America's Got Talent will return to Los Angeles and feature judges Howie Mandel, Melanie "Mel B" Brown and Heidi Klum -- plus the addition of Simon Cowell.

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As previously announced, Cowell will be replacing Howard Stern on the judging panel for Season 11, but NBC has also revealed Mandel, Brown and Klum will come back.

Nick Cannon will be reprising his role as host as well.

"Howie, Mel and Heidi have an undeniable chemistry together and bring unbridled energy to everything they do," NBC reality chief Paul Telegdy said in a statement. "We are very excited to bring them back along with Nick Cannon as host, and with the addition of creator Simon Cowell as a judge, the panel just got a little more interesting. We can't wait for the new season to begin."

"Without sounding too arrogant I am going to call us the Fantastic Four," added Cowell, the creator of AGT's format. "I like this panel because they are slightly nuts. And now let's find a star."

This upcoming edition will mark Klum and Brown's fourth season as judges and Mandel's seventh.

Auditions for Season 11 are currently underway and will be held in 12 U.S. cities. The tour kicked off November 7, and the last stop will be Dallas, TX, on February 27. Details regarding auditions can be found on www.AGTAuditions.com

After judging nine seasons of Fox's American Idol, Cowell left the show to pursue his own project The X Factor in the US. However, The X Factor flopped after three seasons and got canceled by Fox in 2013. Cowell has also been involved with The X Factor U.K. and Britain's Got Talent for years.

Stern announced his America's Got Talent departure in September 2015 after four seasons starring on the series. Stern had required America's Got Talent move its filming location from Los Angeles to New York City when he joined the show in 2012. 

America's Got Talent is produced by FremantleMedia North America and Syco Entertainment. In addition to Cowell, Sam Donnelly, Jason Raff, Trish Kinane and Richard Wallace also serve as executive producers.


About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.