Harry Styles breaks US chart record with As It Was

Harry Styles’ hit As It Was has become the longest-running number one on the US singles chart by a British artist.

The song has scored a 15th week on top of the Billboard Hot 100, breaking the record previously held jointly by Mark Ronson and Sir Elton John.

Their hits, Uptown Funk and Candle In The Wind respectively, each spent 14 weeks in the chart’s top spot.

Styles is also currently at number one on the US cinema box office chart with his film Don’t Worry Darling.

After 15 weeks at the top of the singles rankings, As It Was has become the fourth longest-running number one in US chart history – and the longest by one single artist.

Old Town Road by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus holds the overall record of 19 weeks. Despacito by Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber, and One Sweet Day by Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men, each reigned for 16 weeks.

As It Was spent 10 weeks at number one in the UK between April and June.

Meanwhile, the former One Direction star has followed in the footsteps of Eminem and Prince by becoming one of the few artists to have topped the music and box office charts simultaneously.

Mixed reviews for Styles’ new film Don’t Worry Darling, directed by his partner Olivia Wilde, did not put fans off going to cinemas.

The movie, which also stars Florence Pugh and Chris Pine, took a healthy US $19.2 million (£17.7m) on its opening weekend in North America.

The film has enjoyed significant publicity in recent weeks, thanks to media reports of behind-the-scenes drama and off-screen feuds during its production.