Lionel Richie Joins ‘American Idol’ as Third Judge; Luke Bryan Officially Aboard

By Daniel Holloway and Shirley Halperin

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CREDIT: STEPHEN LOVEKIN/VARIETY/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK

Lionel Richie has finalized a deal to join “American Idol” as a judge.

The move to secure Richie rounds out the revived singing competition’s on-camera talent roster for its upcoming first season on ABC, with Richie joining fellow judges Luke Bryan and Katy Perry as well host Ryan Seacrest. It also puts “Idol” back on schedule. With shooting on live auditions slated to begin Tuesday, ABC and producer FremantleMedia faced the possibility of having to delay the start of production if the judges table had not been set.

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