America’s Got Talent has been on TV for nearly 20 years, and believe it or not, Howie Mandel has sat on the judging panel the longest. The past couple of seasons, fans have hit their red buzzer for the judge. Is it time for him to finally tell his last joke on the panel?
Should Howie Mandel Quit America’s Got Talent?
It’s no secret that Howie Mandel has been America’s least favorite judge for the past couple of years. Whether it’s his disliking of children in the live shows, or show tunes, fans have agreed that Mandel’s criticism of acts has become too harsh.
Some of the biggest criticisms that Mandel has received backlash for are Acapop Kids, XOMG Pop, Travis Japan, and more. He’s even gone as far as saying he’s never hit a Golden Buzzer for a dance group, even though he has… multiple times.
In October, fans shared our article about Mandel’s potential to not return to the panel, due to his commitments with Canada’s The Price is Right, his Global Gaming League team, and more. In response to the article, fans on Reddit more or less agreed with the idea of Mandel leaving the show.
Other fans, in turn, are seemingly hoping to see Howard Stern’s return to the judging panel. Some others have even suggested that Sharon Osbourne should return to the panel as well.
He’s Gotten in Trouble for His Jokes in The Past
In America’s Got TalentSeason 10, Mandel got in trouble for saying an inappropriate comment to contestant The Professional Regurgitator. For those who may have missed it, The Professional Regurgitator is a performance artist that is focused on him eating and spitting up different, shocking materials.
After The Professional Regurgitator’s performance where he swallowed then spit up multiple non-food objects, Mandel commented out of amazement. Although his comment seemed to have good intentions, it came off incredibly wrong.
“This would probably come out wrong, but you, sir, make bulimia entertaining,” he said on the live show.
Immediately after the commercial break, Mandel was live with an apology. Clearly, he realized that his joke may not have been all that funny.
“I just want to take a second to apologize,” he said. “I made a comment earlier, it’s live television, I wasn’t thinking. I made light of bulimia, which is a very serious eating disorder and mental health issue. I deal with mental health all the time, and I did something stupid. I should never make light of it. I apologize to anybody that was offended. I’m not perfect, I make mistakes.”
After that, he remained on the panel for over eleven years. How do you feel about Howie Mandel on the America’s Got Talent panel? Do you hope to see him on America’s Got Talent 2026? Let us know on X!
Words by:
Corey Cesare Corey Cesare is Talent Recap's Managing Editor and featured YouTube Host. She has a love of all things pop culture and an unhealthy obsession with celebrities. Corey earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Cinema/Screen Studies from the State University of New York at Oswego in 2021. She spends her spare time shooting astro, nature, and portrait photography, and coming up with movie ideas that she hopes to make into a film someday.
