Why Sarah Silverman Is Receiving Backlash Over Britney Spears

It's been a minute since Britney Spears was in the spotlight, but now a new New York Times documentary, Framing Britney Spears, has the internet buzzing about the singer's life once again. For instance, the star's longtime assistant Felicia Culotta's name is making headlines. And, holy blast from the past, it seems comedian Sarah Silverman is receiving backlash for jokes she made about Spears over a decade ago.

The year was 2007, and the actress' monologue at the MTV Video Music Awards in large part centered around making fun of the then 25-year-old (via Page Six). Among her bits that didn't age well are when she said, "she's already accomplished everything that she is going to accomplish in her life. It's mind-blowing."

Silverman also noted, "She's a mother. It's weird to think that just a few years ago on this very show, she was this sweet, innocent little girl in slutty clothes riding around with a python." Another joke mentioned Spears' two children with her ex-husband Kevin Federline: "Have you seen Britney's kids? They are the most adorable mistakes you will ever see."

Twitter revolted in the wake of the 2007 footage featuring Silverman gaining attention again, with one user commenting, "The media was so disgusting. WE ARE SORRY BRITNEY." In fact, apologizing to Spears was a major trend in light of the clip of the comedian's VMAs act resurfacing. One commenter didn't hold back with this demand, telling Silverman that Spears had "accomplished more at 25 than you have in your 50yrs, and she continues to accomplish things. Roast a celebrity, say a few jokes as a host, but to go on & on of a young woman and BRING her children into it is #shameful. #apologize #SarahSilverman."

Meanwhile, although many celebrities — notably Adam Levine — are seen laughing at Silverman's jokes, as one viewer noticed, "At least Jennifer Garner was repulsed by the jokes."

Interestingly, as one Twitter user pointed out, Silverman has been outspoken about her battle with depression, as noted by Time in 2012. "I find it ironic she opts to deride Britney during her battle with mental illness since she knows what it's like to be in that dark place," the observer commented.

For her part, Silverman has responded to the backlash via Twitter, writing, "I was known then 4 roasts. MTV asked me to mini-roast Britney after her big performance. While she was performing I was having diarrhea & going over my jokes. Had no idea she didn't kill. Unfortunate. Art changes over yrs as we know more & the world changes" (via Us Weekly).

But Twitter isn't having it, with commenters shaking their proverbial heads at her attempt to address the situation. "That's your apology?? Sounds even more heartless than the s****y roast," one said. Another commented, "calling her kids mistakes ain't a roast. her performance aside you knew she was clearly going through a difficult time and still chose to be cruel. what's so hard in admitting you were wrong and saying sorry? it ain't that hard." Still another commenter said, "Justifying? Defensive? Grow up lady! Own your mistakes. It would not only be healing for those you hurt but even for yourself."

Finally, another commenter pointed out, "You know a simple apology would be nice but at this point it wouldn't be sincere since you've already made excuses. Regardless of you being known for roasts. You should know the fine line between roasting and bullying, especially targeting a young girl going through stuff."

A scroll through the responses proves not many commenters were on Silverman's side after her tweet. It's yet to be seen if she will further address the backlash.