chat with Variety to reveal that it wasn’t lowered ratings that resulted in American Idol’s cancellation in 2016; rather, the cost of filming and paying the hosts “was the reason why they let Idol go — the viewership numbers were great; certainly by today’s standards.”