Could We See a “Phantom Wildcard” on ‘AGT’ This Season?
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With only 33 of the 36 spots in the America’s Got Talent live shows filled by Judge Cuts and Golden Buzzers, we knew we we are getting a few wildcard acts in the quarter-finals. Most people are expecting them to be acts eliminated in Judge Cuts, but there just might be one who didn’t compete in that round at all…
Will IDEGO Be the ‘AGT’ Wildard?
Virtual reality act IDEGO has been posting some behind-the-scenes and rehearsal footage from their AGT audition lately. They didn’t compete in Judge Cuts, but some fans have drawn similarities between them and other acts relying on either similar technology or some other kind of act with a complex set-up such as motocross act Metal Mulisha Fitz Army from Season 10, visual projection act Oskar and Gaspar from Season 12, multimedia performance act Front Pictures from Season 13. All three of those acts have something in common: they weren’t in Judge Cuts (not even in a montage!) and didn’t get a Golden Buzzer, but somehow went right from auditions to the live quarter-finals.
Yes, this is a strange but somewhat common occurrence in several of AGT‘s recent seasons. But why is it even a thing? It’s never been directly addressed by the show, but since this has only happened with acts involving heavy or complicated technical elements, I suspect it might be because of the time it would take to set them up during Judge Cuts. Because they have limited time with each guest judge, those rounds film more acts on the same day than the audition tapings (which are very different from the edited episodes we see on TV) so I imagine they’re pretty pressed for time when filming them.
Admittedly, IDEGO’s AGT posts are all “throwbacks” so there isn’t any strong indication they’ll return for the live shows. However, if the show follows the “phantom wildcard” trend this season, they’re the most likely to get it. They had a big segment devoted to them – much like the other aforementioned acts – and AGT does like to make their judges squirm…will we see a part two of Howie’s worst nightmare play out?
Who Would YOU Like To see as an ‘AGT’ Wildcard?
Would you like to see IDEGO in the live shows, or do you find the phantom wildcard phenomenon unfair? Sound off in the comments below!
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