Simon Cowell slams claims he’s abandoned Netflix search for next One Direction

Spokesperson said the claims were ‘entirely fabricated’

Simon Cowell has hit back at reports he’s quit a Netflix show that hopes to find the next One Direction.

The music mogul behind reality TV contests The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent, 64, launched a UK-wide search for a brand new pop group in June.

However, the show soon ran into trouble after barely 40 people turned up to the first audition.

This weekend, the Mail on Sunday reported that Cowell was abandoning the project. The newspaper quoted a source as saying: “‘Simon has been told the original idea behind the series needs to change. Rather than focusing on the creation of a boyband capable of going on to massive success, the focus is now much more on him.”

However, in a statement to The Sun, a spokesperson for Cowell said: “This story, published in today’s Mail on Sunday, is entirely fabricated. The journalist failed to adhere to basic journalism standards by neglecting to verify facts or seek comments from anyone involved.

“The claims made are false, and the quoted source appears to be completely invented. This project is primarily a search for a boyband, which is being documented.”

One Direction signed with Simon Cowell‘s record label Syco Records after competing on ‘The X Factor’ (Getty Images)

The spokesperson continued: “The article completely misrepresents how the music and documentary team views the audition process and the overall situation as far as the level of talent that the music team have found.”

The spokesperson also revealed that the show’s title, originally reported as The Midas Touch, has been changed but did not share the new iteration. Cowell is reportedly continuing his search for new boyband members, with auditions ongoing.

It has been 14 years since Cowell and his fellow judges formed One Direction on The X Factor. After coming in second place in 2010, the group shot to worldwide fame and released several hit albums before their indefinite hiatus in 2016.

Since then, its five members Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne have embarked on solo careers with varying degrees of success.

Cowell told the PA news agency that he is praying he will find a band “as good as One Direction and to find the records as good as they made.”

“You can’t fake this, even though I’m the one going out to do the auditions, it really depends on the individuals. If you find the right people I’m not someone who says dress like this, say this, do this, it is just not my style and I never once did that with One Direction,” he said.