Just because a person is a famous celebrity doesn’t mean that they’re immune to getting their feelings hurt online—nor are famous celebrities incapable of posting hurtful things. In late 2022, actor Alyssa Milano tweeted something about Britney Spears, prompting the iconic singer to accuse the Charmed star of “bullying” her. Read on to see what Milano wrote, and to learn how their online spat was ultimately resolved.
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Fans of Spears were on high alert following her conservatorship drama.
Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty ImagesSpears, the pop stars behind hits including “Toxic” and “Baby One More Time,” has had a famously tumultuous few decades. In 2008, she was placed under a conservatorship led by her father, Jamie Spears, and her lawyer, after displaying some erratic behavior and dealing with some mental health issues. This controversial conservatorship was in place until November 2021. Prior to it ending, a handful of documentaries about the case were released that included allegations that Spears had been surveilled, drugged, and otherwise unethically controlled under the conservatorship, igniting the #FreeBritney movement.
Fans posted online and rallied in person in support of Spears being permitted by law to once again be in charge of her own affairs. Their support of the pop star included (and continues to include) defending her against what they interpret as online bullying and gossip.
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Milano posted in response to a conspiracy theory about Spears.
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty ImagesIn December of 2022, rumors spread that Spears had either died or been placed back under conservatorship, as fans were suspicious about her whereabouts and her Instagram behavior. (TMZ reported that Spears was actually vacationing in Mexico at the time.) On Dec. 20, 2022, Milano—known for roles in Who's the Boss? and Charmed along with her role in the #MeToo movement, tweeted, “Someone please go check on Britney Spears.”
Although Milano’s tweet may have been well-intentioned, many of Spears' fans were offended by it on her behalf. And it seems that the singer did not appreciate the post either.
Spears called it out as "a form of bullying."
VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty ImagesSpears, who was periodically deleting and reinstating her Instagram account during this period, came back to the social network in late January 2023. On her Instagram Stories, as reported by Billboard, Spears posted a screenshot of Milano’s tweet and wrote, “It saddens me to see things about me from people who don’t know me !!! This definitely feels like a form of bullying !!! Ladies, we are supposed to be rooting for one another not pulling one another down !!!”
The Instagram Story came on the heels of another dramatic incident, as fans had called the cops to conduct a welfare check on Spears following the latest deletion of her Instagram. Deputies from the Thousand Oaks, California Sheriff's Department went to the singer's home and confirmed that she was not in danger.
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Milano privately apologized, according to reports.
Arnold Jerocki/Getty ImagesAccording to TMZ, Milano sent a private message to Spears to apologize on Feb. 1, 2023, a few days after the singer's Instagram Story. What the message entailed is not known to the public. It's also not clear whether Spears responded to the DM or even accepted it.
The same year as the incident, Spears released her memoir, The Woman in Me. The book, which hit shelves on October 24, 2023, documents her rise to fame and her struggles under her conservatorship, among other elements of her life.
