Louis Tomlinson has confessed he was the celebrity Robbie Williams was branded ‘much nicer’ than while on a flight.
Earlier this year, the Better Man star discussed the pressures of fame while out in public and the need to be constantly available for fans.
He revealed how, after he took selfies with the cabin crew, they declared he was ‘much nicer’ than another celebrity who declined photos.
‘That made me bristle. I know that other celebrity – and he’s a lovely lad,’ Robbie, 51, wrote in an Instagram post in April.
‘Who knows what was going on in his world that day?’ the Angels singer added to show he wasn’t chastising the mystery celeb.
Now, Louis has revealed he believes he is that ‘lovely lad’ despite Robbie never naming any names.
‘Robbie never actually called me out on it, but I’m sure I was who he was talking about,’ the One Direction star told Rolling Stone UK. ‘I was right in the middle of my grief. I felt cross with the world, to be honest.’
Just months prior, his bandmate Liam Payne had fallen to his death at age 31 from a hotel balcony in Argentina, devastating the world.
Each One Direction member — Louis, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, and Harry Styles — penned a personal tribute to their friend, as well as releasing a joint statement.
In November, they attended his funeral and cancelled all upcoming shows and obligations for the foreseeable future.
Rumours began to swirl in March that the group would reunite to pay tribute to Payne at the Brit Awards but Louis’ PR put an end to the speculation.
‘Louis just despairs’ he told The Evening Standard. ‘He could never get up there and sing as part of the band after what has happened.’
In the new interview, Louis reflected on denying fans photos and shared: ‘What’s tough in that situation, psychologically, is that you know there’s no answer other than “Sorry, I’m a c**t.” Because you know there’s no excuse you can make that can kind of alleviate that blow.’
He said he offered to sign something for them but was met with disappointment as ‘they can’t put them online like a photo’.
For the star who has been in the spotlight since he was a teenager, situations like these ‘end up putting you off leaving the house next time, because you just think, “All I was doing there was trying to protect myself.’”
Louis has recently revealed he is releasing a new album for the first time in four years as well as making a documentary with Zayn.
Filming has already begun on the multi-million-pound Netflix road trip documentary, which will follow the singers as they travel across the US.
The project is expected to drop in 2026, exactly a decade after the band split up and 11 years after Zayn quit the group.
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