Jamie Lynn Spears’ first-ever venture into British reality television got off to a shaky start over the weekend after many viewers felt she’d gone to lengths to avoid any mention of her famous elder sister, Britney Spears.
A teaser video for Sunday’s episode of “I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here” shows the “Zoey 101” star describing herself as being “best known for being an actress and a singer.”
Watch a teaser for “I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here” below.
In a second clip, she acknowledges her family’s influence on her music career.
“My mom played the piano a lot,” she notes.
It didn’t take long for viewers on social media to point out that Jamie Lynn had seemingly chosen not to acknowledge her familial tie to one of the world’s biggest female pop stars.
“I mean there must be a parallel world were we all know the legendary Lynne Spears as one of the most influential Pianists the world has ever seen,” one person wrote, referring to Britney and Jamie Lynn’s mother, Lynne Spears.
Added another: “I had no idea she was famous in her own right to be honest. I genuinely thought she was just Britney’s sister.”
Though Britney and Jamie Lynn seemed to have a close relationship early in their respective careers, the two women have reportedly become estranged in recent years.
In 2021, Britney suggested her younger sibling had played a role in the court-ordered, 13-year conservatorship that granted her limited authority over her personal and financial affairs.
“My so-called support system hurt me deeply,” she wrote at the time, adding, “This conservatorship killed my dreams.”
After Jamie Lynn wrote candidly about Britney in her 2022 memoir, “Things I Should Have Said,” the elder Spears blasted her sister for “trying to sell a book at my expense” in a terse social media statement.
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However, Jamie Lynn has maintained that she’s Britney’s “biggest supporter,” and told “Good Morning America” last year: “I’ve only ever loved and supported her and done what’s right by her, and she knows that. So I don’t know why we’re in this position right now.”
Given that apparent rift, Newsweek and other publications have speculated that Jamie Lynn may be legally bound against speaking about Britney during her “I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here” run.
HuffPost reached out to a representative for Jamie Lynn Spears seeking comment, but did not immediately hear back.
“I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!” first aired in the U.K. in 2003. The “Survivor”-style series follows a group of celebrities living in remote locations where their access to resources is limited. Each week, a new contestant is tasked with securing food and other amenities for the group, in hopes of avoiding being voted off.
Despite the buzz over Jamie Lynn’s appearance, she’s far from this season’s most eyebrow-raising contestant. Some viewers vowed to boycott the series after it was announced that British media personality and former right-wing politician Nigel Farage, who was an outspoken supporter of Brexit and former President Donald Trump, would be included on the show.