You know her name, but do you know her story? #BritneyEverAfter premieres, February 18th at 8/7c. pic.twitter.com/IADZsZe9x2
— Lifetime (@lifetimetv) January 23, 2017
It’s Britney, bitch — well, at least Lifetime’s interpretation. On Monday, January 23, the women’s network released the first trailer for their upcoming Britney Spears biopic Britney Ever After, based on the superstar’s rise, fall and road back to success.
As seen in the 30-second clip above, the fictional Spears (played by Aussie actress Natasha Bassett) opens up about her highly publicized head-shaving breakdown as the movie’s portrayal of that fateful February 2007 night at Esther’s Haircutting Studio in Tarzana, California, flashes across the screen. “I’m not gonna say I was fine,” she says. “’Cause I wasn’t.”
Next, recreations of iconic moments from Spears’ life — including her 2004 marriage to Kevin Federline and her infamous umbrella attack on the paparazzi in 2007 — appear on screen. “Everything’s just kind of this blur, you know?” Bassett’s character says in a voiceover. “Until you hit rock bottom.”
While the film certainly covers Spears’ toxic years, Britney Ever After also celebrates the chart-topping diva’s recovery and her glorious comeback. “I wanna be strong — for my fans,” the voiceover continues as Bassett channels the entertainer live in concert. “They’re what keeps me going.”
During a January 16 interview with the New York Daily News, Bassett, 23, revealed that playing the pop icon was emotionally taxing. “It was extremely traumatic,” she told the outlet. “It was traumatic having to experience through my eyes what she experienced.”
Bassett said that she now has “a lot more empathy” for the Grammy winner, who powered through her personal struggles with the entire world watching. “I mean, she’s not like anybody else. Her entire life, she’s been chased by paparazzi, and she’s constantly being scrutinized and in the public eye, so it’s not normal,” she said. “I really appreciated how strong she is. Emotionally, the way she got through the constant pressures that she was faced with is admirable.”
Despite Bassett’s respect for Spears, the project does not have the Las Vegas headliner’s stamp of approval. Her rep previously told Us Weekly that she “will not be contributing in any way, shape or form to the Lifetime biopic, nor does it have her blessing.”
Britney Ever After premieres on Lifetime Saturday, February 18, at 8 p.m. ET.
