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.
Brad Pitt… biopics about mistreated women are not a vehicle for you to repent or mend your public image go find something else https://t.co/AAsJDYR46d pic.twitter.com/Qv9E4AhrDS
— Sydney🚀 (@CountVolpe) November 15, 2023
brad pitt always live from the scene of women’s business. just insidious https://t.co/wmBNq0Pdqq
— not j*ss (@itsnotjess123) November 15, 2023
Brad Pitt should be the last person to ever get their hands on this https://t.co/LRwBBOFm1D
— Dan ➃ (@natsquake) November 15, 2023
Im sorry. I do NOT want to see a Britney Spears movie produced by Brad Pitt. What genuine reason would he have to WANT to produce it? What value would he, a man, bring? https://t.co/EdrddoanBo
— ayo, jaynee… (@ayojaynee) November 16, 2023
Cannot thing of anyone worse than brad pitt to produce an adaptation of Britney Spears’ life https://t.co/7gU48EQ2q4
— andrea (@smallboynom0ney) November 16, 2023
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”.