"American Idol" posted on their twitter about Laine Hardy. Fan reaction - after he was spotted in the audience and featured in a gif - was all torn up.

Laine Hardy fans know only too well that he was sent home after his Hollywood solo performance. They have steadfastly supported and encouraged Laine Hardy ever since, but there's a lot of anger over on Twitter about him being sent home.

Some of them still hope like crazy that they can get him back on the show as a Wildcard, while others speculate hopefully that he will be allowed another chance. This is the kind of thing that raises ratings for a show like "American Idol," after all.

Other fans took to a Change.org petition addressed to Katy Perry and so far nearly 12,000 fans have signed it. Over 50,000 people now follow his fan page on Facebook and countless others comment daily on his Instagram posts.

The tweet by 'American Idol'

The tweet was posted up after Sunday's show. Laine Hardy replied to it too.

They had captioned it, "Wait a sec — did we spy @lainehardy_ in the audience?! #AmericanIdol."

Laine replied saying, "Y’all sure did @RyanSeacrest."

Fan reaction to the 'American Idol' tweet

Most of the tweets by fans who reacted angrily were about the fact that Laine Hardy is the last person who should be in the audience watching the show.

"He should be on the stage... Just saying! posted @pillfilla13," while @SandyP1234 posted, "I am still upset you were not on that stage last night They made a huge mistake letting you go!!!!"

@Lhwardtweets echoed the sentiment when they wrote, "He should've been on the stage with the rest! #bringlaineback."

@MakeupMama91 had the funniest tweet of the night - "I screamed “look there Laine!” Haha I think my husband got jealous!"

Others were instantly hopeful that they might bring Laine Hardy back to "American Idol." Several people outright asked Laine and Ryan Seacrest, but there was no reply to that.

The angrier fans told off "American Idol."

Boo_Pah wrote, "I had the pleasure of hearing this young man sing live yesterday in Amite, LA and all I can say is-“Wow! Big mistake American Idol for letting this talented singer go!”

And another posted, "Do the right thing...bring Laine back!" Yet another -" @lainehardy_ he is back....

Now can we see him on stage????"

Here's another one asking "American Idol" to give him another chance. How sad that the most talented performer is on the sidelines!! It makes no sense at all. Bring him back ASAP plz."

What do think about Laine Hardy being spotted in the audience? Do you think he may be a wildcard? Has "American Idol" got a trick up their sleeves to help boost the show's rating? Sound off in the comments.
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