Simon Cowell is sporting more than just a fresh tan on his annual vacation to Barbados. The America’s Got Talent judge was photographed Wednesday sporting a fresh black eye as he strolled a sunny beach alongside his 5-year-old son Eric. Although initially expertly concealed behind sunglasses, the deep blue and purple bruise was visible when he briefly removed the sunglasses from his face just long enough for photographers to capture a few pictures.
You can see the photos of Cowell’s shiner on the Daily Mail by clicking here.
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According to a source who spoke to the Daily Mail, the bruise is actually well into the healing process. Cowell, currently swept up into controversy regarding the firing of Gabrielle Union from the competition series, reportedly got the bruise on the night of the X Factor: Celebrity finale. Since then, the bruise has been covered by makeup.
“The bruising happened when Simon hit his face on his front door and it also cut him above the eye,” the source said. “It’s been covered by make-up since then, when he was filming last Sunday’s show.”
Cowell’s trip to Barbados is an annual event for his family, and is likely a welcome escape from the controversy he has found himself swept up in after Union and Julianne Hough were fired from America’s Got Talent after just one season. According to a source who spoke to Variety, the two women received “excessive notes” on their physical appearance. Additionally, Union was reportedly told that her various hair styles were “too black” for the show;s audience at least half a dozen times.
Addressing the fallout, NBC and America’s Got Talent producers Fremantle Media and Simon Cowell‘s Syco released a statement claiming to be “working with” Union and her representatives to decide what the “next steps” are.
“We remain committed to ensuring a respectful workplace for all employees and take very seriously any questions about workplace culture,” the joint statement read. “We are working with Ms. Union through her representatives to hear more about her concerns, following which we will take whatever next steps may be appropriate.”
After the statement was released, Union took to Twitter to throw some subtle shade, retweeting culture writer Joelle Monique, who suggested that anything less than a “solid,” three-part apology is “covering your own a—.” Monique included a GIF of Oprah Winfrey saying, “I will not accept that.”
“This! This! AND THIIISSSSSSS!!!!!!” Union added to Monique’s tweet.
