Nick Cannon says he will leave ‘America’s Got Talent’ after joke fallout
Well, this is certainly unexpected.
A mere matter of a solid month or so before some of the audition shows are going to be taping for “America’s Got Talent” season 12, the show’s longtime host Nick Cannon is saying that he is planning on departing the series. Much of the fallout of this seems to have stemmed from a joke that the actor / comedian made during a recent Showtime special, one where he joked that after he signed on to do the show his (n-word) card was taken away from him and different people started showing up to the show — if he did anything controversial at that point, TMZ and the like would be all over him.
As Cannon wrote in a post on his Facebook page, he felt as though there was a backlash that was coming his way and that he had violated some sort of contractual agreement:
“I was to be punished for a joke. This has weighed heavy on my spirit. It was brought to my attention by my ‘team’ that NBC believed that I was in breach of contract because I had disparaged their brand … I find myself in a dark place having to make a decision [to leave the show] that I wish I didn’t have to, but as a man, an artist, and a voice for my community I will not be silenced, controlled or treated like a piece of property. There is no amount of money worth my dignity or my integrity.”
This is a difficult issue to speak to, and probably one that we’re not even qualified to. The thing that makes us confused is why NBC or anyone at the network would feel like comments in this special were that big of a deal; honestly, we hadn’t heard about them before now. We also never quite realized that Cannon was known for producing that controversial a brand of comedy in the first place; we first knew him for being on Nickelodeon, so that may be a part of the problem there.
If this is the end for Cannon on the show, and will you miss him? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
For the record, if you do want to get tickets to see the audition shows tape in Pasadena starting on March 6, you can put in a request by heading over to this link. (Photo: NBC.)