Simon Cowell on the red carpet as the AGT live shows start

Simon Cowell alongside his fellow judges Howie Mandel, Gabrielle Union and Julianne Hough took to the red carpet to launch the first America's Got Talent live show at the Dolby theatre in Hollywood.

Looking slimmer than ever, Simon puts his 20lb weight loss down to a vegan diet which he joked he shares with his son Eric. 'Apart from ice-cream, he actually likes water, eats all his raw vegetable. I'm on the Eric Cowell diet'

Simon has been extra busy this year with filming the Britain's Got Talent Champions which will launch on our screens at the end of the month, as well as the celebrity version of the X Factor. As the AGT live shows draw to a close he will be back in the UK continuing filming the celebrity and All-Stars shows.

Simon Cowell with Howie Mandel, Gabrielle Union and Julianne Hough

Viewers in the UK can watch America's Got Talent on Thursday's on Netflix.