Britney Spears' husband, Sam Asghari, files for divorce in Los Angeles, court records show
Britney Spears' husband Sam Asghari has filed for divorce, in the latest personal crisis for the troubled pop star.
Asghari, a 29-year-old Iranian-born model, cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for ending the marriage, court documents filed Wednesday in Los Angeles show.
Asghari's divorce petition says the two have been separated since last month. A statement sent by his publicist to CBS News on Thursday says: "There are many claims that Sam is challenging the prenup and threatening to exploit his ex-wife with videos. However, all these claims are false, as no negative intention has ever been directed towards her and never will be. Sam has always and will always support her."
Earlier, Asghari released a statement on Instagram commenting on the news.
"After 6 years of love and commitment to each other my wife and I have decided to end our journey together," he posted. "Asking for privacy seems rediculous (sp) so I will just ask for everyone including media to be kind and thoughtful."
Spears commented on the divorce on her Instagram account later in the week. She thanked friends and family for their support, and said she was "a little shocked" by the circumstances, but said she would not comment further.
"I'm not here to explain why because its honestly nobody's business !!! But I couldn't take the pain anymore honestly !!!" she wrote.
Spears married Asghari at her home in Thousand Oaks, California, on June 9, 2022, in front of guests that included Selena Gomez, Drew Barrymore, Paris Hilton and Madonna, in a wedding seen as a milestone in her newly reclaimed life after the dissolution just six months earlier of the court conservatorship that controlled her life for more than 13 years.
The pop superstar met and began dating Asghari, a model and actor, when he appeared in her video for the song "Slumber Party" in 2016.
She cited her desire to marry Asghari as among the reasons she wanted an end to the constraining conservatorship, which she said was preventing it. The two announced their engagement in September of 2021, as it became clear she would be freed from the conservatorship, which ended that November.
Spears said she and Asghari lost a baby early in her pregnancy in May 2022, about a month before they married.
Reports of the couple's struggles had increased in recent months.
Their marriage is the first for the 29-year-old Asghari and the third for the 41-year-old singer. She was married for less than three days in 2004 to childhood friend Jason Alexander, who attempted to crash her wedding to Asghari and was later convicted of misdemeanor trespassing and battery.
In 2004, she wed dancer Kevin Federline. Their three-year marriage would come at a time of intense media scrutiny and increasing mental health struggles for Spears. Federline is the father of her two teenage sons, and has custody of the boys.
She would be placed in the conservatorship by her father in 2008. She did well under the arrangement at first, continuing to release records, make videos, and perform live, including a major concert residency in Las Vegas. But as she appeared less in public, fans began to demand that the court #FreeBritney, in what would eventually become a major movement.
Since the conservatorship ended, Spears has put out music, including a collaboration with Elton John in 2022, but has not performed live in years, nor announced plans to do so.
Her memoir, "The Woman in Me," is scheduled to be released in October.