diff --git a/src/Surface.zig b/src/Surface.zig
index 76c353969..d1ca54a8a 100644
--- a/src/Surface.zig
+++ b/src/Surface.zig
@@ -679,14 +679,16 @@ pub fn init(
         switch (initial_command) {
             // If a user specifies a command with `-e` it is appropriate to set the title
             // as argv[0]
-            .direct => {
-                _ = try rt_app.performAction(
-                    .{ .surface = self },
-                    .set_title,
-                    .{ .title = initial_command.direct[0] },
-                );
+            .direct => |cmd| {
+                if (cmd.len != 0) {
+                    _ = try rt_app.performAction(
+                        .{ .surface = self },
+                        .set_title,
+                        .{ .title = cmd[0] },
+                    );
+                }
             },
-            // we won't set the title in the case the shell expands the command
+            // We won't set the title in the case the shell expands the command
             // as that should typically be used to launch a shell which should
             // set its own titles
             .shell => {},