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JoJo Siwa to Replace Nigel Lythgoe on ‘SYTYCD’ After Sexual Assault Claims on January 27, 2024 at 1:37 am Us Weekly

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JoJo Siwa is set to replace Nigel Lythgoe as a judge on So You Think You Can Dance after Lythgoe was accused of sexual assault.

Fox issued a press release on Friday, January 26, announcing Siwa, 20, would return for season 18 of the dance competition series, which premieres on Monday, March 4, after previously appearing as a judge on season 17. Allison Holker and Maksim Chmerkovskiy will complete the panel. Cat Deeley, who has hosted the show since 2006, will return as emcee.

The addition of Siwa to the season 18 lineup comes shortly after Lythgoe, 74, exited the series in the wake of multiple sexual assault lawsuits. Us Weekly confirmed in December 2023 that Lythgoe, who served as a judge and executive producer on SYTYCD since its premiere in 2005, was being sued by Paula Abdul.

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In court documents obtained by Rolling Stone, Abdul, 61, claimed that Lythgoe assaulted her multiple times over the years while the pair worked together on American Idol and SYTYCD.

Related: Hollywood’s Sexual Misconduct Scandals

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While Hollywood may appear to be all glitz and glam on the surface, the industry has seen its fair share of scandals through the years. The New York Times and the New Yorker first published investigative pieces in 2017 that accused disgruntled movie producer Harvey Weinstein of decades of sexual assault and harassment. Soon after, Weinstein stood trial and was […]

Abdul’s suit alleges that Lythgoe “verbally insulted and belittled” her prior to taking her American Idol gig and that he continued to bully her during her time on the singing competition series. It also claims that he sexually assaulted her in a hotel elevator while traveling for Idol auditions. (She did not specify when the alleged incident took place.)

“Abdul attempted to push Lythgoe away from her. When the doors to the elevator for her door opened, Abdul ran out of the elevator and to her hotel room,” the court documents read. “Abdul quickly called one of her representatives in tears to inform them of the assault.”

Following her time on Idol, Abdul briefly joined the judging panel of So You Think You Can Dance. Elsewhere in the lawsuit, it claims that she witnessed Lythgoe sexually assault one of her assistants without consent.

Lythgoe has denied the allegations. “To say that I am shocked and saddened by the allegations made against me by Paula Abdul is a wild understatement,” he said in a statement to Us last month. “For more than two decades, Paula and I have interacted as dear — and entirely platonic — friends and colleagues. Yesterday, however, out of the blue, I learned of these claims in the press and I want to be clear: not only are they false, they are deeply offensive to me and to everything I stand for.”

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Related: ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ Judges Through the Years: Who Left and Why

When So You Think You Can Dance debuted on FOX in 2005, a panel of dance experts were tapped to discover the best up-and-coming performers. Nigel Lythgoe, who cocreated the competition series alongside Simon Fuller, served as one of the longtime judges since the season 1 premiere. However, after cueing the audition music and marveling […]

He continued, “While Paula’s history of erratic behavior is well known, I can’t pretend to understand exactly why she would file a lawsuit that she must know is untrue. But I can promise that I will fight this appalling smear with everything I have.”

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Earlier this month, a second lawsuit was filed against Lythgoe by two contestants on the 2003 competition series All American Girl. The two women accused him of forcibly trying to kiss them after a wrap party in 2003.

Getty Images (2) JoJo Siwa is set to replace Nigel Lythgoe as a judge on So You Think You Can Dance after Lythgoe was accused of sexual assault. Fox issued a press release on Friday, January 26, announcing Siwa, 20, would return for season 18 of the dance competition series, which premieres on Monday, March 

​   Us Weekly Read More 

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What We Can Learn Inside 50 Cent’s Explosive Diddy Documentary: 5 Reasons You Should Watch

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50 Cent’s new Netflix docuseries about Sean “Diddy” Combs is more than a headline-grabbing exposé; it is a meticulous breakdown of how power, celebrity, and silence can collide in the entertainment industry.

Across its episodes, the series traces Diddy’s rise, the allegations that followed him for years, and the shocking footage and testimonies now forcing a wider cultural reckoning.

For viewers, it offers not just drama, but lessons about media literacy, accountability, and how society treats survivors when a superstar is involved.

Rapper 50 Cent pictured in Tup Tup Palace night club with owners James Jukes and Matt LoveDough, Newcastle, UK, 7th November 2015

1. It Chronicles Diddy’s Rise and Fall – And How Power Warps Reality

The docuseries follows Combs from hitmaker and business icon to a figure facing serious criminal conviction and public disgrace, mapping out decades of influence, branding, and behind-the-scenes behavior. Watching that arc shows how money, fame, and industry relationships can shield someone from scrutiny and delay accountability, even as disturbing accusations accumulate.

Rapper 50 Cent pictured in Tup Tup Palace night club with owners James Jukes and Matt LoveDough, Newcastle, UK, 7th November 2015

2. Never-Before-Seen Footage Shows How Narratives Are Managed

Exclusive footage of Diddy in private settings and in the tense days around his legal troubles reveals how carefully celebrity narratives are shaped, even in crisis.

