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Louis Tomlinson<\/strong><\/a> isn\u2019t holding back. The former One Direction<\/a> star, 33, has admitted he will never forgive Logan Paul<\/strong><\/a> for a controversial interview with the late Liam Payne<\/strong><\/a>, calling the influencer a \u201chorrible little f***er.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI f***ing forever despise [Paul], horrible, horrible little f***er,\u201d Tomlinson fumed in an Independent<\/a> interview published on Saturday, October 18.<\/p>\n The feud stems from Payne\u2019s appearance on Paul\u2019s \u201cImpaulsive\u201d podcast in May 2022, during which the singer made comments about his former bandmates that ignited fan outrage. Payne claimed he was essentially the band leader and revealed tension with Zayn Malik<\/strong><\/a> and Tomlinson, even alleging that one member \u201cthrew [him] up a wall\u201d during a backstage argument.<\/p>\n Tomlinson addressed the backlash, confirming that Payne did, in fact, hold a leadership role within One Direction. \u201cIt was, definitely,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was definitely a role that was assigned to him. That is the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n He praised Payne for his experience and professionalism, noting that the late singer had performed at Wolverhampton Wanderers halftime shows while the others were still cutting their teeth on smaller school gigs. Tomlinson had even called Payne the most \u201cvital\u201d part of the band in a tribute shared after his death.<\/p>\n \u201cIn between him playing that role and also doing a huge chunk of the songwriting\u2026 it\u2019s not even up for debate,\u201d Tomlinson said.<\/p>\n Despite Payne issuing multiple apologies in the months following the interview, Tomlinson remains frustrated with Paul for giving a platform to the singer\u2019s comments. Payne had first reached out to Malik in June 2022 via X, writing:<\/p>\n \u201cListening back maybe I didn\u2019t articulate myself as well as I could have. I was saying that there will always be things we disagree on but that I will always, always be on his side. That\u2019s family. Zayn is my brother and I will stand by him forever.\u201d<\/p>\n He later extended a similar olive branch to Tomlinson in March 2023, admitting he had been \u201cout of [his] mind\u201d while drinking whiskey on the podcast:<\/p>\n \u201cI 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\u2019m me again so will try and make amends.\u201d<\/p>\n In July 2023, Payne revealed he had spent 100 days in rehab to reflect on the fallout from his remarks, admitting in a YouTube video that much of his anger had been misdirected:<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of what I said came from the wrong place\u2026 I decided to look outwards at everybody else, which is just wrong, really.\u201d<\/p>\n Tragically, Payne died in October 2024 after falling from a third-floor hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina, at the age of 31. A toxicology report later confirmed the presence of alcohol, cocaine, and prescription antidepressants in his system, and two people have been charged with supplying him with drugs.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n