A 13th "Wildcard" finalist could rejoin The X Factor during next week's live show, a source has claimed.
Show bosses are reportedly planning to have Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh, Dannii Minogue and Cheryl Cole each select a further candidate from their respective categories who they originally rejected at the judge's houses stage, one of which will then be voted back into the competition.
An insider told the Daily Star that Cowell intended for the potential twist to increase competition between the acts and send ratings skyrocketing.
"Simon had been thinking about playing wildcards for a while and this year he decided to do it," the insider claimed. "The 'final' 12 acts chosen tonight will think they are the only ones slugging it out to win because that’s how it has always been. But there is a massive surprise in store.
"On the first live show next Saturday, all 20 of the singers and bands who didn’t make it through will come back on the show. And on the night, the four judges will get the chance to choose one act each to include in their category - effectively throwing some of the losers a lifeline to be on the show and ultimately win.
"This is a major shake-up for the show and it’s bound to upset the original 12 acts who were chosen at Judges’ Houses. As far as they were concerned the others were out of the running. But now four will be back in the race. The judges know about it now but didn’t at the time when they made their choices. The fur will no doubt fly!"
Members of the DS forum have speculated about the possibility of a "Wildcard" act ever since the announcement that the specially extended October 9 show would feature "a surprise".
The 12 finalists will be revealed on tonight's episode of The X Factor at
Show bosses are reportedly planning to have Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh, Dannii Minogue and Cheryl Cole each select a further candidate from their respective categories who they originally rejected at the judge's houses stage, one of which will then be voted back into the competition.
An insider told the Daily Star that Cowell intended for the potential twist to increase competition between the acts and send ratings skyrocketing.
"Simon had been thinking about playing wildcards for a while and this year he decided to do it," the insider claimed. "The 'final' 12 acts chosen tonight will think they are the only ones slugging it out to win because that’s how it has always been. But there is a massive surprise in store.
"On the first live show next Saturday, all 20 of the singers and bands who didn’t make it through will come back on the show. And on the night, the four judges will get the chance to choose one act each to include in their category - effectively throwing some of the losers a lifeline to be on the show and ultimately win.
"This is a major shake-up for the show and it’s bound to upset the original 12 acts who were chosen at Judges’ Houses. As far as they were concerned the others were out of the running. But now four will be back in the race. The judges know about it now but didn’t at the time when they made their choices. The fur will no doubt fly!"
Members of the DS forum have speculated about the possibility of a "Wildcard" act ever since the announcement that the specially extended October 9 show would feature "a surprise".
The 12 finalists will be revealed on tonight's episode of The X Factor at
.
