One Direction’s History With Simon Cowell: X Factor and Beyond

One Direction and Simon Cowell have a whole lot of history.

The founding members of the boy band — Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson — initially auditioned for The X Factor UK in 2010 as solo acts. Instead of being eliminated during boot camp, Cowell and fellow judges Nicole Scherzinger and Louis Walsh opted to form a band out of the fivesome. (They also made a girl group named Belle Amie at the time.)

“We’ve thought long and hard about it, and we’ve thought of each of you as individuals and we just feel that you’re too talented to let go of,” Scherzinger said on the show. “We thought it was a great idea to have two separate groups.”

Cowell added, “We decided to put you both through.”

One Direction ultimately fared better than Belle Amie and finished in the top three behind Matt Cardle and Rebecca Ferguson. Following the competition, 1D signed with Cowell’s Syco record label.

Fourteen years later, Cowell revealed that he regretted not owning the “One Direction” name.

“If it was me who owned the name, it wouldn’t be a problem,” Cowell said during a June 2024 appearance on the “Diary of a CEO” podcast. “So, next time, that will be part of the deal. I have to own the name. They can still make most of the money, but I need to own the name.”

He added, “If you’re listening, I’ll buy it back from you.”

Keep scrolling to revisit One Direction’s full history with Cowell:

2008

When Payne was 14, he auditioned for The X Factor and made it to Judges’ Houses. Cowell ultimately cut Payne due to his age and inexperience but urged him to come back in two years.

2010

Sure enough, Payne returned to The X Factor two years later. He nearly got eliminated during boot camp again, but Cowell opted to save him, Styles, Tomlinson, Horan and Malik and form a boy band. One Direction, named by Styles, finished in third place.

After the competition, the band signed with Cowell’s Syco record label. (Cowell previously sold the firm to Sony Music in 2005 but continued to run the division.)

2013

Throughout 1D’s tenure, Cowell and his team handled their album releases. They frequently spoke positively about the music mogul.

After news broke that Cowell’s now-fiancée, Lauren Silverman, was pregnant, the boys were thrilled for the growing family.

“He’s going to be sick,” Horan exclusively told Us Weekly in 2013. “He’s a really nice, great guy.”

Tomlinson and Styles both concurred that Cowell would be a “great” father. (Cowell and Silverman’s son, Eric, was born in February 2014.)

2015

March was a dark month for Directioners, the self-appointed nickname for the group’s fans, when Malik confirmed his exit. Payne, Tomlinson, Styles and Horan decided to continue on as a foursome.

Cowell claimed that he “knew” Malik planned to leave in advance.

“I knew Zayn was going before it happened. He was unhappy. My concern was actually for the boys,” Cowell told Event magazine the following November. “Zayn wasn’t in a great place but it was his decision to leave, he wasn’t kicked out. He wanted to distance himself. My responsibility was to the boys because they had no warning.”

Later that year, Payne, Tomlinson, Styles and Horan announced the group’s hiatus and assured fans it was only temporary. The break was made permanent the following year as they each pursued solo projects outside of Cowell’s Syco.

2018

One of Tomlinson’s solo gigs included reuniting with Cowell on The X Factor UK.

“[Louis] was, like, 17 when he auditioned for me,” Cowell told Us and other reporters in August. “And now he’s a judge for me and he’s got a son. We have gone through so much together, but the fact that we’re still friends is fantastic. I like that.” (Tomlinson shares son Freddie, born in 2016, with ex Briana Jungwirth.)

At the time, the American Idol alum hoped that the boys would get back together as a band.

“Personally, I think they would enjoy it more the second time around because they haven’t got anything to prove,” Cowell explained. “They’ve done it, they know there would be a demand for it, and I think they would have more.”

2020

Two years later, Tomlinson formally cut ties with Syco in a social media statement.

“Hope everyone is doing OK! Just wanted to let you know that Syco Music and I have agreed to part ways,” Tomlinson wrote in July. “I’m really excited for the future and to be back in the studio writing the next album. Can’t wait to finally see you all on tour!!”

Days later, it was reported that Cowell was also stepping down from Syco Music but would remain involved with the TV division.

2022

Payne claimed that Cowell had planned 1D’s launch around him after his initial X Factor elimination.

“Simon had dinner with me and my mom,” Payne recalled during a June appearance on the “Impaulsive” podcast. “This is a high conspiracy theory. So, we have dinner and Simon was like, ‘I’m really sorry, I had to let you go. I didn’t want to let you go, but you have to go and get your education and come back in two years.’”

He added, “Part of the reason One Direction was made was because of Simon’s  promise to me that in two years, ‘I’ll make this work for you.’ He kind of started with my face and then worked around the rest.”

Cowell never publicly addressed the claims.

2023

Cowell and Payne squashed any supposed bad blood by 2023 when they privately reunited.

“You came to see me last year. Not for a meeting. Just to sit and talk,” Cowell wrote via Instagram in October 2024 in a statement written following Payne’s death. “And we reminisced about all of the fun times we had together. And how proud you were to be a dad. After you left, I was reminded that you were still the sweet, kind boy I met all of those years ago.”

Payne shared son Bear, born in 2017, with ex Cheryl Cole. (Cole previously was a judge with Cowell on The X Factor UK.)

“I have met your son, Bear. He has your smile and that twinkle in his eyes you have,” Cowell continued in his Instagram note. “And he will be so proud of everything you achieved. And how you achieved it.”

2024

Us confirmed in October that Payne fell to his death from a third-floor balcony in Argentina. Immediately afterward, Cowell postponed his next episode of Britain’s Got Talent before releasing a statement on Payne’s passing.

“You never really know how you feel about someone until a moment like this happens. Liam, I am truly devastated,” Cowell wrote via Instagram. “And I feel empty. And I want you to know how much love and respect I have for you. Every tear I have shed is a memory of you.”

He added, “I went outside today, and I thought about so many times we had together. I wanted to let you know what I would always to the thousands of people who would always ask me. What is Liam like? And I would tell them you were kind, funny, sweet, thoughtful, talented, humble, focused. And how much you loved music. And how much love you genuinely had for the fans.”

Cowell further praised Payne for not giving up on his musical dreams after being cut from X Factor.

“I watched you spending so much time with people who had wanted to meet you. You really cared,” he recalled. “I always thought of the five of you in the band as brothers. … And now Liam, I can see the effect you had on so many people. Because you left us too soon. Rest in peace, my friend. And I am sending my love, thoughts and prayers to your family.”