Impact of Liam Payne’s Death on Netflix’s Upcoming Project Building The Band

Tragically, on October 16, 2024, Liam Payne, the renowned former One Direction star, suffered a fatal accident after falling from his hotel room balcony. Earlier that month, he had traveled to Buenos Aires, Argentina, for a vacation with girlfriend Kate Cassidy.

The investigation into the circumstances surrounding Liam’s passing is still active, leaving uncertainty around several TV projects he was involved in. A notable mention is Netflix’s Building The Band, a music competition format where 50 singers strive to form their unique bands without prior acquaintance.

While the production of Building The Band is completed, its premiere may be delayed following the singer’s untimely death.

Liam Payne served as one of the judges on Building The Band

The show Building The Band featured a compelling competition aimed at forming a band, backed by a panel of judges and mentors who are established artists. In addition to Liam Payne from One Direction, the judging panel included Kelly Rowland, known for her time with Destiny’s Child, and Nicole Scherzinger of the Pussycat Dolls.

Hosting the series is AJ McLean, who is famously part of the Backstreet Boys. When approached by The Hollywood Reporter for comments on how the series would proceed after Liam Payne’s tragic passing, Netflix opted not to respond.

Netflix greenlit Building The Band in May 2024, with plans for it to debut in 2025. As per Entertainment Weekly, the streaming service characterized the show as:

“a truly unique competition show where building the perfect band is all about chemistry. The singers are in complete control as they seek to form their very own bands in individual ‘booths’ without ever seeing each other. All they have to go on is musical compatibility, connection, chemistry and merit.”

Fans gathered in Manchester to support Liam Payne during Building The Band live shows

The production for Building The Band wrapped up in late August, culminating in three live finale shows at Aviva Studios in Manchester. Many fans traveled to watch Liam Payne perform live, sharing their experiences on social media, including a number of tweets about meeting him at the event.

According to Deadline, an attendee also mentioned that fans serenaded Liam with a rendition of “Happy Birthday”on August 30, just one day after he celebrated his 31st birthday.

Kelly Rowland praised her collaboration with Liam Payne, stating in an interview with People magazine:

“Liam is absolutely hilarious. I didn’t know how funny he was, so I’m getting to know him, and he is so cool.”

An autopsy report confirmed that Liam’s death resulted from “polytrauma and internal and external bleeding.”Following the tragedy, various substances were discovered in his hotel room, indicating that he may have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol prior to the accident.

In addition to Building The Band, another project potentially impacted by Liam Payne’s death is the BBC documentary Boybands Forever. Although Liam does not feature in this documentary, it includes Simon Cowell, the eminent music executive who created One Direction and signed them to Syco Entertainment back in 2011.

This documentary was initially scheduled for a November 2024 release but may see changes to its timeline in response to Liam’s tragic incident in Argentina.

Source