Morrissey claims Johnny Marr rejected new offer to reunite The Smiths
Morrissey has claimed he agreed to reunite The Smiths in 2025, but the offer was turned down by guitarist and co-founder Johnny Marr.
While the likelihood of The Smiths reuniting seems impossible, the same could have been said for Oasis before they announced their reunion on August 27th. For the last 15 years, the Gallagher brothers have been embroiled in a bitter, public fallout, however, they have found a way to reconcile to get the band back on the road.
In a new update on his website, Morrissey Central, a statement published on August 29th reads: “In June 2024 AEG Entertainment Group made a lucrative offer to both Morrissey and Marr to tour worldwide as ‘The Smiths’ throughout 2025. Morrissey said Yes to the offer; Marr ignored the offer.”
The post concluded with a not-so-subtle dig at Marr for touring with New Order rather than headlining his own tour, adding, “Morrissey undertakes a largely sold out tour of the USA in November. Marr continues to tour as a special guest to New Order.”
The specifics of the offer haven’t been revealed, but this isn’t the first time that The Smiths have had the chance to reunite.
In 2012, Coachella founder, Paul Tollett, claimed that he tried “every year” to bring The Smiths back together to perform at the festival, and said the event offered $5 million on one occasion but it was rebuffed.
Furthermore, in Marr’s 2016 memoir, Set The Boy Free, he revealed that The Smiths almost reunited in the late 2000s, but it never materialised. The guitarist recounted meeting the frontman, and said he “was genuinely pleased to be back in touch with Morrissey”.
He continued: “For four days it was a very real prospect. We would have to get someone new on drums, but if the Smiths wanted to re-form it would make a hell of a lot of people very happy, and with all our experience we might even be better than before.”
However, their “communication ended” and talk of a reunion died down for no real reason. Since then, Marr has repeatedly condemned Morrissey over his right-wing political views, such as sharing an image of Reform MP Nigel Farage when asked about the chances of a Smiths reunion on X following the Oasis news.
Additionally, following the sad death of bassist Andy Rourke in 2023, it wouldn’t be the original line-up of The Smiths reuniting if the offer was accepted and the loss of Rourke would leave a gaping void in their sound.
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