X Factor judge Simon Cowell gives high marks to new child's first audition tape

"X Factor" judge Simon Cowell may have had no desire for fatherhood in the past, but seeing a "surreal" ultrasound scan of his unborn child has apparently changed that perspective.

"I feel very paternal right now. So I am very happy," Cowell, 53, told The Times of London.

Cowell was recently spotted in the South of France vacationing with the mother of his child, Lauren Silverman, who was married to her husband, real estate mogul Andrew Silverman when she became pregnant by Cowell.

But don't expect fatherhood to make him any more compassionate when assessing contestants. "I can assure you: I won't go soft," he pledged.