EXCLUSIVE: Jimmy Iovine Says He Won't Return for 'American Idol' Reboot: 'I Changed My Number'
While ABC is reportedly trying to work with Ryan Seacrest's busy schedule to bring the longtime host back to American Idol, Jimmy Iovine says he has no plans to return.
ET's Courtney Tezeno caught up with the music producer at the premiere of HBO's The Defiant Ones in Los Angeles on Thursday, where he opened up about the Idol reboot after leaving the show in 2013.
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"ABC has not called and maybe [that's] because I changed my number. But I like everybody on American Idol," Iovine shared. "I won't be back."
As for famous Idol alums like Kelly Clarkson and Jennifer Hudson heading over to The Voice, Iovine will definitely be tuning in.
"I like The Voice. I like Mark Burnett, Pharrell [Williams], Gwen [Stefani]," he revealed. "Those are all my pals on the show, so I enjoy that show a lot. I love Gwen and Pharrell. I think that together, they're really great."
For now, fans will be seeing Iovine on TV in The Defiant Ones, a four-part docuseries centering on his longtime partnership with Dr. Dre.
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"I look at it and I realize, 'Wow, I had a business partner and a friend.' That we were able to stay together for 26 years on some very difficult and harrowing times and probably some of the most ever in the entertainment business, I feel proud of that," he said. "I'm happy that I have a friend like that."
"One thing about Dre [is that] he doesn't move on you, and I'd like to think that I don't either," he added. "That's kind of what the film is about to me."
Part two of the docu-series reveals a special memory with another artist, Tupac.
"Tupac was a glorious person and he had all the right intentions. He got caught up. He got into a couple cases that were not his fault, and it spiraled out of control, and I guess he didn't have the tools as a young man to rein it back in," Iovine recalled of the rapper, who died in 1996. "But he really had the best intentions and was truly an incredible person. It's a tragedy."
As for the mixed reviews of Tupac's newly released biopic, All Eyez on Me, the music producer said he's not there to judge.
"I enjoy Tupac's music. I enjoy Tupac. It just makes you miss him, and that's what it does. That's the effect it has on me," Iovine expressed. "I'm not looking at the movie to say, 'Is it better or is it worse?' Just, you know, I miss the guy."
See more in the video below.
The Defiant Ones premieres July 9 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO.