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‘I failed’: Skewered by Britney fans, Justin Timberlake apologizes
NEW YORK, Feb 13, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – Justin Timberlake on Friday apologized
for moments he “fell short” and condoned misogyny, one week after the release
of a blockbuster documentary on Britney Spears saw the behavior of the former
boy band star come under sharp criticism.
The film, produced by FX and The New York Times, explores the vitriol both
the media and entertainment industry aimed at Spears, who soared to global
fame before publicly suffering a mental health crisis and becoming a
paparazzi punching bag in the mid-to-late 2000s.
Spears and Timberlake famously dated several years around the turn of the
millennium, having met as children while cast members of Disney’s “Mickey
Mouse Club” variety show.
The popular narrative of their breakup cast Spears as a cheating
heartbreaker, offering sympathy to Timberlake especially after he released a
revenge fantasy music video for the break-up hit “Cry Me A River.”
The documentary “Framing Britney Spears” includes audio from a 2002 radio
interview in which Timberlake jokes about the couple’s sex life; Spears for
years was needled over the state of her virginity prior to the break-up.
“So when are you apologizing to Britney?” asked Spears fans on social
media, flooding Timberlake’s accounts with tags.
“I’ve seen the messages, tags, comments, and concerns and I want to
respond,” Timberlake said Friday on Instagram.
“I am deeply sorry for the times in my life where my actions contributed to
the problem, where I spoke out of turn, or did not speak up for what was
right,” he wrote. “I understand that I fell short in these moments and in
many others and benefited from a system that condones misogyny and racism.”
– ‘Privileged’ –
Timberlake, 40, said he “specifically wanted to apologize to Britney Spears
and Janet Jackson both individually, because I care for and respect these
women and I know I failed.”
In Jackson’s case the former NSYNC star was referring to the infamous
“wardrobe malfunction” Jackson suffered during a much-watched Super Bowl
halftime show, when Timberlake appeared to pull off part of her outfit and
expose her breast.
The 2004 scandal triggered widespread outcry, with much of the criticism
aimed at Jackson.
In both cases Jackson’s and Spears’ careers took serious hits, while
Timberlake’s popularity remained largely unscathed.
“As a man in a privileged position I have to be vocal about this,”
Timberlake wrote, nearly two decades after the incidents in question.
“Because of my ignorance, I didn’t recognize it for all that it was while
it was happening in my own life but I do not want to ever benefit from others
being pulled down again.”
The documentary’s release this month has triggered renewed scrutiny of the
conservatorship Spears, 39, has lived under since 2008, a legal guardianship
dictating the course of her life and finances that’s largely been steered by
her father Jamie.
Spears filed last year to remove her father from the conservatorship and
give sole power over her estate to a financial institution. Her court-
appointed lawyer says she’s “afraid” of her father.
On Thursday a judge ruled that both Spears’ father and Bessemer Trust would
oversee the pop star’s finances, denying Jamie Spears’ bid to keep sole power
to delegate investments.
Spears’ lawyer did not seek Thursday to remove Jamie Spears’ from the legal
arrangement normally intended for the elderly or infirm, but has not ruled
out doing so in the future.
The next hearing is set for March 17.
BSS/AFP/GMR/1043 hrs