Another week of auditions just aired on America's Got Talent season 18, and the acts vying for a chance to compete for the big prize are getting more compelling to watch. But one duo recently left judge Howie Mandel a bit freaked out, causing him to make a decision that didn't sit too well with viewers.
In week two of the auditions, folks saw Ray Wold bring his mother with him to help impress Howie, Sofía Vergara, Heidi Klum and Simon Cowell for a place in the next round. For his performance, he bravely brought the heat by lighting himself and his equipment on fire. While ablaze, he placed his mother in front of a makeshift wall that also burned with flames. To make the audition even more fiery, Ray then threw flaming knives at her and she successfully avoided getting hit with the dangerous weapons.
As the tryout continued, the audience and the judges were left gasping. This led to Howie hitting his buzzer, as he didn't think it was worth continuing. That said, he still was impressed by the mother-son duo.
"I'm all for family, but I think if you're gonna spend quality time with your mother, you shouldn't throw knives at her," Howie later said. "It's just the way that I was brought up."
When America's Got Talent later posted a clip of Ray's audition on YouTube though, many took to the comments to share their thoughts. One theme came up among fans, which was how they felt about Howie hitting the buzzer in the middle of the act.
"Judges should never ever press the buzzer during the performance of a dangerous act," one person wrote. "Right! What if the buzzing sound broke their concentration and because of they something went terribly wrong?!" another added. "It should be a silent buzzer in these performances," a different viewer suggested.
Despite the commentary on Howie's choice to nix Ray and his mother from the running, the twosome made it through to the next round of AGT. But the next time we see them on our TV screens, Howie may want to hold off on using his buzzer ...
As the entertainment and news associate editor for Good Housekeeping, Adrianna (she/her) writes about everything TV, movies, music and pop culture. She graduated from Yeshiva University with a B.A. in journalism and a minor in business management. She covers shows like The Rookie, 9-1-1 and Grey's Anatomy, though when she’s not watching the latest show on Netflix, she’s taking martial arts or drinking way too much coffee.
