SCOWELL022507_05_X17.jpg Not like money really matters to him anyway! The longtime American Idol judge recently announced that he was leaving the show to pursue other projects (i.e., bringing his program, The X Factor to the US), and the NY Post reports that he turned down a $100 million offer from the folks at Fox!

They must have REALLY wanted him to stay, but Simon says, "If I thought it would lead to the death of Idol, I genuinely wouldn't have done it. We are sure that Idol will continue successfully." Simon added, "Everyone seemed quite cool about it ... Ellen [DeGeneres] sort of saw the funny side. She was kidding around with me, saying: 'On my first day you decide to quit?' She's professional. I don't think it was a total surprise."

Though Simon and Fox refused to discuss how much he was offered to stay, it seems like he's looking forward to moving on with his own project. Simon says, "On X Factor, you get to mentor the artists, so you have more of a role. It's frustrating sometimes when you sit there [as a judge on Idol] and you haven't been able to change their songs, or how they perform, or what they wear."

So who will be working on X with him? Simon replied, "It's pointless hiring judges who don't know anything about the music business. I'll probably go and find someone who did what I did for a living. I was an A&R guy for 20 years. I thought Tommy Mottola would be a good choice. He was the guy who was the head of Sony - he guided Mariah - very flamboyant, knows what he's talking about." What about Paula Abdul? "I've been talking to Paula for a long time," he said. "It was always my intention in one way or another to carry on working with her."