Simon Cowell may have to add the Royals to his list of enemies.
The Daily Mail reports that the producer's show The X Factor is stealing the limelight from Prince William and Kate Middleton's upcoming nuptials.
Cowell is offering up a $5 million prize to the winner of The X Factor USA and the UK paper says that British school children would rather watch the singing competition than tune in to the royal wedding.
"Getting to be famous by being born into the right bed, like Prince William, is now seen as somewhat dubious in a way that wasn't at the time of Princess Diana and Charles' wedding," British Professor of Sociology Chris Rojek told the paper. "Those born into fame are on the downslide and we are now getting figures constructed by Simon Cowell coming up." Case in point: Cowell has helped create the careers of Leona Lewis, Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood, to name a few.
Adds Rojek: "Back when Charles and Diana married in 1981, it was more rarefied for people to meet celebrities. Now it's almost as if it's within the grasp of anyone. I think it's going to be very hard for Prince William and Kate to present themselves as glamorous as William's mother did, because it's a different world now."
Still, plenty plan to catch a glimpse of the historic event. An estimated 2 billion fans will tune in for the April 29 wedding at Westminster Abbey.
