Singer Louis Tomlinson has called out “conspiracy” theories about his personal life, saying he finds the rumours “hurtful”.
The former One Direction member, 33, retaliated against rumours regarding his relationship with former Love Island star Zara McDermott, 28, who he started dating following her split from Made in Chelsea cast member Sam Thompson last December.
Tomlinson said there’d also been distasteful remarks made online about his son Freddie, 8, who he shares with his ex Briana Jungwirth.
Additionally, the star said X/Twitter users had posted opinions on the platform about his late mother Johannah Deakin, who died in 2016 from leukaemia, aged 43.
“It’s just too much and too hurtful for me to see,” the singer said as he announced his exit from the social media site, before thanking those “who always [had] my back”.
The former One Direction member appears to have remained on Instagram, where he shared a photo from Glastonbury Festival alongside McDermott at the start of July.
It comes after Tomlinson previously spoke out about a conspiracy theory dubbed “Larry”, which believes the singer was romantically involved with his former bandmate Harry Styles.
The last few months have made it impossible to be on here. All the conspiracy chat about my relationship, my son or even stretching sometimes to opinions on my Mum. It’s just too much and too hurtful for me to see!
— Louis Tomlinson (@Louis_Tomlinson) July 15, 2025
Thank you to everyone who always has my back!
In 2012, Tomlinson tweeted: “Larry is the biggest load of bulls*** I’ve ever heard. I’m happy, why can’t you accept that.”
Last year, Tomlinson added of the long-standing rumour: “What’s tough is, I realised this some years ago, there is nothing I can say. There is nothing I can do to dispel the believers of that conspiracy.”
He added: “It does irritate me a little bit, you know? But it is just kind of the nature of the job, I suppose.”
Styles has never publicly labelled his sexuality, stating in 2022 that he found it “outdated” to do so. He explained: “I’ve been really open with it with my friends, but that’s my personal experience. It’s mine.”
Tomlinson’s statement regarding the interest in his private life comes after the tragic death of his One Direction band mate Liam Payne in October 2024, aged 31. The singer fell from a third-floor balcony of the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
In a statement at the time, Tomlinson said he was “beyond devastated” by Payne’s death, saying he’d “lost a brother” who he was “really struggling with the idea of saying goodbye” to.
“I wish I got the chance to say goodbye,” he added, “And tell you one more time how much I loved you.”
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