Brad Pitt criticised over reported plans to adapt Britney Spears’ memoir

18 November, 2023

Brad Pitt and Britney Spears

Brad Pitt has been criticised for reported plans to adapt Britney Spears‘ new memoir for the big screen.

Spears released her book, The Woman In Me, last month, which candidly discussed her career, relationships, 13-year conservatorship and personal experiences. It also contains a number of noteworthy revelations about her personal life, including that she had an abortion while dating Justin Timberlake. The book sold over one million copies in its first week on the shelves.

According to reports by PageSix, Pitt is among the high-profile celebrities bidding for a chance to adapt Spears’s story into a film. Reece Witherspoon was also reportedly interested in the project, according to sources. Actor Margot Robbie has since denied she was interested in the project.

However, Pitt’s apparent bid to adapt the book with his company, Plan B Entertainment, has come under fire online, with some suggesting it would be hypocritical. Indeed, the company was behind numerous films in 2022 with themes relating to the abuse of women, including Women Talking, She Said and Marilyn Monroe biopic Blonde. 

In reaction to the news, one fan tweeted: “Brad Pitt… biopics about mistreated women are not a vehicle for you to repent or mend your public image go find something else.”

Another added: “brad pitt always live from the scene of women’s business. just insidious”, while a third said he should be the “last person” to be involved with an adaptation.

Despite this, the planned adaption of Spears’s book is “only beginning to take shape,” an insider told PageSix.

Last week, US media company The Ankler reported that Spears was “overwhelmed by the response” to her book’s success and the “media frenzy surrounding it”, causing her team to “hold off on making any major decisions about where the rights end up until she has time to catch her breath”.

She had apparently rescheduled a meeting with an unnamed producer “at the last minute” as she “didn’t feel up to it”, the outlet said.

Meanwhile, Spears recently sang the praises of Taylor Swift, who she said she thought was an “iconic pop woman”.

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