One Direction was and still is, over ten years after their formation, one of the biggest boy
bands of all time. Although they are no longer together, fans have kept their legacy going. One Direction fans are one of the most up-to-date fans there are, always staying on top of the band's latest whereabouts and events. Even today, the fandom is still prevailing with knowing what the band members are up to in their solo careers and keeping up with any slight hint at a reunion.
It is clear that the band has made an impact and is loved by millions around the world as the
fandom is still active on social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and most notably
Twitter. Just as much as they have impacted the lives of young girls, and they have even affected the lives of other famous television personalities like the host of The Late Late Show, James Corden. His love and support for the boys throughout their time together and their solo careers have been present from his first season to his last. With carpool karaokes, interviews, “Spill Your Guts”, “Tattoo Roulette”, “Corden's Angels”, performances, and even Harry Styles hosting the show, it is clear that James Corden loves these boys just as much as we do. As Corden’s eighth and final season of The Late Late Show came to a close on April 27, the present question is, if James Corden can’t bring the boys back together, can anyone?
During the band's start, the fandom was filled with pre-teen/teen girls around the
world who are now still waiting for them to make their return after their “hiatus”. While this may be a sore subject for most fans, their love for the band still goes strong eight years after the hiatus, and the community is still booming on social media. Hints and ideas of the band's return have been surfacing for years, especially during their tenth anniversary back in 2020 where fans around the world rallied together yet again to prepare for any content the community may receive. The community was thrilled with any slight bit of content received after the ten-year dry period as the One Direction verified Instagram and YouTube accounts became active again.
Although there was not a reunion, a few unreleased songs were dropped on Spotify along with clips, a thank you to the fans video on YouTube, and an interactive website was created for the anniversary. As for today, fans believed there were hints for a reunion as James Corden’s final show was growing near and One Direction were regular guests; though the only confirmed guest out of the members was Harry Styles.
As fans counted down the days to Corden's last show, conspiracies of a reunion to
celebrate the host spread. With articles spreading from Mailonline that falsely stated that it was confirmed that Corden would reunite the boys on the show, The Late Late Show account screenshotted the article and came back over Twitter shutting down the rumors by stating, “Nobody loves the boys more than us... but this story just isn’t true” (Twitter User
@latelateshow). This Tweet was posted on April 13th, two weeks before the final show aired.
Other published articles also spread the news of no confirmation or possibility of a reunion, but this did not stop fans from still having hope. Thoughts were still circling of Corden rounding up the boys and getting them together for one last carpool karaoke, performance, or interview, any interaction would do. Fans took to Twitter to express their enthusiasm, “I’m fully convinced we’re gonna get a lil one direction reunion and literally no one can change my mind” (Twitter User @satillitemooon) wrote a fan a day before the premiere. On the day of the finale fans were booming with aspiration, “OMG I J REMEMBERED ITS LATE LATE TD UMMM OK ONE DIRECTION REUNION TDDD” (Twitter User @ASTROKARLL) just to be filled with
disappointment at the end of the night.
Harry Styles and Will Ferrell sat side-by-side on The Late Late Night Show couch
instead of Styles with the rest of the boys. Fans eagerly sat waiting for an appearance from the rest of the members, a phone call, or confirmation of a reunion in the future. A short game of “Spill Your Guts” dropped the big question that fans have been yearning for an answer to. Styles’ question “Will there be a One Direction reunion?” was served over a cup of salmon clam juice and wasabi. To fans' dismay Styles answers with, “I think I would never say never to that. If there was a time when we wanted to do it, I don’t see why we wouldn’t.” Brushing over the question by not giving a direct answer, basically giving us nothing. Luckily, Styles did not shut down the idea of a reunion, which still leaves the fans with hope to see their favorite band together for one last time.
As the finale came to a close, the closest thing we got to a reunion was seeing fellow One
Direction band member, Niall Horan, is in the background of the flashback to Styles, getting his “Late Late” tattoo on the show back in season one. Fans on Twitter and TikTok even joked about their delusions of their being a reunion by calling themselves clowns, “me when there was no 1D reunion after being told multiple times that there wasn’t gonna be one” (TikTok User @woahmunson). Are fans the “only believer” in a real reunion? Many of the members have expressed their attraction to a reunion, but why not do one? Is there something holding them back? But, band member Louis Tomlinson expressed in his recent documentary, Louis
Tomlinson: All of The Voices, that he never wanted the band to split, as he states "It hit me like a ton of bricks, I was not prepared for it [the break]," So what is stopping the reunion? Is it, Harry Styles’ booming and ever-growing solo career? Even successful artist Niall Horan and band member Liam Payne have expressed their interest in the possibility of a reunion.
The small glimpses of hope, from the band members, keeps the fandom alive. Members and fans both say, never say never.
Written by Andie Serrao