Ed Sheeran & Ellie Goulding Defend Bullied New Zealand 'X Factor' Contestant on Twitter

After Joe Irvine, a contestant on New Zealand's 'X Factor,' was bullied onstage, Ed Sheeran and Ellie Goulding took to Twitter to show Irvine support.

Irvine performed Michael Buble's "Cry Me a River" on Sunday's live show when he was slammed by married judges Natalia Kills and Willy Moon. Former American Idol judge Simon Cowell, known for his sarcastic remarks and occasionally cruelty, seems completely harmless in comparison to what these two said.

"As an artist who respects artists' integrity and intellectual property, I am disgusted at how much you have copied my husband," Natalia Kills ranted on-air, "From the hair, to the suit, do you not have any value or respect for originality? You're a laughing stock. It's cheesy, it's disgusting. I personally found it absolutely artistically atrocious. I am embarrassed to be sitting here in your presence, even having to dignify you with an answer of my opinion."

But her husband singer-songwriter Willy Moon had to chime in after.

"To me it just feels a little bit cheap and absurd. It's like Norman Bates dressing up in his mother's clothing," Willy Moon said, "It's just a little bit creepy and I feel like you're going to stitch someone's skin to your face and kill everybody in the audience."

The pair was immediately fired on Monday for their comments.

"We no longer have confidence that Kills and Moon are the right people to perform the role of X Factor judges and they will leave the show, effective immediately," Mediaworks Chief Executive Mark Weldon said in a statement on TV3's website.

Despite being bullied on Sunday's show, Joe Irvine did move on to the next round of the competition.

Ed Sheeran tweeted his support directly to Irvine, while Ellie Goulding made a remark about how cruel Natalia Kills and Willy Moon were. Read their tweets below:

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Ed Sheeran, Ellie Goulding