Actress Maya Henry claimed in a revent interview that her famous ex-fiance, Liam Payne, pressured her into getting an abortion.
She alleged that Payne, a former vocalist with the band One Direction, gave her an ultimatum to either terminate her pregnancy or end their relationship, according to an interview with People published May 15. She expressed the torment of having to make such a critical decision at such an important time, and said she has now come to terms with how things unfolded.
View this post on Instagram
Henry and Payne began dating in 2019, got engaged in 2020 and broke up in 2022.
Looking back at the decision to abort her unborn child, Henry said that “[i]f it were up to me, I wouldn’t have done it,” according to People.
She explained that the pressure she felt at the time was intense.
View this post on Instagram
“But then also, if I were to have made a different decision, then I would’ve lost the person that I loved,” Henry said.
She admitted that she and Payne had several “difficult conversations” about the ultimatum he gave her but concluded that “looking back now, things happen for a reason.”
Henry made this revelation ahead of the release of her novel, “Looking Forward,” which is “inspired by true events” from her personal life, according to People.
View this post on Instagram
The novel centers around a model named Mallory, and her relationship with a British pop star named Oliver. Mallory finds out she’s pregnant, and Oliver threatens to end their relationship if she doesn’t abort their baby. She eventually concedes but ends up hemorrhaging and suffering medical complications, according to People.
“What I went through in real life is very similar to what Mallory went through in the book,” Henry told People. “I definitely did have some complications, and I did have to go to the hospital alone.”
Liam Payne and Maya Henry attend the Elton John AIDS Foundation’s 30th Annual Academy Awards Viewing Party in West Hollywood, California. (2022) pic.twitter.com/wIodIRiQhI
— Great British Getty Images (@shitbritishpics) March 10, 2024
“It was very lonely, having these men tell you, ‘Oh, it’s going to feel like a heavy period, it’s not going to be that painful, it’s going to be easy,'” she told People. “But I’m like, you’ve never even gone through anything like [this], so how would you know to tell me?”(RELATED: ‘None Of It Will Bring My Children Back’: Former Pussycat Doll Kaya Jones Tells Crowd She Regrets Her Abortions)
“That’s why I wanted to include it in the book, because I’ve seen so many people online talk about taking the abortion pill and it was the most painful thing for them,” she continued. “It’s just mind-boggling to me that you could tell a woman how they’re going to feel.”
