Zayn Malik wanted to play ‘one last gig with One Direction’ before Liam Payne’s death

Zayn Malik’s messy departure from One Direction appears to have faded to the back of his mind as he’s faced with the band memories following the loss of Liam Payne.

Zayn showed interest in a One Direction reunion

Just days after Liam Payne’s funeral, Zayn Malik reminisced about playing with One Direction one last time.

While the star parted ways from the group in 2015, he’s shown interest in reliving his past over recent years. A fan posted on TikTok a sweet edit of the Pillowtalk performing alongside his bandmates. It kicked off with a clip from an old interview where Zayn was asked what he would do if he had 24 hours left to live.

Zayn replied, “I’d like to play one last gig with One Direction.” While the statement was several years old, Zayn recently liked the video on TikTok, leaving fans flummoxed.

After leaving One Direction, it became clear the split wasn’t quite as amicable as the original announcement made it seem. In March 2015, he wrote on Facebook: “My life with One Direction has been more than I could ever have imagined. But, after five years, I feel like it is now the right time for me to leave the band … I am leaving because I want to be a normal 22-year-old who is able to relax and have some private time out of the spotlight. I know I have four friends for life in Louis, Liam, Harry, and Niall.”

Zayn is currently on tour across the United Kingdom ( Image: Getty Images for ABA)
Not long after, a dirty spat evolved between himself and Louis who was warned to stop “making b—-y comments” about Zayn’s life. The pair feuded after Louis shaded Zayn’s collaborator, Naughty Boy, who Zayn also later ditched.

Years later, Louis confessed in an interview that he no longer had Zayn’s number, so rekindling that friendship seemed unlikely. “I think we just have to bump into each other,” he told Zach Sang. Zayn, Louis, Niall, and Harry reunited at Liam’s funeral as they mourned the loss of their late bandmate.

Liam’s funeral came after his October death in Argentina where he fell from the balcony of his hotel. The star was pronounced dead at the scene with a subsequent autopsy revealing traces of drugs in his system. While the drugs were not deemed to be the formal cause of death, Liam exhibited erratic behavior before the fall, spurring officials to investigate further into the circumstances leading up to the incident.