Britney Spears appeared to throw subtle shade at the new Fx/Hulu documentary Framing Britney that premiered on Feb. 5. The 39-year-old pop princess shared an Instagram video on Feb. 8, the day after Super Bowl 55 went down. Through she framed the video around the big game, the way she worded things have fans sure that she caught the doc about her, which painted a young Britney in a bad light for allegedly breaking Justin Timberlake‘s heart and being a bad role model for kids.
Britney dressed up for the video, ditching her usual crop top and shorts for a pretty long-sleeved, black lace dress. Standing in the foyer of her home, the “Perfume” singer said, “The moment we’ve all been waiting for last week.” She then took a long pause and before excitedly exclaiming “The Super Bowl!”
She clearly wasn’t a football fan, continuing “I was so excited but honestly, I was rooting for Kansas City but I was also rooting for the other team so it was a little confusing for me.” The video then went to a jump-cut where she had a sly look on her face and told followers, “I love sharing.” Fans erupted in the comments with claims that what Brit was really telling them was that she saw Framing Britney.
User @sarahfran12 wrote, “We know you really mean the documentary” instead of the Super Bowl,” while @chris_toph called her the “Queen of knowing we all watched that documentary….we are here for you Brit!” Fan @its_steph420 told the singer, “We all know what she’s REALLY referring to! we see you Britt,” while @thedrewlife marveled, “OMG SHADE.” Fan @ryanghisetti cheered, “She knows about the documentary!! Oh my god!”
The doc took plenty of heat from Britney’s fans for the way she was portrayed. It included clips from a 2003 interview with ABC News’ Diane Sawyer where she seemed to point the finger at Brit for the demise of her three year relationship with fellow pop star Justin Timberlake, 40. After their 2002 breakup, he released the single “Cry Me a River,” which strongly hinted that Britney had cheated on him. The music video even included a Britney look-alike stepping out with another man.
Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake were young sweethearts as their careers blew up in the late 90s and early aughts. Photo credit: MEGA.
“I have to ask a couple of things about Justin,” Diane asked the then-22-year-old. “He has gone on television and pretty much said you broke his heart. You did something that caused him so much pain, so much suffering….what did you do?” Diane never asked what Justin might have done that caused an end their romance, and seemed to heap the breakup on Britney’s shoulders. Brit was diplomatic, replying “I think we were both really young, and it was kind of meant to happen, and I will always love him. He will always have a special place in my heart.”
Then Sawyer went in hard on Britney on another topic, claiming she had become a poor role model for children. The journalist told Britney she had “disappointed a lot of mothers in this country” and shared a quote from Maryland’s then–first lady Kendall Ehrlich, who claimed if she “had an opportunity to shoot Britney Spears,” she’d take it. Britney teared up and said, “Oh, that’s horrible.” But Diane kept going at her, saying, “Well, because of the example for kids and how hard it is to be a parent..,” before Britney defended herself, saying “I’m not here to you know, babysit her kids.”