The show's longtime judge said NBC terminated the deal to have her son Jack Osbourne to appear in a reality show after he's been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.
- August 7, 2012
AceShowbiz -
Sharon Osbourne's real reason of quitting "America's Got Talent" is discrimination against her son, Jack Osbourne. The 59-year-old matriarch told NY Post that NBC stripped Jack off reality show "Stars Earn Stripes" after finding out that he's been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.
Sharon claimed she received an e-mail from the producers of "Stars Earn Stripes" a couple of days before she reported for work. She had to lie to the press at first but, "I just can't be fake," she said. "It's discrimination, and it was badly handled."
Sharon and NBC were involved in heated negotiation but she decided to leave anyway. "It's time to move on," she said, adding "They can't make me do something I don't want to do. All they can do is stop me from being a judge on another network for five years."
"Stars Earn Stripes" producer David Hurwitz said last month that they had talks with Jack but he was never hired in the first place. Jack and Sharon confirmed that the contract was never formally signed but they insisted that good faith and verbal commitment were what they held as guarantee. Hurwitz argued that "the rigors of the show were too intense for him."
Jack offered to pay his own insurance policy but the producers would not budge. Instead, NBC executives offered to pay Jack the full appearance fee to straighten things out but Sharon would not take it. "He didn't want the money," she said. "He wanted his gig. It gave him something to look forward to when he was diagnosed. Think of the good that it could have done to show other people who have this [condition] that your life is not over."
A rep of NBC said, "Sharon has been a valuable part of the NBC family. We regret any misunderstanding and wish Jack well."
