Simon Cowell Doesn’t ‘Believe’ In Giving His Son an Inheritance
Simon Cowell has made a fortune off of expressing his opinion, from American Idol to The X-Factor to America’s Got Talent. The judge and producer has made millions. But Cowell revealed that wealth will not be passed down to his son.
Simon Cowell’s incredible success with ‘American Idol’ and ‘The X-Factor’
Cowell rose to fame on American Idol, where he, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson hand-picked contestants for the singing talent competition. The show became an overnight sensation, making household names out of stars like Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson, and Carrie Underwood.
After leaving American Idol, Cowell launched The X-Factor, a British singing talent show. There, the judge created hit bands like One Direction, and made stars out of Olly Murs and Cher Lloyd.
The American version of the show, which Cowell also served as a judge on, had its fair share of hitmakers, like Fifth Harmony.
Cowell’s Syco Entertainment company helped produce these popular talent shows, giving the judge a cut of the profits. Additionally, almost all the winners and finalists of these talent shows ended up singing with Cowell’s Syco Music company. With big sellers like Little Mix and Leona Lewis on the roster, it’s no surprise Cowell ended up making a fortune.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Cowell is worth $600 million. This huge fortune is made up of profits from the many TV talent shows he had a hand in, as well as the many hitmakers he had signed to Syco Music.
Why Simon Cowell doesn’t ‘believe’ in passing money on to his son
However, Cowell doesn’t plan on any of that money going to his son. The talent scout began dating Laura Silverman in 2013—the wife of one of Cowell’s good friends. Silverman’s husband filed for divorce and, two weeks later, she and Cowell announced they were expecting a child.
The divorce was finalized a few months later, and she and Cowell welcomed their son on Valentine’s Day in 2014. The couple got engaged in January of 2022.
When it comes time for Cowell to pass his fortune on, he’s very clear how he wants to do it. He told the Mirror, “I’m going to leave my money to somebody. A charity, probably — kids and dogs.”
“I don’t believe in passing on from one generation to another,” he explained. “Your legacy has to be that hopefully you gave enough people an opportunity, so that they could do well, and you gave them your time, taught them what you know.”
What is Simon Cowell working on these days?
Cowell’s wealth will continue to grow. The media mogul doesn’t plan on retiring any time soon, saying he plans to keep working until he’s in his “80s or 90s.”
“You can be cool as you get older if you’re (a) successful and (b) you can relate to younger people without acting like an idiot. But don’t dye your hair,” Cowell joked.
What does Cowell have in the works these days? He no longer serves as a judge on American Idol, and The X-Factor went off the air in 2021. Syco Music was also shuttered in 2020.
He’s still hard at work, though. These days, his focus is on his Got Talent brand, which includes British, American, and Canadian shows. He’s also working on a series of books with his son. The first book is expected to hit shelves in 2023.
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