Simon Cowell On One Direction's Break: 'I Don't Know If It's A Hiatus Or A Breakup'

(Photo : Getty Images/Jason Merritt) Simon Cowell has admitted that he doesn't know when exactly One Direction's Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan will come back together.

Simon Cowell has admitted that he is not sure whether One Direction's current break might be the end of the British-Irish boy band.

"I don't know if it's a hiatus or a breakup, to be honest," Cowell told Billboard. "In a weird way, I don't want to know. I don't think they've had enough time to experience what it's like not being in the group to really answer that."

"Whenever I was with them, we talked about [going on a break], and I couldn't argue with them," added Cowell, who serves as the group's mentor and label boss. "They had achieved so much in a short period of time, and I didn't want them to get jaded. As I've gotten older, I've learned to trust people more, particularly artists. They'll decide when they want to come back together."

Last January, Us Weekly published a report claiming that Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan will no longer get back together.

A source close to the boy band told the news outlet that the foursome decided "not to renew their recording contract" after wrapping their On the Road Again Tour last October.

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"The 1D thing just ran its course," the insider added. "They'll remain friends, but they are exhausted and want solo careers."

However, shortly after the Us Weekly article was published, several news outlets countered the report.

A rep for One Direction told Gossip Cop that the allegation is "not true."

A source close to the band told Billboard that "nothing has changed regarding hiatus plans for the group, and all will be revealed in due time from the band members' own mouths."

"There's no truth to this," an insider also told Entertainment Tonight. "[Their break] remains a hiatus with the intention of reuniting at some point."

During an appearance on "Good Morning Britain" last October, Tomlinson said (via Metro) that they "don't want to put a time" on the band's break. However, in an interview with BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge last November, Payne -- while discussing his love for songwriting -- revealed that the band's hiatus will last for two years.

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