Why And When Did One Direction Break-Up? Their Hiatus Explained

17 July 2020, 16:42 | Updated: 8 March 2022, 10:09

One Direction announced a hiatus in 2015, five months after Zayn Malik left the band. But why did the remaining four break up? And when did they officially split?

Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson announced One Direction were taking a hiatus in 2015 after five years of five albums and four world tours.

Their announcement to break up to pursue solo projects came months after Zayn Malik left the band.

Now, around seven years after One Direction split, the boys are still successfully enjoying their separate careers with the likes of Harry Styles set to release album number three and Niall Horan still dominating the charts with his solo career.

With no signs of a reunion or new music from One Direction anytime soon, we reflect on the very sad moment 1D confirmed their break-up and why it really happened.

Will One Direction Get Back Together? Everything The Boys Have Said About Properly Reuniting

Why did One Direction break up?

One Direction - 'Best Song Ever' (Live At The Summertime Ball)

One Direction never said their 2015 hiatus was the end of the band and the boys continue to give fans hope they’ll one day get back together, but they took a break due to their exhausting schedules.

Harry, Niall, Liam, Louis and Zayn apparently discussed taking a break in late 2014, with Harry telling Rolling Stone in 2017: “I didn’t want to exhaust our fan base.

“If you’re shortsighted, you can think, ‘Let’s just keep touring,’ but we all thought too much of the group than to let that happen. You realise you’re exhausted and you don’t want to drain people’s belief in you.”

Refusing to rule out the idea of a proper reunion, Harry added: “I love the band, and would never rule out anything in the future. The band changed my life, gave me everything.”

The boys were also keen to carve out their own solo careers, which each of them have gone on to do very successfully.

Did One Direction break up?

At the time, when their hiatus was announced, a source told E! News: “They will remain together and plan to work together in the future,” and the foursome remained adamant at the time the hiatus was not a split.

While Zayn has distanced himself from the band, the remaining four have stayed close and often publicly support one another’s successes.

And because each of the lads has openly shared their hopes to get back together one day, fans remain positive for a reunion of some sort.

> Have You Got A Smart Speaker? Tell It To "Play Capital"!