HOUSE OF HORRORS
What’s going on behind closed doors? Britney Spears’ fans fear the pop star has lost control of her life again
Britney Spears’ private life has always been complicated. Her father, Jamie, has said she “wouldn’t be alive” had it not been for the controversial 13-year conservatorship he controlled, adding that the public doesn’t “have a clue what the truth is” regarding her state of mind. And Jason Trawick, who dated Britney from 2009 to 2013 and briefly acted as co-conservator, backed him up in a Jan. 9 interview. “Did she need a conservatorship? Yes. I’ll be the first to say it. She needed some guidance,” the talent agent revealed. “[But] I’m glad it ended, If she fails, then she fails. I want her to prove everyone wrong.”
But a little over a year after being granted her freedom, fans fear she may be failing. Britney’s increasingly bizarre and inconsistent Instagram posts have led to serious concerns about her well-being, with the hashtag, #WheresBritney? trending on TikTok. There hasn’t been a confirmed public sighting of the star since August, not long after she and Sam, 28, moved into a new $11 million mansion. “Despite posts suggesting she went on trips to Mexico and New York City, it doesn’t appear that she’s gone anywhere,” says a source. “It’s like she’s trapped in a house of horrors.”
The theories are wild. Fans have speculated that old videos of Britney, 41, have been spliced onto new backdrops, and have even gone so far as to suggest that the woman pictured isn’t the pop star at all, but a body double. Her declaration of love for sister Jamie Lynn in December followed by a complete reversal in January also
raised eyebrows, with some commenters suspecting Britney isn’t fully in charge of her social media. (Others have questioned recent videos featuring her old home, but “she still owns that property and spends most of her time there,” says the source. “She never got used to the new place, which she just put back on the market.”)
Brit’s old pal Paris Hilton inadvertently fed into conspiracies on Jan. 7 when she posted photos to mark agent Cade Hudson’s birthday, which fans suspected were photoshopped to include Britney. Paris slammed those claims as “ridiculous,” though the pics weren’t recent. “Those have to be from years ago,” Brit herself confirmed on Jan. 9. “I haven’t been to a b-day party in forever.”
LIVING IN ISOLATION
That’s because she never seems to leave home. Public events “are not fun for her...they’re full of stress,” Sam, who has also sparked suspicion (see sidebar), explained while defending his wife’s behavior in December. But, he insisted, “She has her voice and is a free woman.” Fans won’t believe it until they see it. “She’s always going to struggle with her mental health, and some days will be better than others, but she’s going to have to go out in public or ‘prove’ that she’s OK soon,” says the source. “Because right now, it seems like she’s not in a good place at all.” ◼