Newly released footage from the UK competition show The X Factor reveals the key role Nicole Scherzinger played in putting together One Direction.
Scherzinger, a guest judge on the seventh season of the show in 2010, is seen poring over photos of contestants with judges Simon Cowell and Louis Walsh following auditions.
Niall Horan was chosen first to be part of a potential boy band, followed by Harry Styles.
“They’re the cutest boy band ever,” Scherzinger said. “I love it!” When Louis Tomlinson was added to the group, she noted: “The little girls are going to love him.”
Scherzinger hyped the trio to Cowell and Walsh. “They’re just too talented to get rid of and they’ve got just the right look and the right charisma on stage,” she opined. “I think they’ll be really great in a boy band together.
“They’re like little stars so you can’t get rid of little stars so you put them all together.”
Next to be added to the line-up was Liam Payne (Scherzinger said he “could be the leader” of the group) and then Zayn Malik.
The judges looked at the photos of the five young singers and decided they had come up with the ideal boy band.
“As long as they gel,” Walsh said.
One Direction went on to become a global phenomenon and released five studio albums between 2011 and 2015 that spawned hits like “What Makes You Beautiful,” “Story of My Life” and “Best Song Ever.”
Malik quit the group in 2015 and several months later the remaining members announced they were taking an indefinite hiatus.