Former American Idol judge Simon Cowell was known for his zingers directed toward the contestants, but some went beyond funny to downright insulting. Simon was one of the original judges, along with Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson, and quickly became the villain of the group. From 2002-2010, he served on the judging , helping to discover eventual superstars such as winners Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Fantasia Barrino, and Jordin Sparks, and finalists Jennifer Hudson, Chris Daughtry, Katharine Mhee, and Adam Lambert.

Although Simon has a knack for finding superb undiscovered talent, he also has a reputation for his biting commentary. Therefore, when he does praise a contestant, it means a lot. However, Simon is ed more for his insults toward the contestants than his positivity. As American Idol has evolved into a kinder, gentler version of itself in its ABC incarnation with judges Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, and Luke Bryan, it's hard to imagine how Simon got away with the things he said back then. There were ten times when Simon went too far on American Idol.

10 Simon Cowell Is Disrespectful To David Cook

After the American Idol season 7 finale performance episode which featured eventual winner David Cook and runner-up David Archuleta, Simon made comments that David Archuleta had won the night. When judges do this, it could affect the voting, so Simon's comments could've taken things too far. However, right before David Cook was announced as the winner, Simon apologized to him, stating, "I went back home to watch it. [It] wasn't quite so clear-cut as we called it. And, in fact, David, I will take this opportunity to apologize because I think I was verging on disrespectful with you. And I don't think you deserved that."

9 Simon Cowell Declares John Stevens Will Be ed For Awful Performance

During American Idol season 3, 17-year-old John Stevens received many harsh critiques from Simon. However, one of the worst was after his disastrous performance of "Crocodile Rock." While Paula tried to be gentle with the teenager, Simon pulled no punches. He told John, "There was a film director once called Ed Wood, who made one of the worst films of all-time called Plan 9 from Outer Space. And, after making it, he said, 'I'm gonna be ed for this.' That was the musical equivalent."

Simon called John's performance "awful." He added, "I'm sorry, John. I mean, because you know I like you, but this is not you. I mean, that was excruciating." While Simon's assessment of John's performance wasn't wrong, he didn't have to pile on the insults. One look at John's face showed that he knew that it was far from his best performance.

8 Simon Cowell Pans Eventual EGOT Winner Jennifer Hudson

American Idol season 3 finalist Jennifer Hudson received a scathing review from Simon for her Top 11 performance of "No One Else on Earth" by Wynonna Judd. He infamously said, "Let me sum this up for you: I think you're out of your depth in this competition." Simon continued that he thought there were better singers and performers within the 11 people left.

As the audience booed and Randy questioned if he thought Jennifer could sing, a frustrated Simon said, "Don't be facetious. She can sing. The problem is there are people better than her, and I don't think you're capable of doing anything better to have any chance at all of winning this competition against them." Jennifer didn't win American Idol, but she did achieve EGOT status during the years following the show, earning a Daytime Emmy, two Grammy Awards, an Oscar, and a Tony Award. Simon eventually came around to praise Jennifer on American Idol, and even apologized to her years later after she won her Oscar.

7 Simon Cowell Apologizes To Katharine Mhee

During American Idol season 5, Katharine Mhee took on "I Have Nothing," and received some of the most vicious criticism ever from Simon. He said, "Katharine, very simple. By choosing that song, it is like coming out here and saying, 'I am as good as Whitney Houston.' You're not. That was the problem." To add insult to injury, Simon continued by calling the performance "quite old-fashioned" and "quite cabaret." He told her she went backwards, and repeated that she wasn't as good as Whitney Houston.

However, the following night on the American Idol results show, Simon apologized to Katharine for being unfair to her. He said, "I want to apologize because I don't think this person got the right appraisal. And that person is Katharine." Simon said the song sounded different when he watched it back, and he thought it was "a good performance." Thankfully, Simon's harsh words didn't have an impact on the voting since Katharine eventually made it all the way to the finale, placing second.

6 Simon Cowell Rolls His Eyes At Chris Richardson At Wrong Moment

Simon faced fierce backlash after a misunderstanding during American Idol season 6. After Chris Richardson's performance of "Mayberry," Simon wondered why the audience gave him a standing ovation. He said, "What I heard was a very non-descript, nasally, tinny vocal, which had no impact on me at all. I just thought it was completely and utterly insignificant, the whole thing." Chris responded, "Nasally is a form of singing. I don't know if you knew that or not." Simon questioned if it was intentional, and Chris said yes, and he's done it every single week.

Controversy ensued when Chris segued into a statement about the recent Virginia Tech shooting. He said, "My heart and prayers go out to Virginia Tech. I have a lot of friends over there... Be strong." The camera then cut to Simon, who was caught rolling his eyes. After the public erupted at Simon's seemingly disrespectful reaction to Chris' tribute, he claimed that he had been asking Paula about Chris' comment about singing nasally on purpose. He said that he didn't even hear Chris mention Virginia Tech. However, this statement only proved that Simon tuned out Chris and talked over him to Paula while he was speaking, which was also disrespectful.

