LOS ANGELES, July 30 -- For a franchise that turned Kelly Clarkson into a daytime television host and Carrie Underwood from a contestant into a judge on the very show she once won, reaching a 25th season is less a renewal than a reckoning with the show's own mythology. ABC confirmed Tuesday that American Idol will return in 2027 on the network and next-day on Disney+ and Hulu, with auditions set to begin in under a month.

The network made the announcement from a position of unusual commercial strength. Season 24, which aired through the first half of 2026, averaged 7.08 million cross-platform viewers per episode measured over seven days, up 11 percent from the prior season, according to figures released by ABC. The season premiere drew 6...