Months after claiming he and former bandmate Louis Tomlinson “hated each other” during the One Direction days in a controversial interview, Liam Payne – and his girlfriend Kate Cassidy – attended Tomlinson’s film premiere.
Payne, 29, alongside Cassidy, 23, attended the All Of Those Voices premiere in London ahead of its March 22 release worldwide. The documentary film poses to be a raw look into Tomlinson’s journey through the music industry, which may include footage from and comments on the band’s early days.
Payne – who clarified that Tomlinson is his “best mate” now despite their troubled past – was the only One Direction alum to attend the event aside from Tomlinson, with Harry Styles touring Asia, Niall Horan preparing for a White House performance for St Patrick’s Day, and Zayn Malik’s whereabouts, as usual, unknown.
After the premiere, Payne and Tomlinson were photographed together, and an “ashamed” Payne shared a message to Instagram where he vowed to “make amends” after trashing his former bandmates.
“Seeing the world through your eyes last night was the most beautiful thing to experience,” Payne wrote alongside this photo of himself with Tomlinson.
“My neck hurts from how much I’m looking up to you right now,” he continued.
“You were already my friend and brother but getting to look through that window into your world and mind just extends that respect I have for you. What you’ve dealt with and how you held it all inside!!
“I’m so sorry I was so out of my mind and I didn’t do better for you, I feel ashamed in those moments to not be as good of a friend as you have been to me, at least I have time now and I’m me again so will try and make amends.
“I’m emotionally drained watching the movie and I only did an hour and a half, you lived it and I’m so proud of how you did it not only with amazing music but with passion and the will to get up off the canvas every time life beat you down and fight back. I’m so thankful to have you in my life mate I feel so lucky and I know you know this but you were part of a small group of people that literally saved my life, you dragged me out of something so dark I’ve never shared it but your approach is something I admire and aspire to so I can one day do the same.
“Thank you Louis and congratulations you deserve all these moments, every sight you get to see, every cheer that you hear and all the love you are receiving from the world. You worked harder than any of us to get here and now the world gets to see that from your side… guys go watch the movie, please he deserves it and you’ll learn a lot about yourself from this very special man,” he concluded.
Payne’s message came as a surprise to fans, especially after Payne’s explosive interview with Logan Paul in June 2022.
Read on to see how it all went wrong in the first place.
