Simon Cowell, 64, shocks fans with his ‘frozen’ look as Stephen Merchant jokes his face doesn’t move on Saturday Night Takeaway

Simon Cowell has left fans shocked with his ‘frozen’ performance in the latest episode of Saturday Night Takeaway.

The media mogul, 64, appeared in the first episode of the new series of Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly’s show.

However, viewers found it difficult to concentrate on what he was saying and were more concerned about his appearance.

Simon has previously denied having a facelift, but admits he regrets his extensive use of Botox.

Several viewers took to X and commented on his appearance, with one writing: ‘Is that definitely Simon Cowell? He looks like a melting Ken Doll?’

A second user added: ‘Simon Cowell looks more and more like a cartoon every time I see him,’ while a third wrote: ‘Simon Cowell doesn’t look like Simon Cowell anymore.’

A fourth wrote: ‘I’m not sure Simon Cowell has aged gracefully!’

Fellow guest Stephen Merchant also couldn’t resist commenting on Simon’s performance on the show.

Simon was fooled by Ant and Dec when they had him stopped by fake police while on his bike in Malibu.

Commenting on the clip, Stephen, 49, joked: ‘I didn’t like it… I loved it. that was my Simon impression. It wasn’t very convincing because my face was moving.’

The comedian’s joke also provoked a quick response from viewers: “Stephen Merchant just robbed Simon Cowell.”

Another wrote: ‘Ahaha Stephen Merchant “it’s not entirely convincing because my face moved” after his Simon Cowell impression.’

The show saw Ant and Dec head to Los Angeles for an unmissable Undercover segment, targeting an unsuspecting Simon outside his Californian hideout.

The Britain’s Got Talent judge was originally picked for their first ever Undercover prank – a segment where celebrities are thrust into bizarre situations – while working on US reality show American Idol.

Ant said: ‘Catching him the second time was even more fun because we also caught him during his free time cycling around Malibu, it’s really funny.’

‘We end the Undercovers where we started… with Simon Cowell! Our very first Undercover was with Simon in LA when he was a judge on American Idol.

“So we went back and picked up Simon Cowell again. We went to LA and gave him a great day while he was judging America’s Got Talent.’

Last year, Simon proved he doesn’t mind making fun at his own expense after delving into his changing face Britain has talent.

During one of the talent show’s live shows, he set tongues wagging and made a cheeky comment across his face.

The surprise move came after one hopeful, Tom Crosbie, impressed the judges by creating Bruno Tonioli’s face from Rubik’s Cubes.

As the end result was shown to the panel, Amanda Holden, 52, took the chance to joke about Bruno, 67, saying: ‘Well, he’s got the orange [face] right!’

“How the hell do you do that?” asked a completely bewildered Simon, as the artist replied: ‘Practice… it turns out you have a very difficult face to make from Rubik’s Cubes.’

At that point, Simon joked, “I’ll change my face… again.”

In April, Simon insisted he has never had a facelift after presenters Ant & Dec made a cheeky joke about his changing appearance.

At the time, on December 47, he told the audience: “We have a new face on the jury,” to which his comedy partner, also 47, replied: “What? Simon has a new face?’.

Speak with The mirror Simon laughed off the suggestion that he had gone under the knife, despite his drastically changed facial features.

He told the publication: ‘I think it’s hysterical. I mean, it just makes me laugh. I haven’t had a facelift or anything.’

“I’ve had a little Botox or whatever, but nothing drastic,” he added.

“So when I hear about this, it honestly makes me laugh.”

The talent show boss recently revealed he took his love of Botox too far, leaving him looking like ‘something out of a horror show’ after his latest treatment.

According to The sunSimon said he decided to quit when his strange appearance made son Eric, eight, hysterical.

The former X Factor judge, who shares his son with partner Lauren Silverman, 44, revealed he no longer has any filler in his face as a result.

He also shows off his much slimmer figure after dropping three stone and has lately been wearing a surgical back brace to aid his recovery after being nearly paralyzed in a cycling accident in 2020.

The businessman broke his back in 2020 when he fell from an electric bicycle he was testing at his home in Malibu, California. He had to undergo surgery for six hours. Another setback followed after he fell off his bike again a year later.

The former X Factor star has since shed three stone after overhauling his diet and lifestyle to help with his recovery.