Three days after the initial report, Slipknot still have not addressed the status of Sid Wilson, but a follow-up from TMZ claims the decision to remove him had been building for some time, and that the band never intended for the news to break the way it did.
The outlet, which first reported on Friday (July 31) that the turntablist had been permanently removed from the group, published a second piece on Monday citing sources with direct knowledge of the situation.
What The Report Alleges
According to TMZ, the split “came after the group finally had enough of Sid‘s behavior … namely, the way he treated his bandmates.” The outlet’s sources describe the firing as “a long time coming” rather than a decision made in the heat of the moment.
The report also claims Slipknot had a plan for handling the announcement themselves. Per TMZ, the band intended to reveal Wilson‘s departure this week, but “lost control of the rollout” when the initial story ran on Friday. Sources told the outlet the early disclosure caused frustration within the band over losing the ability to frame the split on their own terms.
None of this has been confirmed by Slipknot, by Wilson, or by any named source. The allegations regarding Wilson‘s conduct come entirely from anonymous sources speaking to a tabloid outlet, and no specific incident has been described publicly.
TMZ further reported that Wilson was seen outside a Los Angeles recording studio on Sunday, and declined to answer when asked directly about the reported firing.
The only member of Slipknot to say anything publicly has been guitarist Jim Root, who posted to Instagram Stories on the day the first story ran, set to the band’s 2008 track “‘Til We Die“.
“Don’t believe every thing you read. Stop. Think. Take a breath. Sit with it for awhile. Maybe. Just maybe even wait until there’s more information,” Root wrote.
Root did not name Wilson or reference the reports directly, and his post has been read both as a denial and as a request for patience. The band’s official channels have posted nothing about a lineup change.
Elsewhere in the orbit of the group, the wife of guitarist Mick Thomson drew attention with a post of her own, and Wilson‘s own social media activity since the reports surfaced has given fans little to work with.
Slipknot assign their members numbers from 0 through 8. Wilson held #0, working turntables, keyboards and samples, and supplying the effects and background textures that sit underneath much of the band’s catalogue.
He has appeared on every Slipknot studio album, through The End, So Far in 2022 and the long-delayed Look Outside Your Window project issued earlier this year.
Outside the band he has performed as DJ Starscream, a name taken from the Transformers character, since the 2000s, fronts his own project SID, and runs the label Vomit Face Records.
In August 2024, Wilson suffered severe burns to his face and arms in a bonfire explosion on his Iowa farm, requiring hospitalization.
A Lineup That Keeps Changing
If confirmed, Wilson‘s departure would continue a long run of turnover in a band that once presented itself as an unchanging nine.
Founding drummer Joey Jordison was let go in 2013 and died in 2021. Percussionist Chris Fehn parted ways with the group in 2019. Sampler and keyboardist Craig Jones exited in 2023. Bassist Paul Gray died in 2010.
That leaves Corey Taylor, Shawn “Clown” Crahan, Root and Thomson as the remaining members of the classic nine-man lineup. The current roster also includes drummer Eloy Casagrande, percussionist and keyboardist Michael “Tortilla Man” Pfaff, bassist Alessandro “Vman” Venturella, and an unidentified sampler who joined in 2023.
The Osbourne Connection
Wilson‘s personal life has drawn heavy coverage over the past four years. He and Kelly Osbourne, daughter of Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, announced in May 2022 that they were expecting. Their son Sidney was born that November and carries both parents’ surnames.
In July 2025, Wilson proposed at Black Sabbath‘s farewell concert in Birmingham, weeks before Ozzy Osbourne‘s death.
This past March, it was reported the pair had separated, having ended the engagement quietly some weeks earlier. Their last public appearance together was at February’s Grammy Awards.
Where Things Stand
No statement from Slipknot. No statement from Wilson. No named source. No replacement announced.
Everything currently in circulation about the reasons behind the reported firing traces back to unnamed sources speaking to a single outlet, and Root‘s public message urged people to hold off. Until the band or Wilson speaks, that is the whole of the record.
