Simon Cowell may leave American Idol? That's what he's telling British newspapers, anyway, saying he can't bear to stop hosting his other two (British) TV shows, and that all of the traveling back and forth is getting to him. Plus, his contract is up soon for AI anyway. While I'll miss Simon, the idea of a British judge criticizing American idols always seemed wrong to me. Call it leftover Revolutionary War prejudice.

Showtime has renewed The Tudors for one more season -- the final one -- covering King Henry VIII's last two marriages. The show's creator is working on a new series about Camelot for the network, which will likely pick it up straightaway, considering they recently passed on four pilots: Tim Robbins' family pharmaceutical drama Possible Side Effects, comedy Ronna and Beverly, L Word spinoff The Farm and Matthew Perry comedy The End of Steve. Here's hoping Camelot is not a silly place.

Meanwhile, HBO will make a film about the 2008 election based on a book that isn't finished yet. Lock down Harry Lennix now, HBO!

Bravo announced a bunch of new reality series' today, including a celebrity clothing design competition called Launch My Line, a docu-series following Project Runway finalist and mother of six Laura Bennett, another following Hills monster Kelly Cutrone and a Work Out/Tabatha's Salon Takeover mash-up called Jackie's Gym Takeover. They also announced their first two scripted series -- Blueprint, about two friends, gay and straight, who run a New York architecture and interior design firm (which will hopefully last longer than Trust Me), and 30 Under 30, which follows up-and-comers who meet at the titular event honoring them, and whose lives intersect on New York's social scene. Hopefully, we won't follow all 30 of them. That might be a bit much.

In casting news:
- Michael Rosenbaum (Smallville) will play Jill Clayburgh and Henry Winkler's son in a new untitled comedy, which sounds awesome. I'm picturing the Fonz as Lionel Luthor, and it's killing me. Also, Diane Farr (Criminal Minds) will play Peter Krause's wife on Parenthood, and Andrea Anders is apparently hedging her bets with the awesome but unpopular Better Off Ted to be the lead in The Big D, as a New York wife relocated to her husbands' native Dallas. I'll watch that just for her.
- Josh Gad, formerly of the awful Kelsey Grammer sitcom Back To You, has scored a redemptive hat trick, landing a Daily Show correspondent gig, as well as roles in Waiting to Die and No Heroics -- the latter as Horse Force, a horse-summoning employee at the superhero bar the characters patronize. (He's likely the American counterpart of the British version's bouncer Thundermonkey, who can summon monkeys, and I can't believe I'm having this conversation about a show that will actually air on American TV.)
- Joining the magnificent cast of The Wonderful Maladys are Adam Scott (Party Down) as Sarah Michelle Gellar's ex and frequent State collaborator Zak Orth as Molly Parker's husband. Pretty girls and funny guys? Count me in.

And finally, Jay Leno's new primetime talk show will be airing as planned in Boston, after the network affiliate there decided to cave. And yet, I can't bring myself to care if a show I have no plans to watch airs in a town I don't live in.