Ryan Seacrest Is Reportedly Returning to American Idol

Is Ryan Seacrest headed to ABC's American Idol revival?

It looks to be so, according to a profile of the on-air personality by the Hollywood Reporter. Seacrest allegedly withdrew from negotiations after Idol's production company Fremantle Media approached him with an offer that was "roughly half the size of its first." Fremantle told Seacrest the reasoning for the pay cut was that the new format would have the show using him significantly less.

After some soul-searching and a much better offer (north of $10 million, reportedly, plus a likely executive producer credit), Seacrest is back in. "Who am I if not the American Idol guy?" he asked.

WithLive with Kelly and Ryanand numerous radio shows and producing gigs already on his plate, incorporating Idol into the mix means being in L.A. on Sundays to host Idol before flying overnight to New York City in order to co-host Live on Monday morning. That's in addition to flying out nearly every weekend for E! and iHeartRadio events. But if anyone can do it, it's him.

"I've always loved the show," he said of American Idol. "And if I could do it forever, I would do it forever." Plus, Kelly Ripa reportedly gave him her blessing, which means there won't be a repeat of the Michael Strahan debacle.

The American Idol reboot, which already signed Katy Perry as a judge, heads to ABC in 2018.