The X-Factor, Simon Cowell’s U.K. singing competition that launched the careers of pop artists like Little Mix, Leona Lewis, and One Direction, will not return to ITV. A spokesperson told the Sun that “there are no current plans†to continue the show “at this stage.†A new season had not aired in 2019 due to the premieres of The X-Factor: Celebrity and The X-Factor: The Band, and the show subsequently took 2020 off as well, with the decision announced before the COVID-19 pandemic began. The competition, originally intended to fill the gap of Pop Idol when it premiered in 2004, ran for 15 seasons, with the winner earning a recording contract with Syco Music. Other famous alumni included James Arthur, Olly Murs, and Cher Lloyd. Cowell left the show’s judging panel in 2011 to launch an American spinoff, which ran for three seasons, before returning for the rest of the U.K. show’s run. According to Variety, Cowell now plans to focus on an upcoming ITV musical quiz show, Walk the Line.