One Direction star promised band would NOT split after Zayn Malik exit

March 25, 2015, was a stressful time for both One Direction and their fans. The band was on a world tour in Asia at the time, where they were playing sold-out shows to thousands of people a day. But it became too much for Zayn. He announced via the band’s Facebook account that he was quitting the group to live a “normal 22-year-old life”. Shortly after, Directioners began wondering if the band was about to split up without him.

The remaining members of the band, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Liam Payne, all continued on with their ongoing On The Road Again Tour.

Two months later, after bouncing back from Zayn’s exit, One Direction were nominated for four awards. The quartet were nominated by the 2015 Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada – two of which they won, the Top Group, and Top Touring Artist gongs.

During the ceremony, they were interviewed by E! about their uncertain future.

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One Direction were asked about the possibility of splitting up after Zayn’s unexpected exit. But Niall instantly shook his head and looked at the camera in defiance.

He replied: “We’re not breaking up. We’re having too much fun.”

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One Direction released Made In The AM on November 13, 2015, where it went straight to number one. The band then announced they would be going on hiatus from 2016 to have a break from writing, recording and touring.

Just two months later, in January 2016, a report from US Weekly claimed the band’s hiatus had evolved into an official split.

One Direction’s representatives denied this claim, however over the 12 months that followed, each member of the group released their own solo albums and no mention of getting back together was brought up again.

That is, until recent months. Over the past year the band have been given good odds on getting back together by the end of 2022, with Ladbrokes recently placing the band’s reunion odds at 7/4 this year.

Alex Apati said: “It’s not a drastic shift in the odds, but it’s certainly a move in the right direction as far as fans are concerned… there’s every chance a 1D reunion is on the cards before the end of the year.”

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