When a trio of Ukrainian acrobats fell multiple times from dangerous heights on the “America’s Got Talent” stage, famously OCD judge Howie Mandel nearly had a nervous breakdown.
“The tension in the room and the fear … I remember saying, ‘I can’t watch this,'” he told The Post of the balancing act from the female troupe, who call themselves Three G.
“These are three young people who have left a war-torn country where their life is in jeopardy and their family’s life and their future.”
The women — who appeared on “AGT’s” Season 18 premiere last week — kept picking themselves back up and trying again — which was an inspiration to Mandel.
“They will risk everything and you feel it through tears and pain and injury just to make a better life maybe in a different place for themselves and you sense that on the stage,” he said.
The audacious acrobats are still in the running — after Mandel and fellow judges Simon Cowell, Sofia Vergara, and Heidi Klum voted to keep them in the competition.
The 67-year-old Canadian native — who made his debut on “AGT” in 2009 — said contestants take the plunge, knowing they can benefit from the exposure they gain through the NBC series.
A trio of acrobats from Ukraine fell multiple times but kept getting back up.Trae Patton/NBC“It’s not just a silly talent show. It is life-changing,” he explained. “If you go down the Vegas strip now, I don’t think there’s a billboard alive that doesn’t have some connection in some way to ‘America’s Got Talent.'”
What happens on the “AGT” stage stays on the Vegas strip and Mandel named ventriloquist Terry Fator, magician Mat Franco, and hip hop dance crew Jabbawockeez as just some of the show’s success stories who currently have shows in Sin City.
However, he does admit that some of the competitors this season — like the man who came all the way from Japan and landed a remote-controlled helicopter on his backside — are amusing.
“I was the only one that gave it a standing ovation,” he said. “That guy who’s landing helicopters on his own ass. There’s no middle ground. You’re either laughing hysterically or crying uncontrollably.”
Mandel, who is open about his OCD and germaphobia, is so committed to the series that he got COVID because of it — after he was asked to accept a Kids’ Choice Award for Best Reality Show in April 2022.
Mandel found it amusing that a man traveled all the way from Japan to land a helicopter on his rear end — and gave him a standing ovation.Trae Patton/NBC“They said, ‘You’ve got to show up … It’s good coverage and it will go viral.’ And I think the only thing that went viral was me,” he quipped.
He is friends with all the judges outside of work and attended Klum’s 50th birthday party on June 1 — just without Cowell, who was filming “Britain’s Got Talent.”
“We were all together … and that’s not a rare thing,” he said. “We go out, we hang out and we’re legitimately friends,” he said.
When he is not on set, he hosts a podcast “Howie Mandel Does Stuff,” with his daughter, Jackelyn Shultz. The show — which has welcomed guests like Tom Sandoval, Al Franken, Rob Zombie, and Pauly Shore — came about because of the pandemic when the pair couldn’t see each other in person for two years.
Mandel said he is close friends with his fellow judges: Simon Cowell, Sofia Vergara, and Heidi Klum.Trae Patton/NBC“We used to spend hours on the phone not only talking to each other but doing pranks or calling my celebrity friends,” he said.
A future dream guest is Sacha Baron Cohen. I love his comedy and I love what he does and I love his activism,” he gushed. “My favorite kind of comedy is pranks and hidden camera stuff. And he is the king of that.”
Mandel is loving the podcast format. “I like the joy of interaction and connection without actually touching,” he said.
