Beverly Hills, California, USA, August 11, 2026 — Magician Darrell Moten was eliminated from America’s Got Talent Season 21 after a Judges’ Callback built around his own disappearance, in a routine that impressed for its ambition but ultimately lost out to fellow magician Kameron Marshall for the season’s final magic slot.
Moten was one of five acts Sofía Vergara selected for her Callbacks, alongside Olivia Befus, Brook Lynn, Vahtang, and fellow magician Kameron Marshall. When the group gathered for transportation to Vergara’s home, Moten was missing. His fellow contestants grew visibly worried, with one telling him afterward, “You had us worried, bro.”
During the show, Vergara was handed an iPad showing Moten on screen, apologizing for his absence before asking to perform anyway. The video conversation later revealed itself to have been pre-recorded, with Moten having predicted how the exchange would unfold. He then appeared outside in a yellow Lamborghini.
The reveal traced back to an earlier moment in the routine, in which Moten had presented a list of 100 items he would buy with an AGT prize, with a Lamborghini listed at position 17. Guest judge Sebastián Yatra had separately and freely chosen the number 17 from the list, tying the car’s position to Moten’s arrival. As a kicker, the license plate number was 17.
Despite the elaborate build, Vergara found the routine difficult to follow, telling her fellow judges she had already been looking for reasons to narrow the field of magicians. She sent Moten home, advancing Marshall to the Live Shows.
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