In a resurfaced clip from a 2017 interview, Justin Baldoni opened up about his awkward first meeting with pop icon Britney Spears. The 40-year-old actor, known for his role in Jane the Virgin and his directorial work on It Ends With Us, revealed how the encounter did not go as he had hoped.
The moment occurred during a filming session for Jane the Virgin, when Britney made a guest appearance on the show. Baldoni, who had been a fan of the pop star since high school, was excited about her presence on set. Having exchanged a few friendly tweets with Spears beforehand, he believed they had established a rapport. In his mind, they were friends.
As a result, Baldoni approached Britney during a break in the filming. “I went up and I gave her a big hug,” he recalled in the interview. However, the interaction quickly became uncomfortable as he noticed Spears’ reaction. “I think I scared her,” Baldoni admitted, explaining that his overly familiar gesture took the pop star by surprise.
The situation became more awkward when Baldoni saw his co-stars laughing at the exchange. He began to question whether he had overstepped his boundaries, wondering aloud, “Did I just harass Britney Spears?”
Baldoni went on to discuss his deep admiration for Spears, saying, “I was a huge Britney Spears fan in high school…The guest star I was most excited to work with was Britney Spears.” However, despite his excitement, Baldoni did not have any scenes with her. This lack of interaction led him to believe that the absence of scenes with his character, Rafael, might have been at Spears’ request.
This viral clip resurfaced recently on social media in the midst of another controversy involving It Ends With Us co-star Blake Lively. Lively had filed a sexual assault complaint, which sparked a public dispute and smear campaign against Baldoni. He responded by suing The New York Times for $250 million over its reporting on the matter, further intensifying the media storm.