Liam Payne & Maya Henry drama explained: Why did his ex-fiancée seek legal action?

Just days before his death, Liam Payne faced serious accusations from his ex-fiancée Maya Henry. Though the couple broke up in 2022, Henry authored a novel based on true events from their tumultuous relationship.

Former member of One Direction, Liam Payne, died instantly from a fracture in the base of his skull on October 16. Before falling three stories from his hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Payne was reportedly acting “erratically.”

Despite this, the boy-band member posted to his Snapchat story hours before his fatal fall, saying he was having a “lovely day in Argentina.”

Days before his death, though, Payne faced scrutiny from his ex-fiancée Maya Henry. In a TikTok post from Henry, she claimed that Payne “preys on One Direction fans because they will always be loyal to him.”

She added that Payne “weaponized” his fanbase, who constantly enabled him to the point that he did not realize he was doing something bad.

“Everything gets hidden for him… nothing ever comes out about him,” Henry said, adding that his alleged behaviors behind closed doors were “disgusting.”

She also accused Payne of using his One Direction bandmates for clout, saying he followed them worldwide to take the attention away from them.

Payne’s former partner added that his “manipulation” tactics would be exposed “next,” as her recent book, Looking Forward, detailed her tumultuous relationship with Payne.

Despite harrowing details of an abortion, which Henry underwent during her relationship with Payne, fans of his claimed her book and accusations were fake.

“No, it’s not,” she said in her TikTok.

Just one week before Payne’s death, Henry took legal action and contacted lawyers to file a cease and desist order against her ex-fiancé. 

“Maya Henry issued a cease and desist last week to Liam Payne following the emergence of new and concerning information,” claimed Henry’s lawyers.

The proceedings come after Henry alleged that Payne obsessively contacted her, her friends, and her family, through several phone numbers. 

Liam Payne and Maya Henry’s relationship history 

Payne and Henry were first spotted together in August 2018. One year later in September, the couple would finally go Instagram official.

The exes became engaged in August 2020. However, in June 2021, Payne announced their first breakup. 

“I feel like more than anything at this point, I’m more disappointed in myself that I keep on hurting people,” Payne said about his breakup. “That annoys me. I’ve just not been very good at relationships.”

By March 2022, Payne and Henry were back together, though they wound up splitting up again in May 2022.