While Directioners around the world have been left heartbroken after hearing that Zayn Malik is leaving One Direction, Simon Cowell, who signed the band, expressed his gratitude to Malik.
“I would like to say thank you to Zayn for everything he has done for One Direction. Since I first met Zayn in 2010, I have grown very, very fond - and immensely proud - of him. I have seen him grow in confidence and I am truly sorry to see him leave,” reads Cowell’s statement.
He added on Twitter:
One Direction stars Liam Payne and Harry Styles tweeted, suspectedly in reaction to the departure of their bandmate.
English rapper Tinie Tempah and YouTube star Zoella both tweeted their shock at the news:
Gary Barlow was quick to offer his support. His band, Take That, had split up once, but got back together.
Some former X Factor contestants sent their well wishes on Twitter, including Matt Cardle, JLS’s Aston Merrygold and Union J's Josh Cuthbert.
McFly's Harry Judd called it a “brave decision”.
Meanwhile, English rapper and singer-songwriter Professor Green is eager to take Malik’s place.
But he’ll face some serious competition like US actor John Stamos
Comedian and The Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon also has his eyes on the job
Malik’s departure doesn’t seem to hit X Factor judge Louis Walsh as a surprise. In an interview with Irish radio station RTE Radio One, Walsh admitted that he had heard rumours for a while that “everything wasn’t happy in paradise.”
"The problem with these guys is they've been in a bubble for the last five years, pressure, working, a lot harder than people think, so something had to give. So Zayn was the first person just to crack up a little bit…. Now it's everybody's dream, everybody loves it but there's an awful lot of pressure with it too," he added.