Sorry Emma Roberts, Britney Spears says her movie isn't a biopic

Shortly after Emma Roberts publicly put her hat in the ring to play Britney Spears in her biopic, the pop star came forward with a clarifying statement. “The project I might be doing isn’t a biopic story … it’s a fictional musical where I play an extremely intelligent character !!!,” Spears wrote on her platform of choice, Instagram. “It’s flattering to be in such good company like Jon Chu !!!” Better luck next time, Emma. 

But seriously folks, it was previously reported that Universal Pictures specifically won the rights to Spears’ memoir, The Woman In Me, so Spears’ contradiction is curious. Most adaptations are somewhat fictionalized in order to tell a complete and emotionally truthful story within the constraints of the medium. But “fictional musical” is something different entirely. (The fact that Spears said she “might” be doing the project is also slightly eyebrow-raising, but also realistic, given that Hollywood projects are announced and end up in development purgatory frequently.) Representatives for the director attached to the film, John M. Chu, did not immediately respond to The A.V. Club‘s request for clarification about the project.

Another interesting tidbit from Spears’ statement is that she’d “play an extremely intelligent character” in this movie. Previously, she wrote in her memoir that she was “relieved” that Crossroads was “the beginning and end of my acting career,” because she had an issue “with what acting did to my mind.” Reflecting on the Shonda Rhimes-penned girls’ trip flick, she wrote, “I think I started Method acting—only I didn’t know how to break out of my character. I really became this other person. Some people do Method acting, but they’re usually aware of the fact that they’re doing it. But I didn’t have any separation at all.” Perhaps enough time has passed that she’s ready to try again.