American Idol moves production to Georgia for Season 25

American Idol is leaving Los Angeles for Georgia for Season 25.

Fremantle, which produces the singing contest with Sony Pictures Television-backed 19 Entertainment, confirmed the move to Deadline. Season 25 premieres in the new year. It will be the show’s tenth season on ABC after its renewal in July.

The new home is not locked in yet. Fremantle is in final talks with a studio complex in the Atlanta area but has not signed a deal. The show recently filmed at Red Studios in Hollywood.

Money is driving the decision. Georgia offers up to a 30% tax credit, meaning productions can claim back part of what they spend, for unscripted and reality television that spends at least $500,000 in the state. California legislators passed AB 1138 to expand the state’s film and television tax credit to certain unscripted shows for the first time, but only for large-scale competition shows with budgets of at least $1 million per episode. Deadline reported that Idol did not qualify.

Idol is not alone in looking elsewhere. Fox moved The Masked Singer to New Jersey for Season 15, where production incentives run at 30% of qualified spending and up to 40% on certain studio projects. Unscripted filming in Los Angeles recorded 40% fewer shoot days, the industry count of days cameras roll, in the second quarter than in the same quarter in 2025, according to FilmLA figures cited by Deadline. Over five years, the drop is 62.7%.

For viewers, the faces and slots are familiar. Ryan Seacrest hosted the most recent season with judges Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie and Carrie Underwood. All three are expected to return for Season 25, with deals still being organised. Recent changes included shifting Hollywood Week to Nashville, Tennessee, starting the season on Monday rather than Sunday and streaming episodes live on Disney+.

For fans, this means a new postcode. The live shows, the votes and the winter launch stay where they are.