A video of the TV host Craig Ferguson refusing to mock Britney Spears in 2007 has gone viral in the wake of a new documentary about the singer.
The Hulu documentary, Framing Britney Spears, examines the pop star’s career and the #FreeBritney movement that campaigns against her ongoing conservatorship.
It has had a huge reaction online, with many celebrities tweeting their support for the singer and viewers calling out Justin Timberlake for how he treated Spears, his ex-girlfriend.
The documentary has also led to the resurfacing of a video of Ferguson, who hosted The Late Late Show between 2005 and 2014, refusing to mock Spears for shaving her head in front of paparazzi, despite the show’s writers having written up jokes for him at her expense.
Read more: Craig Ferguson thought he would be ‘fired’ for refusing to mock Britney Spears’ shaved head
Instead, Ferguson went onstage and shared his own stories of addiction and recovery.
“The thing is, you can embarrass somebody to death,” he explained that night.
“I'm starting to feel uncomfortable about making fun of these people. Funny comedy should have a certain amount of joy in it. It should be about us attacking the powerful people, attacking the politicians and the Trumps and the blowhards… We shouldn't be attacking the vulnerable people.”
Read more: Opinion - What the Britney Spears documentary taught us
He later said he was “convinced” he would be “fired” for refusing to make fun of the star.
