Michelle Williams impersonates Justin Timberlake while narrating Britney Spears’ memoir — and fans are saying “gimme more.”
Williams, 43, was announced as the narrator of the audiobook edition of Spears’ The Woman in Me earlier this month. After the book hit shelves on Tuesday, October 24, listeners quickly began praising the Oscar winner for her dynamic performance — with a particular passage about Timberlake, 42, going viral on social media.
During the nearly one-minute snippet, Spears recalled spending time in New York City with her then-boyfriend as they came across R&B artist Ginuwine.
“One day, J and I were in New York, going to parts of town I had never been to before. Walking our way was a guy with a huge, blinged-out medallion. He was flanked by two giant security guards. J got all excited and said so loud, ‘Oh yeah, fo’ shiz, fo’ shiz. Ginuwine, what’s up, my homie?'”
Spears — who said ‘NSync may have tried a little “too hard” to fit in at times — noted that Ginuwine walked away from Timberlake without a response. Spears’ assistant Felicia Culotta poked fun at the awkward interaction, but Timberlake seemingly wasn’t flustered. “J wasn’t even embarrassed,” Spears said. “He just took it and looked at her like, ‘OK, f—k you.’”
Williams’ impersonation of Timberlake during the snippet — which has circulated via X (formerly known as Twitter) — has reached more than nine million views online, with fans praising the Dawson’s Creek alum for her expert narration skills.
“Nothing can prepare you for these 15 seconds of Michelle Williams doing a Justin Timberlake impression as written by Britney Spears,” one person wrote, while another added: “Is Michelle Williams’ narration of Britney’s memoir Oscar eligible?”
Others wanted a guarantee that the rest of the memoir would be just as entertaining, with one social media user saying, “If someone can confirm that the rest of the book is this funny, please let me know and I’ll buy it ASAP.”
Spears announced in July that her memoir — titled after lyrics in her song “I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman” — would be released in October 2023, through Simon & Schuster’s Gallery Books imprint.
“Britney’s compelling testimony in open court shook the world, changed laws, and showed her inspiring strength and bravery,” publisher Jennifer Bergstrom said in a press release. “I have no doubt her memoir will have a similar impact — and will be the publishing event of the year. We couldn’t be more proud to help her share her story at last.”
While writing her debut tome, Spears didn’t hold back in detailing her relationship with Timberlake, whom she dated from 1999 to 2002. She claimed the pair were both unfaithful during their romance, with Timberlake cheating on her “a couple of times.” She also revealed she got an at-home abortion after the “Cry Me a River” singer confessed that he wasn’t ready to become a parent.
“I agreed not to have the baby,” she wrote. “If it had been left up to me alone, I never would have done it. And yet Justin was so sure that he didn’t want to be a father.”
After undergoing the procedure, Spears claimed that her ex “thought maybe music would help” and strummed the guitar for her as she lay “crying and sobbing” on the bathroom floor.
Timberlake, for his part, has not publicly responded to Spears’ book allegations, though a source exclusively told Us Weekly earlier this month that he is “trying to distance himself” from the memoir. “Justin and Britney dated so long ago, and he has a whole different life now,” the insider said. “He’s focused on his family, his career, and moving forward, and he would like to leave anything that happened in the past behind them.”