5 Simon Cowell Tells It Like It Is To William Hung

William Hung's American Idol season 3 audition has made him a legend. However, when viewed through a more modern politically correct lens, his version of "She Bangs" has been criticized for perpetuating all the worst Asian stereotypes. Although he was obviously never going to advance to Hollywood, William put his heart and soul into the audition.

While Paula told William she loved it because he put everything he had into it, Simon said he didn't. He said, "William, it's one of actually the worst auditions we've had this year if I'm being honest. I mean, everything about it was grotesque." Simon continued, "You can't sing. You can't dance. So what do you want me to say?" When William replied that he already gave his best and had no regrets, Paula and Randy praised him, but Simon sarcastically said, "Whoopee." He then told William to "go and do some homework" because he said he skipped two days of school without his parents' knowledge in order to audition.

Simon then continued his sarcasm when William announced, "I have no professional training of singing." Simon said, "No! Well, there's the surprise of the century!" He then asked if he was serious about it, and William said yes, and he worked very hard for it. Simon refused to see that William was taking himself seriously, which made the whole audition very uncomfortable.

4 Simon Cowell Tears Apart Sanjaya Malakar

Sanjaya Malakar's repeated ability to survive eliminations during American Idol season 6 frustrated Simon, who didn't think he belonged in the competition. Simon seemed to have forgotten that he gave the 17-year-old a "yes" at his audition, along with Paula and Randy, and sent him to Hollywood. After his performance of "Something to Talk About," Simon called it "utterly horrendous." He told him it was as bad as some of the worst auditions.

Ryan Seacrest stepped in and said that Simon never liked Sanjaya, so was it the song or the boy himself that he had an issue with. Simon told him to "shut up," explaining that Sanjaya's journey on the show had been funny for awhile, but based on the fact that they were supposed to be finding an American Idol, it was "hideous." He cited Sanjaya's "ridiculous choice of song." Although Sanjaya wasn't the best in the competition, Simon's relentless harsh critiques of the teenager were unnecessary.

3 Simon Cowell Declares Keith Beukelaer The Worst Singer In The World

During American Idol season 2, Keith Beukelaer auditioned with "Like a Virgin" and "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)." Paula was absent from the audition, so there was nobody there to reign in Simon and Randy. Although it seemed like a joke, Keith clearly was taking himself very seriously. When he finished singing, Simon told him, "Last year I described someone as being the worst singer in America. I think you're possibly the worst singer in the world, based on that performance."

Keith was obviously shocked by the assessment. They then had a disagreement about Keith's singing abilities. Simon continued that there was no one on the planet that sings like Keith. He told him that he should never plan on a career in singing. Although Keith obviously didn't have the talent for the show, Simon had no problem kicking the singer while he was down.

2 Simon Cowell Calls Kenneth Briggs A "Bush Baby"

Simon's cruel comments about American Idol season 6 contestant Kenneth Briggs' physical appearance came after his audition with "Tearin' Up My Heart." He told him, "You look a little odd. Your dancing is terrible. The singing was horrendous. And you look like one of those creatures that live in the jungle with those massive eyes. What are they called? Bush baby." Paula called Simon "sick," and Randy said he was "crazy." Kenneth told Simon that was just his opinion, and he's entitled to it.

1 Simon Cowell Mocks Mandisa's Weight

Simon hit a new low during American Idol season 5 when he made fun of Mandisa's weight behind her back. After all three judges gave the talented singer a "yes" and a golden ticket, Simon asked, "Do we have a bigger stage this year?" Paula smacked him. She then said that Mandisa had a power like that of American Idol season 2 contestant Frenchie Davis. Simon continued his dig at Mandisa's weight by saying, "Forget Frenchie. She's like ." Paula pushed him.

When Mandisa faced the judges to find out if she made the Top 24, she came in the room and said, "Well, you didn't need a bigger stage, but you could have got a bigger chair." She then addressed Simon saying, "Yes, you hurt me, and I cried. And it was painful. It really was. But I want you to know that I've forgiven you. And that you don't need someone to apologize in order to forgive somebody. And I figure if Jesus could die so that all of my wrongs could be forgiven, I can certainly extend that same grace to you."

Simon replied, "Mandisa, I am humbled. Come here. Give me a kiss," and they hugged. He said, "I'm just so appalling aren't I? Hmm? But we like each other now." Simon smiled that he now felt "one millimeter small," as he continued with the show, getting a taste of his own medicine. He then said, "I do apologize."

American Idol was a very different show when Simon was a judge. His ascerbic personality had viewers on the edge of their seats every week, wondering what outrageous insult he would say to a contestant next. However, he also heaped praise on finalists he thought were deserving. Although Simon made some mistakes over the years, he wasn't too proud to apologize for some of them, and he's still missed today.

American Idol airs Sundays and Mondays at 8 p.m. EDT on ABC.