Millie Bobby Brown explains why she wants the chance to play Britney Spears in a movie. Brown initially rose to stardom in the massively popular Netflix series Stranger Things, in which she plays Eleven. Brown was only 12 years old during season Stranger Things season 1, and her sudden popularity led to a harsh criticism, particularly online. In 2018, when Brown was 14, she deleted her Twitter account as a result of online harassment. Since Brown turned 18 this past February, she has also stated that she has been the victim of heavy sexualization and sexual harassment online, particularly on Instagram. However, Brown has continued to grow her career despite the negativity, and has most recently starred Netflix's Enola Holmes 2, which premiered on November 4.
In speaking with Drew Barrymore on her talk show (via Deadline), Brown says that she wants to play Britney Spears in a film at some point. While there are currently no plans for a movie on Spears to be made, Brown says that she wants to play a "real person," and that she personally relates to Spears. Read Brown's comment below:
Why Millie Bobby Brown Is A Perfect Choice To Play Britney Spears“I think her story resonates with me. Just growing up, watching her videos, watching interviews of her when she was younger — I see the scramble for words and I don’t know her, but when I look up pictures of her I feel like I could tell her story in the right way and hers only.”
Brown continues on by saying that the film industry has been a difficult one to navigate, as that she has regularly been "undermined in the past." But Brown also states the importance of her Enola Holmes series, saying that she wasn't "undermined in this situation," and that being able to star in two female-led film is "a step forward." Much like the challenges Brown has faced in her career, Spears had dealt with many similar issues, including heavy sexualization, severe harassment, and constantly being undermined by men in her field. Spears has been making headlines for the past several years as she fought to end her conservatorship, which was finally terminated in November 2021 after 13 years.
Though there aren't any official plans for a biopic of Spears yet, there have been several documentaries made about the singer since the start of her conservatorship battle, most notably Netflix's Britney vs Spears and The New York Times' Framing Britney Spears. Spears has been the topic of gossip and rumors for years, particularly stemming from a moment when she shaved her head in 2007. The haircut was a result of, among other things, Spears' frustration with being sexualized and objectified - something which Brown can clearly relate to. However, while the negative media frenzy surrounding Spears began when the singer was 25, Brown became the target of online hate at the young age of 12.
While Brown now has a more optimistic outlook on the industry, saying that she wants to "focus on the positives," there is no doubt that she can relate to the struggles Spears has gone through. Portraying Spears would be Brown's first foray into playing a real person, as well as a deviation from her usual fare of genre projects. With Brown's close personal connection to Spears' work and the things Spears has gone through, as well as her proven acting chops, fans would no doubt love to see Millie Bobby Brown step into the Princess of Pop's shoes.