Simon Cowell has revealed his only “regret” about forming One Direction.
The music mogul and TV personality is opening up about one mistake he made while managing the former British boy band.
During Monday's episode of his podcast “Diary of a CEO,” Simon reflected on some of his biggest career achievements, including founding One Direction on “The X Factor” in 2010.
The “X Factor” creator and judge formed the band, which includes Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne, after auditioning as a solo artist.
During a podcast episode, Simon told host Stephen Bartlett that he regrets not owning the band's name.
“My one regret is that I wish I had kept the name,” the 64-year-old admitted.
The entrepreneur added that the “What Makes You Beautiful” singers own the rights to the name.
“That's the problem,” he continued. “I could have made an anime or something, but once you give your name to an artist, it's not yours anymore. That's my only regret.”
He then jokingly told the singers, “If you're listening, I'll buy it back from you guys.”
Simon went on to explain that Harry, Liam, Zayn, Louis and Niall all have equal ownership of the name.
“If one band member says he doesn't want to go on tour for whatever reason, it could potentially stop the others from touring,” he said. “If I own the band name, it wouldn't be a problem. I can be very naive sometimes, and I was very, very naive this time, so next time, that will be part of the deal. I have to own the band name.”
One Direction went on an indefinite hiatus in 2016, and Simon said he “doubts” whether they'll ever get back together.
Last week, the music mogul launched a talent hunt to find a new boy band.