Justin Timberlake apologises to Britney Spears after documentary backlash

Justin Timberlake apologises to Britney Spears after documentary backlash
Justin Timberlake dated Britney Spears for several years, breaking up in 2002. Source: Getty Images
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Daily US Times: American singer-songwriter Justin Timberlake has apologised to Britney Spears after a new documentary led to criticism of how he treated her during and after their relationship.

Framing Britney Spears, also an American singer-songwriter, featured archive clips of Timberlake discussing his sexual relationship with the singer.

Timberlake said in an Instagram statement on Friday that he was “deeply sorry” and wanted to “take accountability”.

He also apologised to Janet Jackson, after failing to support her over their controversial performance in Super Bowl.

Spears and Timberlake dated between 1999 and 2002, while he was a member of boy band N*Sync.

After their split, Timberlake indirectly accused Spears of cheating on him when he hired a lookalike actress to appear in the video for his single Cry Me A River.

Justin Timberlake said in his statement: “I’ve seen the messages, tags, comments, and concerns and I want to respond. 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. I understand that I fell short in these moments and in many others and benefited from a system that condones misogyny and racism.”

“I specifically want to apologise to Britney Spears and Janet Jackson both individually, because I care for and respect these women and I know I failed,” his statement added.

After finding fame at the end of the 1990s, Britney Spears said she was waiting until she was married to lose her virginity.

But during a radio interview, a clip of which features in the documentary, Justin Timberlake publicly revealed that they had slept together.

Two years later, during 2004 Super Bowl performance, Timberlake performed with Janet Jackson, accidentally exposing her breast.

The “wardrobe malfunction”, as it became known, led to complaints and outcry from viewers.

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