Directioners, war is officially over. For years, since One Direction broke up in 2016, fans have hoped for the day the members of 1D reunite. Besides some brief interactions over the years, and the heartbreaking funeral of 1D member Liam Payne last year, there have been no reunions–until now. For the first time since they indefinitely split, two members of the British boy band have announced a collaborative project together, and needless to say, Directioners online are pretty emotional over it.
What We Know About Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson’s Docuseries
Netflix has announced a three-part docuseries, via The Hollywood Reporter, that follows former 1D bandmates Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson as they roadtrip across the U.S. A spokesperson for Malik and Tomlinson confirmed the docuseries will have a more serious tone with the following synopsis:
The series is a rare look inside the world of two of the most famous — and most private — men on the planet opening up about life, loss and fatherhood.
This comes as quite a shock to fans, given the two were hardcore beefing on Twitter (now X) in 2022, but they seem to have reconciled following Payne’s death. Confirmation of a rekindled bromance came when Tomlinson attended Malik’s LA show earlier this year.
Then just last week, the “Lemonade” singer hinted at a special project with his former bandmate in an interview with iHeart Radio this past week, while promoting his upcoming album, How Did I Get Here? Two days later, the docuseries announcement dropped.
The duo was seen filming in a Tennessee bar last month, throwing darts and even stopping to snap pics with fans. This seemingly confirms production has started, and we can hope to see this docuseries drop early next year on the Netflix release schedule.
Fans Are Feeling Many Mixed Emotions Over The News
For a lot of 1D fans, they didn’t anticipate this day would ever come, and certainly not so soon. Between their flourishing individual solo careers (some more than others), and Zayn’s past negative comments about their early 1D days, a collaboration of any sort wasn’t even on their radar, and these comments from Instagram certainly show it:
- “I am no longer a child of divorce” -@ceciliaalmonte
- “We’ve come a long way since the naughty boy twitter beef :’)))))” -@nhisandtoes
- “I’ll be sobbing throughout the entire thing” -@kuhtryna
- “Never in my wildest dreams did I think this dream would come true. Zouis we are so back.” -@maddyloritz
- Gagged to the gods -@alyssa_siobhan_
- This was not in my Bingo card -@toates11
Clearly, the Directioners are going through so many emotions at once, from relief to disbelief to joy to even some emotional preparation. Based on the synopsis, this docuseries isn’t going to hold back, and fans are in for an emotional rollercoaster, especially with presumed discussions over Payne’s unexpected death. Many fan reactions like the following show they have already recognized the potential theme of said documented road trip: a healing journey:
- “Liam would be so proud seeing this.” –@FranDaylight_
- “A healing journey for both” –@VincentDynamo
- “So happy for them, those 2 deserve so much. If Liam was there, he will be with them” –@BettySBDB
- “Being excited for this but knowing liam passing brought them back together” –@unrealizzztic
It’s certainly a time to be alive if you are a Directioner, and the mixed feelings are certainly valid. I personally can’t wait for this to come out, and I do expect to cry. I’m also eager to see if any of the two remaining 1D members, Harry Styles and Niall Horan, will make an appearance or even give their own reaction to the news.
While I still am doubtful of a full 1D reunion anytime soon, this is definitely closer than we were a few years ago. Our boys have a whole lot of history, and this first baby step gives me hope they will eventually all work it out one day.