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'America's Got Talent' Season 15: Insult comic Alex Hooper roasts judges, Howie calls him 'a young Don Rickles'

Alex Hooper was in fine form, doling out harsh burns and mean comments on Terry Crews and the judges this time around

'America's Got Talent' resumed on Tuesday night, September 1, as the stage was set for the last quarterfinal round in the talent competition. As the host Terry Crews reminded us, it was time for the contestants to up their game and this was their last chance to live out their dreams and effectively change their lives. Only five semifinal slots remained and once again there were 11 acts all competing against each other to see who would go through to the next round. The grand finale is only three weeks away, so now it is up to the watching American public to cast their votes and determine who would get a chance to walk away with a million-dollar check and a headlining spot in Las Vegas. 

The familiar faces of the judges were all in attendance on the Universal Studio set, with Howie Mandel, Sofia Vergara and Heidi Klum all ready to see who would be bringing their A-game tonight. Simon Cowell was still unavailable as the famously outspoken judge was still recovering from surgery after suffering a horrific bike accident a few weeks earlier. However, it seemed like Simon's blunt and candid tone was still present, because Howie was not letting the show's contestants rest easy on their achievements. Howie was in a highly critical mood tonight, laying into contestants with harsh criticism when he felt that they were playing too safe or too similar to their initial auditions. However, he would have no complaints when it came to the insult comic Alex Hooper, who has made a career out of mocking and roasting people for a living. 

Hooper stressed that when he pointed out people's flaws, it was merely all in good fun and added that he felt it was probably better if we all learned to take ourselves a little less seriously. Hooper was aware that his act was controversial and more than a little risky, but he felt that he was up to the challenge. He started the night with a slight change in his usual format, telling viewers that he was about to read us a bedtime story. He then picked up a storybook that was titled 'As The World Burns', and proceeded to roast everyone who was present on the stage within an inch of their lives.

He began his ego-bruising performance, which consisted of all rhyming prose, by picking on Terry Crews. Hooper noted that since Crews was so multi-talented, he was clearly compensating for something. He then noted that Terry was his second favorite TV show host after Tyra Banks and declared that Crews was now so old, he would probably be better off known as "Ancient Spice" rather than the Old Spice guy (from the famous ad campaign). Hooper then poked fun at Howie, saying he looked like Mr. Clean and alluded to his germophobia by saying his book 'Don't Touch Me' had been co-authored by Howie's wife. He then served up the best insult of the night by saying that Howie looked like a turtle who had been burned alive.

Hooper didn't spare the female members of the jury either, saying that Klum's (Victoria's Secret) angel wings had now been clipped. He also noted that she had six nannies to take care of her children and she had been married so many times, she just might have more rings than Tom Brady if she cheated a bit more. He then rounded on Sofia with even more harsh criticism, saying that she looked like a rodeo clown whose makeup had been done by a drag queen and that he didn't know what was more supportive, her family or her bra. Simon wasn't spared either, with Hooper saying he hoped his recovery progressed as quickly as the infamous bike that Simon had no business riding in the first place.

Needless to say, it was a steely performance that left the judges stunned and gasping for air. Howie loved it, saying that he was like a young Don Rickles, but Sofia Vergara termed it "horrific" and "mean" in the best way possible. However, Klum gave Hooper a taste of his own medicine, saying "Roses are red, violets are blue, some people are funny, not sure about you." 

On social media, people were certainly warming up to Hooper's roasts, with one fan saying that they had loved his performance. 

Another fan noted that he had been hysterically funny and had not held back by dishing out insults to everyone. 

Now it's up to the voters to decide who goes through to the semifinals. You can vote up to 10 times for your favorite act, and you have up till 7 am on Wednesday morning to make your vote count. Make sure you join us for the quarterfinal results show on September 2, Wednesday night at 8 pm ET on the NBC network.