Introducing Mrs. Cowell!
Simon Cowell‘s fiancée, Lauren Cowell, confirms in the music mogul’s new Netflix docuseries that she has already taken his last name.
Lauren, 48, explains in Simon Cowell: The Next Act, which began streaming on Wednesday, December 10, that she initially chose to keep the last name of her ex-husband, real estate developer Andrew Silverman, because they share a son, Adam. (The former couple were married from 2003 to 2013.)
“I kept it for him,” Lauren says of Adam in episode 3, noting that she wanted to have the same surname as her son while he was growing up.
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However, after Adam turned 18 last year, Lauren shares that she decided, “I don’t really want to have my ex-husband’s last name anymore.”
Lauren has been Simon’s partner since 2012. They welcomed a son of their own, Eric, in 2014 and got engaged on Christmas Eve in 2021 during a family vacation to Barbados.
The Next Act features footage of Lauren signing paperwork to change her last name to Cowell on Simon’s milestone 65th birthday in 2024.
“That just feels right for now,” she tells the camera before quickly correcting herself with a laugh, “Not ‘for now,’ but I mean now, forever!”
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Lauren later jokes about planning to put the paperwork in a wrapped box with a bow to present to Simon.
“That’s part of your birthday gift, me taking your name,” she teases.
Fans first noticed in October that Lauren had used the surname Cowell on her newly launched Instagram account, though she did not publicly address the ensuing marriage rumors at the time.
Lauren frequently appears in The Next Act, which takes viewers inside the Cowells’ lavish homes in the U.S. and the U.K. The six-episode series also includes rare glimpses of both Adam, now 19, and Eric, now 11, hanging out with Simon, 66, and their mom.
Simon recently told Us Weekly‘s Just Like Us video series that when he and Lauren walk down the aisle, it “will be private” before they share the news with the world.
“But obviously, you know, the fact that she talks about changing her name, etc. I mean, it’s quite obvious where all this is leading to,” he said. “It was kind of good, I think, to put it out there because people have speculated, but we have a very, very close bond, me and Lauren. I adore her, and we are a very happy family.”
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The Next Act primarily focuses on Simon’s quest to find and build a new boy band made up of hopefuls from England and Ireland, following in the footsteps of his most successful group, One Direction.
“I’m probably best known for TV shows like [American] Idol, X Factor and America’s Got Talent,” Simon says in a voice-over in the first episode. “As much as I love my job on TV, I miss where I started, signing artists and mainly working with bands.”
He continues, “There was a time when boy bands ruled the world. Every decade from the ’60s, they were dominating the charts, but in the last few years, K-pop has taken over the world, so what’s next? There is a massive opportunity. I am gonna find a new boy band.”
Simon Cowell: The Next Act is now streaming on Netflix.
