More than two decades after one of American television’s most controversial live performances, Justin Timberlake is preparing to revisit the past, and this time, he is bringing Janet Jackson and Britney Spears into the conversation.

The American singer is developing a four-part tell-all docuseries for Apple TV, scheduled to premiere in December 2026. Directed by Fisher Stevens, the documentary is expected to feature Jackson reflecting on the infamous 2004 Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show, during which Timberlake pulled away part of her costume, briefly exposing her breast in an incident that became widely known as the “wardrobe malfunction”.

According to Variety, the docuseries will also address comments made by Spears, Timberlake’s former girlfriend, in her 2023 memoir, The Woman in Me, which revisited aspects of their relationship. Although details remain limited, Janet Jackson’s reported involvement adds another significant dimension to the project.

The 2004 incident triggered an enormous public controversy, but Jackson bore much of the professional fallout. Her music faced radio and television blacklisting, while Timberlake’s career continued to flourish. He subsequently returned to the Super Bowl stage as a solo performer in 2018.

Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake caused an international stir; both cost CBS, which aired the 2004 Super Bowl, millions of dollars in legal fees as the network spent years (successfully) fighting a $550,000 indecency fine from the FCC; and both Jackson and Timberlake were rumored to have been banned by the NFL from ever performing at the Super Bowl again. Photo: Getty Images

The controversy resurfaced in 2021 when Timberlake publicly apologised to both Jackson and Spears, acknowledging that he had benefited from an entertainment industry that treated women unfairly. Jackson has previously maintained that the incident was an accident and that she and Timberlake remained friends. Whether the new documentary offers fresh revelations, a more reflective account or simply another examination of an already extensively discussed controversy remains to be seen.

Beyond the celebrity revelations, the project arrives at a time when streaming platforms continue to invest in personality-driven documentaries, using familiar public figures, unresolved controversies and behind-the-scenes access to attract audiences. For Apple TV, Timberlake’s story offers an opportunity to package music history, celebrity relationships and cultural debate into a premium documentary offering.

Representatives for Timberlake, Jackson and Apple had not provided further details to Variety at the time of publication. With a December premiere reportedly in the works, audiences may soon get another opportunity to revisit a pop-culture moment that changed the public conversation around both performers.