Spoilers ahead for the August 22 episode of "America's Got Talent" Season 18.

Season 18 of "America's Got Talent" is heating up now that the qualifiers round has begun in the 2023 TV schedule, and the first post-audition episode delivered something that might not have made it to the airwaves if the broadcast wasn't live on NBC. When the judges were giving feedback to young ventriloquist Brynn Cummings, Howie Mandel seized the opportunity to crack a joke about Sofia Vergara's divorce from Joe Manganiello, and Vergara – sitting with just one seat separating her from Mandel – had an iconic reaction.

12-year-old Brynn Cummings' ventriloquist act for the qualifiers involved one of her puppets looking for a new boyfriend after a breakup, and she recruited Heidi Klum's help. Afterward, Howie Mandel said this to the young performer.