Viewers can learn to question polished statements and recognize that what looks spontaneous in public is often the result of strategy, damage control, and legal calculation.

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3. Survivors’ Stories Highlight Patterns of Abuse and Silence

Interviews with alleged victims, former staff, and industry insiders describe patterns of control, fear, and emotional or physical harm that were long whispered about but rarely aired in this detail. Their stories underline how difficult it is to speak out against a powerful figure, teaching viewers why many survivors delay disclosure and why consistent patterns across multiple accounts matter.

4. 50 Cent’s Approach Shows Storytelling as a Tool for Accountability

As executive producer, 50 Cent uses his reputation and platform to push a project that leans into uncomfortable truths rather than protecting industry relationships. The series demonstrates how documentary storytelling can challenge established power structures, elevate marginalized voices, and pressure institutions to respond when traditional systems have failed.

5. The Cultural Backlash Reveals How Society Handles Celebrity Accountability

Reactions to the doc—ranging from people calling it necessary and brave to others dismissing it as a vendetta or smear campaign—expose how emotionally invested audiences can be in defending or condemning a famous figure. Watching that debate unfold helps viewers see how fandom, nostalgia, and bias influence who is believed, and why conversations about “cancel culture” often mask deeper questions about justice and who is considered too powerful to fall.

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South Park’s Christmas Episode Delivers the Antichrist

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A new Christmas-themed episode of South Park is scheduled to air with a central plot in which Satan is depicted as preparing for the birth of an Antichrist figure. The premise extends a season-long narrative arc that has involved Satan, Donald Trump, and apocalyptic rhetoric, positioning this holiday episode as a culmination of those storylines rather than a stand‑alone concept.

Episode premise and season context

According to published synopses and entertainment coverage, the episode frames the Antichrist as part of a fictional storyline that blends religious symbolism with commentary on politics, media, and cultural fear. This follows earlier Season 28 episodes that introduced ideas about Trump fathering an Antichrist child and tech billionaire Peter Thiel obsessing over prophecy and end‑times narratives. The Christmas setting is presented as a contrast to the darker themes, reflecting the series’ pattern of pairing holiday imagery with controversial subject matter.

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Public and political reactions

Coverage notes that some figures connected to Donald Trump’s political orbit have criticized the season’s portrayal of Trump and his allies, describing the show as relying on shock tactics rather than substantive critique. Commentators highlight that these objections are directed more at the depiction of real political figures and the show’s tone than at the specific theology of the Antichrist storyline.

At the time of reporting, there have not been widely reported, detailed statements from major religious leaders focused solely on this Christmas episode, though religion-focused criticism of South Park in general has a long history.

Media and cultural commentary

Entertainment outlets such as The Hollywood Reporter, Entertainment Weekly, Forbes, Slate, and USA Today describe the Antichrist arc as part of South Park’s ongoing use of Trump-era and tech-world politics as material for satire.

These reports emphasize that the show’s treatment of the Antichrist, Satan, and prophecy is designed as exaggerated commentary rather than doctrinal argument, while also acknowledging that many viewers may see the storyline as offensive or excessive.

Viewer guidance and content advisory

South Park is rated TV‑MA and is intended for adult audiences due to strong language, explicit themes, and frequent use of religious and political satire. Viewers who are sensitive to depictions of Satan, the Antichrist, or parodies involving real political figures may find this episode particularly objectionable, while others may view it as consistent with the show’s long‑running approach to controversial topics. As with previous episodes, individual responses are likely to vary widely, and the episode is best understood as part of an ongoing satirical series rather than a factual or theological statement.

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Sydney Sweeney Finally Confronts the Plastic Surgery Rumors

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Sydney Sweeney has decided she is finished watching strangers on the internet treat her face like a forensic project. After years of side‑by‑side screenshots, “then vs now” TikToks, and long comment threads wondering what work she has supposedly had done, the actor is now addressing the plastic surgery rumors directly—and using them to say something larger about how women are looked at in Hollywood and online.

Sweeney at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival red carpet premiere of Christy

Growing Up on Camera vs. “Before and After” Culture

Sweeney points out that people are often mistaking normal changes for procedures: she grew up on camera, her roles now come with big‑budget glam teams, and her body has shifted as she has trained, aged, and worked nonstop. Yet every new red‑carpet photo gets folded into a narrative that assumes surgeons, not time, are responsible. Rather than walking through a checklist of what is “real,” she emphasizes how bizarre it is that internet detectives comb through pores, noses, and jawlines as if they are owed an explanation for every contour of a woman’s face.

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The Real Problem Isn’t Her Face

By speaking up, Sweeney is redirecting the conversation away from her features and toward the culture that obsesses over them.

She argues that the real issue isn’t whether an actress has had work done, but why audiences feel so entitled to dissect her body as public property in the first place.

For her, the constant speculation is less about curiosity and more about control—another way to tell women what they should look like and punish them when they do not fit. In calling out that dynamic, Sweeney isn’t just defending herself; she is forcing fans and followers to ask why tearing apart someone else’s appearance has become such a popular form of entertainment.


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