To the naked eye, Justin Timberlake’s reputation has always been somewhat squeaky clean ever since he catapulted to fame in 1995 as part of the boy-band *NSYNC.
A former member of the Mickey Mouse Club, the most controversial thing he ever did was step out in double denim while couple dressing with his former girlfriend, Britney Spears.
But, this week — Justin’s reputation took a wrong turn, after he was spotted intimately holding hands with someone other than his wife of seven years, Jessica Biel.
In photographs that went viral across the globe, Timberlake was spotted with his co-star Alisha Wainright, 30, during a night out — without his wedding ring.
The pair, who are currently filming a movie where they play lovers, were snapped at a bar in New Orleans, with various reports saying they were “smiling and laughing”.
“At one stage, he grabbed her hand and rested it on his knee,” an onlooker told Page Six.
“She then gently started stroking his leg. Then he clutched her hand with both of his and was playing with her hands.”
Simultaneously, exclusive footage obtained by The Sun appeared, showing that the 38-year-old had “been drinking heavily and was unsteady on his feet.”
Feverishly denying that anything was going on, a “source” close to the pair downplayed the interaction in a statement.
“He was on an open balcony. They were among friends. It was nothing,” they told the publication while brushing it off. “There is 100 percent nothing going on.”
But the damage was already done.
Timberlake was now being painted as “unfaithful” and fans began to question his integrity.
But, this wasn’t the first time, and reports of his past indiscretions began to resurface.
In 2003, the Cry Me A River singer began dating Cameron Diaz, an actress nine years his senior — and in 2004, he sued publication News of the World, a British tabloid, because they claimed he had cheated on Cameron with a model.
In 2007, he began dating Jessica Biel, only for their relationship to come to an end in 2010 when it was reported that he had cheated on her with actress Olivia Munn.
Of course, the singer’s reps denied the reports, however, the stage seemed to already be set and reports of a “fidelity clause” came to light.
According to RadarOnline,The Sinner actress allegedly added a clause in their prenup, giving her at least $500,000 if Timberlake was unfaithful.
“If he strays during the marriage, she should be royally compensated,” the source told the publication.
So, is it all over for the Timberlakes? A couple which has stood the test of time according to Hollywood standards?
While it’s quite possible that we’ll never know the full extent of what has actually gone down and how it was handled, Jessica stepped out in Los Angeles overnight still sporting her (huge) diamond ring, sans the couple’s 4-year-old son, Silas.
In a Daily Mail exclusive, photographs showed the former Seventh Heaven actress on a smoothie run.
It’s unclear whether the photos were an orchestrated paparazzi shoot, however, the message was loud and clear: everything was fine.
