Howie Mandel Teases the New Season of 'America's Got Talent' : It's 'Bigger, More Dangerous, More Exciting'

Season 17 of America’s Got Talent premieres Tuesday on NBC

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Published on May 31, 2022 06:25 PM

Howie Mandel teased the "epic" new season of America's Got Talent.

On Tuesday's episode of the PEOPLE Every Day podcast, the comedian, 66, opened up about what fans can expect from season 17 of the hit talent series, which kicks off Tuesday night.

"I'm the longest running judge on the show," he told host Janine Rubenstein. "Wait till you see this season, but I think there is something in the air. And I think it's because of what had been going on throughout the world ... All this energy was bottled up. So now we have the live audience, people who have been locked away in their prospective homes, countries, wherever they [were], and they just showed up and exploded on our stage."

"We are seeing things bigger, more dangerous, more exciting than we have ever seen before," he added. "What a great respite from all the turmoil that is going on in the world to just sit down with your family and watch AGT."

The show's spinoff series America's Got Talent: Extreme showed the risks contestants will take to win. In October 2021, Jonathan Goodwin was injured after he "was struck by two vehicles suspended in the air" and fell to the stage while rehearsing a stunt on the set of the NBC talent show, according to a police report obtained by PEOPLE at the time.

Days after revealing that he is now in a wheelchair, the former escapologist and self-described daredevil, 42, shared an optimistic message with his followers, writing, "When things go wrong ... try not to panic. Take a minute ... take a breath. Then work out how to move forward."

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Mandel revealed on the PEOPLE Every Day podcast the secret to the show's long-term success is the friendship between himself and fellow judges Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum and Sofia Vergara, as well as host Terry Crews.

From left: Howie Mandel, Heidi Klum, Terry Crews, Sofia Vergara, Simon Cowell. Trae Patton/NBC

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"The secret sauce to AGT is we all love each other," he shared. "Terry, me, Simon, Heidi, and Sofia really enjoy each other off-camera, out of the show, and respect each other — but don't agree a lot, which also makes it real and fun."

Mandel — who is partnering with NOCD, a company which provides treatment for obsessive compulsive disorder, a condition he has — also shared a look at how he copes with his own mental health struggles.

"I'm surrounded by incredible loved ones who I can lean on and talk to," he shared. "I'm lucky enough to have great professional help around me in the way of psychiatry and therapy and medication."

He added that he hopes everyone can make mental health a priority in the same way.

"I think if we take care of our mental health, we will be taking care of the world," he explained. "I think you'll become more productive, happier, and it'll just be a safer place for each and every one of us."

Check out more episodes of PEOPLE Every Day, airing on Apple podcasts, iHeartMedia , Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music or wherever you listen to your podcasts.