Louis Tomlinson is still 'irritated' by those persistent Harry Styles romance rumors

It's 2024, and One Direction's Louis Tomlinson is still addressing the rumors surrounding his sexuality.

The former boy band star was recently profiled in the Brazillian publication g1 and was asked about feeling competitive amongst his One Direction members as well as the longstanding rumor he was secretly in a relationship with bandmate Harry Styles. Dubbed "Larry Stylinson," the fan-made rumor shipping the two was so persistent that it was even referenced in HBO's Euphoria.

"What I realised a few years ago is that there is nothing I can say," said Tomlinson when asked why the rumors were so famous. "There is nothing I can do to stop people who believe in this conspiracy. They're so connected to what they believe that they will not see the truth for what it really is."

He admitted that he is bothered by the rumors.

"I'm sure many people look and find all these little conspiracies that happen in life interesting," he went on. "I'd be lying if I said it didn't irritate me a little, but it's the nature of the job. There are times when it gets very personal. I have my son, Freddie. He's the most important person in my life."

Tomlinson added that some of the things the rumors pick up on are "are a bit unfair" but concludes, "This is what we have now. There's nothing I can do about it. Nothing I can say to stop people from inventing what they want to invent. So, so be it."

Tomlinson previously spoke about the ship in 2017 and revealed it affected his friendship with Styles.

"I'm so protective over things like that, about the people I love. So it created this atmosphere between the two of us where everyone was looking into everything we did. It took away the vibe you get off anyone. It made everything a little bit more unapproachable. I think [what's happened since] shows that it was never anything 'real' if I can use that word."

Following that Euphoria episode in 2019, Tomlinson revealed that he was not consulted before the scene aired and he didn't seem to be too happy about it. "I can categorically say that I was not contacted nor did I approve it," he said simply.