One of the most famous couples of the 2000s, Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake, had a public confrontation 20 years after their breakup.
A timeline of Britney and Justin’s relationship
Britney Jean Spears, also fondly called the princess of pop, was the best-selling teen pop artist in the late 1990s. Justin Randall Timberlake is an American singer, actor, and songwriter who was a member of the boyband NSYNC from 1995-2002.
The two first met in 1992 while filming for The Mickey Mouse Club. In 1999, the duo announced that they were dating. They were seen together in public and considered the Golden couple of the late 90s and early 2000s. They dated for three years before breaking up in March 2002.
Post Breakup Spats
Soon after their breakup, the ex-couple was asked about the reason in multiple interviews. While they remained silent, Justin eventually spoke about the breakup. He insinuated that the breakup was because of Britney cheating on him on multiple occasions during their relationship.
The public breakup turned messy after Timberlake released his 2002 hit song “Cry Me a River.” He cast an actress similar to Britney to play his cheating girlfriend in the Music Video.
Justin Timberlake opened up about their relationship to Barbra Walters in the 20/20 interview despite promising Britney never to do so. He did not even hesitate to talk about their sex life. Britney responded to the allegations of cheating on Timberlake in her 2003 ballad “Every time” asking him to forgive her for causing him pain in the song’s lyrics.
Framing Britney Spears
New York Times Presents: Framing Britney Spears (2021) is an American documentary film that sheds light on Britney’s conservatorship battle with her father, Jamie Spears, and the #FreeBritney movement. The documentary showed clips and images of Timberlake and Britney’s post-breakup interviews and media coverage.
Timberlake, married to Jessica Beil, openly supported Britney when she spoke out about her conservatorship. The actor said:
“Jess and I send our love and our absolute support to Britney during this time. We hope the courts and her family make this right and let her life however she wants to live.”
Fans started flooding Timberlakes’ SNS accounts asking him to apologize for using Britney at her most vulnerable time.
Justin Timberlake apologizes to Britney Spears
Justin Timberlake took to Instagram on Feb 2021 to apologize to his ex-girlfriend Britney Spears and Janet Jackson for using her to benefit from a system that supported misogyny.
Earlier this week, the Pop Princess, married to actor and model Sam Asghari, posted a few images of herself and Justin Timberlake on her Instagram. She posted images of herself and Timberlake wearing basketball uniforms and playing for a charity match in LA. The caption read, “When we used to shoot hoops TOGETHER … that’s when miracles happened !!!
Britney posts photos of her and Justin Timberlake on Instagram: "When we used to shoot hoops TOGETHER … that’s when miracles happened" pic.twitter.com/uoKKAvk8z1
— BreatheHeavy (@breatheheavycom) January 18, 2023
The charity event was a three-day program called Basketball Challenge for the Children. It was to raise money for children, Epilepsy foundations, and Arnold Palmer Hospital for Women. Fans were visibly confused about why Britney posted pictures of herself and her ex from 20 years ago. She then went on to delete the post.
Now hold on why is Britney Spears posting old pics of her and Justin🤔
— Summer ✨🔥 (@crownmeQUEENATL) January 18, 2023
