‘American Idol’ season 13: Harry Connick Jr. signs deal, will join Jennifer Lopez, Keith Urban

The “American Idol” summer circus is once again closing up shop for the year.

After a pretty lengthy period panic the past month or so, which included the Fox juggernaut losing out on getting people will.i.am, Dr. Luke, Diddy, Scooter Braun, and others on the judging panel alongside Jennifer Lopez and Keith Urban, the show has finally found their guy. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Harry Connick Jr. has inked a deal to become the third judge, and has also managed to do it in time so that the show is not going to be forced into some sort of production delay.

As for what we anticipate the reaction to this news to be, it’ll probably be along the lines of “mixed.” Do we like Harry a lot? We do. He wouldn’t have been our first pick for the panel (we would have preferred either Adam Lambert or Pharrell Williams), but he’s a funny guy with past experience on the show and seems to genuinely be a fan. We don’t know how he will be as a judge, but as an all-around entertainer, he may be able to help get some of these contestants to be personable beyond just when they are singing.

The biggest concern we have with Harry is that he’s not going to be getting the young people to watch right away, but then again, neither did Nicki Minaj or Mariah Carey. What Fox really needs to hope for is that they create a show here that is so good, people tell their friends and family to check it out. Word of mouth drives better business then big stars, social media, or anything else, and quality from the talent to the judges will be what brings viewers back more so than any big name or surprising twist.

Do you think that Harry will make a great addition to the panel? Be sure to vote in our poll below!

Photo: Fox