Camp Britney Spears speaks out on what they really think of all the new documentaries

Britney Spears is, sadly, well-used to being in the public eye, at this point. She’s essentially grown up in the spotlight and has been the focus of international media attention ever since she first shot to fame as a young pop star in the late 90s. 

She’s faced more than her fair share of critical headlines and unflattering photos and we’ve all seen the “if Britney could survive 2007, you can do this” memes. The treatment of Britney Spears as a woman, performer and human being, has been nothing short of despicable over the years, but it’s only in the past few months that the world has really woken up to the true realities of the abuse she’s faced. 

Brought to international attention with thanks to a New York Times investigative documentary earlier this year, the 70-plus-minute special that caused a flurry of concern for her well-being. Also sparking a huge surge in support for the #FreeBritney movement, many would probably say that Framing Britney Spears was a positive force in the singer’s life. 

Much has happened since it back in February though. Brit was allowed to hire her own lawyer, she’s publicly testified against her father in court and he’s even agreed to step down as conservator of her estate. Realising that there’s plenty more still to tell, The New York Times began working on a follow-up piece just this summer. 

Impressively managing to pull the whole thing together in just a few short months, the crew only began shooting in late June after Britney gave her first testimony and brought the completed doc, Controlling Britney Spears, to air just last week. Describing her impassioned speech as a “game-changer”, producer Liz Daly, said that people were more willing to break non-disclosure agreements in light of what Britney herself had said. And the allegations were explosive. 

However, not everyone was so impressed with it and Britney’s fiancé, Sam Ashgari, recently voiced his thoughts on the matter. “Apparently my opinion has increased in value over [the] last few days,” he wrote in a message he shared on his Instagram stories over the weekend. Referencing the second New York Times’ documentary that premiered on Hulu last Friday, he continued by saying, “Past docs left [a] bad aftertaste. I’m hopeful this one will be respectful.” 

“I don’t blame CNN, BBC or NETFLIX (which got me through lockdowns) for airing them because as an actor I tell other people’s stories too,” he added. “I question producers who made them ‘just to shed light’ without input or approval from [their] subject. Any credit for light being shed should go to #FreeBritney.”

Sam’s comments come ahead of several other Britney Spears documentaries yet to air this year. Netflix recently released the first trailer for their own version last week, with the short clip alluding to having access to highly confidential documents pertaining to the conservatorship. It arrives on the streaming platform tomorrow, Tuesday September 28.

As the world continues watching to see how the story will play out (both on and off-screen), we can only hope that there’s a happy ending on the cards for the singer that once showed us just how big a statement double denim can make.