Is ‘American Idol’ on TV Tonight?

American Idol fans will be disappointed this Sunday, as there is no new episode due to the 2021 Oscar Awards. ABC’s beloved singing competition has been preempted by the Academy Awards, pushing the next new episode of American Idol to Sunday, May 2. When it returns, the results of the comeback contestants will be announced.

The 93rd Oscars began live at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday, April 25 on ABC. The show is broadcast from Union Station in downtown Los Angeles, California and at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center. The show has been heavily altered to accommodate the coronavirus pandemic and is likely to run even longer than usual. Sadly, this means American Idol has been displaced from its usual 8 p.m. ET time slot. Fans on social media are furious to find that the show will leave them hanging for another week.

“There’s no American Idol tonight??” one fan tweeted just as the show began. Another added: “I was supposed to be watching American Idol tonight but the f-ing Oscars are on,” while a third wrote: “I have never gave a f- about Oscars, Emmys, Tonys or Grammys in my entire life. I feel the same way about those American Idol shows, no interest. Maybe I am weird.”

American Idol surprised fans last weekend by introducing a “comeback” week — reintroducing 10 contestants from the previous season to compete for one chance to win the show all over again. This was because in 2020, production on American Idol was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic. The returning contestants were Cyniah Elise, Nick Merico, Aliana Jester, Franklin Boone, Faith Becnel, Arthur Gunn, DeWayne Crocker, Jr., Makayla Phillips, Olivia Ximines and Louis Knight.

This move was also controversial among fans, who thought it was somewhat unfair to this year’s contestants to spring this last-minute twist on them. Furthermore, many felt that American Idol had already cut some contestants unjustly in 2021, and they would rather have seen those singers return than see the unfamiliar 2020 contestants, some of whom they could hardly remember.

Either way, they will now have to wait an extra week for the competition to go on. American Idol returns on Sunday, May 2 with the results of the comeback week, which will determine which returning singer will get a spot in the top 10. That will leave only four more weeks until the season finale on Sunday, May 23.