Britney Spears and Sam Asghari divorce filing shows the pair have been separated for weeks

Britney Spears and Sam Asghari stand tightly together and look off to the left

By Jonah ValdezStaff Writer

Aug. 17, 2023 10:17 AM PT

Britney Spears and husband Sam Asghari are headed for divorce after 14 months of marriage, according to court documents.

Asghari filed for divorce in Los Angeles Superior Court on Wednesday. While news of their separation had arrived only this week, the court filing obtained by The Times shows the pair have been separated since July 28.

Reports of Spears and Asghari’s separation began to swirl Wednesday afternoon with TMZ reporting they had split after an argument about possible infidelity — allegedly by Spears — about one week ago. People cited “multiple sources” in its subsequent confirmation of the news. It said rumors of problems between the two that arose in March had been shut down by his manager. Reports of their divorce followed soon after.

The pair wed in June 2022 after dating for more than five years.

Representatives for Spears and Asghari did not immediately respond to The Times’ requests for comment on Thursday.

Spears, 41, and Asghari, 29, met in October 2016 when he appeared in Spears and Tinashe’s “Slumber Party” music video. Soon afterward, the pair began dating.

The “Hold Me Closer” singer announced that she was engaged to the model and actor in September 2021, just months before the end of her conservatorship battle. Asghari had publicly defended Spears against her father, Jamie Spears, during the legal fight. Their wedding the following June was a star-studded affair with a guest list that included Madonna, Selena Gomez, Drew Barrymore and Paris Hilton.

“It’s just surreal, man, it’s been a minute, it was way overdue for us,” Asghari said on “Good Morning America” days after tying the knot. “We imagined it being a fairy tale and it was.”

Spears had spent the early days of their marriage adjusting to her newfound freedom from her conservatorship, which disallowed her from managing her finances and making other business and personal decisions. In a return to Instagram, Spears posted a video after their wedding, saying that she had been enjoying her new home with Asghari and commenting, “Change is so great ... life is good.”

The couple remained close while weathering various tabloid reports — many fueled by rumors and unsubstantiated reports. There was an incident at a restaurant when a patron recorded Spears while dining, an apparent intervention with her family and close circle over substance use and behavioral issues, and most recently, an altercation between Spears and a security guard working for NBA star Victor Wembanyama in Las Vegas.

In recent months, the pair also stayed side-by-side as Spears reconciled with various relatives and friends from earlier periods of her life, including her mother, Lynne Spears. There was an outing with Lance Bass to meet the former ‘N Sync member’s children for the first time. And Spears recently reconnected with her sister, Jamie Lynn Spears, following a public feud, visiting her on the set of “Zoey 102.”

As news of their divorce spread Wednesday evening, Spears posted a cryptic photo of herself riding a horse on the beach to her Instagram account and wrote that she was “buying a horse soon.” She said she was deciding between a horse named Sophie and another named Roar.

“I can’t make up my mind!” she wrote. “Should I join the camaraderie and put a pink cowboy hat on? Either way I think I found my sweet spot with Roar!”

Spears’ marriage to Asghari is her third. She was married to Jason Alexander for a mere 55 hours in 2004 and to Kevin Federline from 2004-07. Federline and Spears share two children together, Sean Preston, 17, and Jayden James, 16.

Times researcher Cary Schneider contributed to this report.