With the next season of American Idol kicking off next month, fans are getting more and more excited of the show’s new highlights. One of them of course, is a new judge–in the form of Ellen DeGeneres.

The new issue of Entertainment Weekly features DeGeneres, and the show’s “nasty” judge, Simon Cowell. While the newbie judge has not been spending much time with the pro Cowell, (Ellen’s been in LA working on her talk show while Cowell’s been in London shooting The X-Factor) the two told the magazine what they really think of each other.

“Simon really is, in my opinion, mean to people sometimes. So I think I’ll be hard [as a judge], but if he’s rude, I’m going to let him know he’s rude,” DeGeneres says.

But Cowell disagrees, saying, “If everything is ‘After you,’ ‘No, after you,’ that’s uncomfortable.”

To know everything there is to know about the new season before it opens on February 9, pickup a copy of Entertainment Weekly, on stands January 8.

(via EW.com)