Since Zayn Malik left One Direction, there has been so much speculation about his next career move. The 21-year old is said to be preparing to launch some new music as a solo artist; but now, a recent rumor suggests that the former 1D member could be heading to the place where it all started — "X-Factor." 

"Simon [Cowell] has told Zayn he'd make a great judge and it's him rather than Louis he really wants. Louis and the other boys will be touring next year too," a source told the Daily Star newspaper. "The last thing Simon wants is another shock, so he's keeping Zayn very close now and knows about all his projects." 

However, a rep for Malik has dismissed the report, telling the Daily Mail that the story is "a complete fabrication." 

Malik was grouped with Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson by Cowell after they auditioned separately on "The X Factor" in 2010. They became a global phenomenon as One Direction as they churned out hit after hit and were always on the road for world tours. In March, Malik announced that he was leaving the group to live life as "a normal 22-year old." 

The latest rumor about the former boyband member came a week after Payne said that the real reason Malik left was because he wanted to spend more time with his family and his fiancée, Perrie Edwards.

By saying so, Payne appeared to confirm a popular Directioner theory that Edwards could have something to do with Malik's departure from the group.

Meanwhile, Jamie Scott, the songwriter behind some of 1D's hits, said that the reason why Malik left is because he didn't want to tour anymore. 

"Zayn went because he'd had enough," said Scott to the Sunday People. "Have you ever been on the road for four years?...Eventually, he got to a point where he'd had enough." 

"It was that simple, it was human instinct kicking in. People want it to be complicated and have secret reasons but that is what it is," he added.