It doesn’t matter if you’re part of the One Direction fandom or not — you probably heard the rumor that Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson were in a secret relationship.

Hardcore “Larry Stylinson” supporters have shipped the former bandmates since their X Factor days.

But according to the singers — there’s no truth to the theories. Keep reading to find out what Harry and Louis have said about the romance rumors. 

Can you believe it’s been almost 14 years since One Direction was formed? The British boy band first made their debut in 2010 on the singing show the X Factor. At the time, Liam Payne, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Harry and Louis auditioned as solo acts — but were quickly put together by Simon Cowell to form a group.

While on the X Factor, the boys would record video diaries each showing their close bond with one another. Fans were quick to point out that Harry and Louis’ friendship was particularly special.

Some fans even thought that their interactions were more than just friendly — thus leading to the “Larry Stylinson” shippers, who quickly got to work to look for any signs that pointed towards romance between the two.

One of the biggest pieces of “evidence” that shippers have analyzed are Harry and Louis’ tattoos. Fans believe that the two have matching ink that symbolizes their relationship — as both have tattoos that seemingly match one another. In 2013, Louis got an infinity sign rope on his arm, and the following year, the “Watermelon Sugar” singer got a tattoo of an anchor on his left arm.

Fans argue that if the two were holding hands, then their tattoos would overlap — linking the anchor and rope together. Hundreds of forums and blogs have been created just to speculate which tattoos connect the two. Another fan-favorite matching ink is Harry’s rose and Louis’ dagger tattoo. Believers of the romance think this is another hidden sign of their love.

The “Larry” theories have extended into more than just online speculation. Followers of the claim have in turn written fan fiction that have been viewed by hundreds of thousands of readers. The conspiracy grew so large that even Euphoria dedicated an episode to it.

Louis admitted that he wasn’t even aware that the explicit scene in the HBO show was happening until it was aired. “I can categorically say that I was not contacted nor did I approve it,” he wrote on Twitter in 2019.

Time and time again, both Harry and Louis have spoken out against the relationship rumors. Keep reading to see every time they denied the claims. 

(Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images for iHeartMedia)

2012

In 2011, Louis went public with his relationship with Eleanor Calder. “Larry” shippers were not happy about their relationship, which led to a lot of hate towards Louis’ girlfriend.

The following year, the singer tweeted out to fans saying, “Hows this, Larry is the biggest load of bullsh-t I’ve ever heard. I’m happy why can’t you accept that.”

2 of 5

(Photo by Ben Gabbe/Getty Images)

2015

Zayn stepped in! The former boyband member defended Harry and Louis’ friendship — and even revealed the rumors put a serious strain on them.

“It’s not funny, and it still continues to be quite hard for them. They won’t naturally go put their arm around each other because they’re conscious of this thing that’s going on, which is not even true,” he told the Fader at the time. “They won’t do that natural behavior.”

3 of 5

(Photo by Roy Rochlin/Getty Images)

2017

After the band called it quits, Louis revealed the pressure from conspiracy theories affected his relationship with Harry.

“I’ve never actually been asked about it directly. It’s a funny thing. It kind of happened naturally for me and Harry because a certain amount of the fans drew up this conspiracy,” he told The Sun.

“When it first came around I was with Eleanor, and it actually felt a little bit disrespectful to Eleanor, who is my girlfriend now.” He continued saying, “I’m so protective over things like that, about the people I love. So it created this atmosphere between the two of us where everyone was looking into everything we did.”

4 of 5

(Photo by Miikka Skaffari/FilmMagic)

2023

During a Twitter Q&A, Louis was asked by a fan how he makes chicken parmesan — “Larry” shippers believe that this is the meal that Louis and Harry ate on their alleged first date.

The singer took this as an opportunity to once again shut down the rumors saying, “You start by realizing all these ridiculous childish theories and conspiracies are wasted time and energy and then just throw the chicken in the oven to be fair. Simple stuff.”

5 of 5

(Photo by Matt Jelonek/WireImage)

2024

Can’t drag Louis down! The singer is tired of shutting down the rumors — and instead, is choosing to ignore them.

“What I realized a few years ago is that there is nothing I can say,” he told g1 in interview in April. “There is nothing I can do to stop those who believe in this conspiracy. They are so connected to what they believe that they will not see the truth for what it really is.”

As much as he tries not to pay attention to the theory, it still bothers him. “I’m sure many people look and find all these little conspiracies that happen in life interesting,” he added. “I’d be lying if I said it didn’t irritate me a little, but it’s the nature of the job.”