As the fallout from his recent DWI arrest continues, Justin Timberlake is now getting criticized for the anti-drinking PSA he did in 2001.
The PSA, done in collaboration between the famous boy band *NSYNC and Budweiser during the Super Bowl, resurfaced shortly after Timberlake’s Tuesday morning arrest.
In the commercial, Justin Timberlake was seen with his bandmates Lance Bass, Joey Fatone, Chris Kirkpatrick, and JC Chasez standing on the front porch of a confused father.
While greeting him, the bandmates declared, “Hey, how’s it going, we’re *NSYNC.”
Kirkpatrick said to the dad, “You know, the group *NSYNC?”
@rmsthornton #JustinTimberlake #NSYNC #2000s #Throwback #Commercial #PSA #FYP #ForYou #Meme #Memes #Funny #Comedy #Humor ♬ original sound – R. M. S. Thornton
As the dad continued to be confused, Justin Timberlake explained the purpose of the unexpected visit. “We’re just going door to door to say thanks,”
Fatone also chimed in to say their thanks refers to “talking to your kids about drinking.”
Chasez then said, “You see, even with all our success, you’re still a bigger influence on your kids than we are.” He further shared a statistic about parents being the No. 1 group kids listen to about drinking.
After the group left, the dad walked up the stairs, and his daughter asked who was at the door. He said, “Something about a sink,” which prompted her to scream and run into the street calling for the band.
Critics See the Irony in the PSA Following Justin Timberlake’s Arrest
Not long after the PSA made an appearance on TikTok, critics were quick to call out Justin Timberlake and the irony behind the commercial.
A TikTok user couldn’t help but admit they didn’t know if the commercial aged poorly or aged even better. Another joked, “Oh my god…what beautiful timing. Aged like a fine wine.”
A third TikTok user pointed out, “Irony at its best.”
A TikTok user noted, “The dad not knowing who they are also parallels the cop not knowing who JT was.”
The user was referencing the report that Justin Timberlake had to explain who he was because the officer who pulled him over didn’t recognize him.
Justin Timberlake was pulled over not long after midnight on Tuesday, June 18. The singer and songwriter had allegedly run a stop sign and wasn’t staying in his lane.
“It was ascertained that [Timberlake] was operating said vehicle in an intoxicated condition,” the officer wrote in his report. “In that: his eyes were bloodshot and glassy, a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage was emanating from his breath, he was unable to divide attention, he had slowed speech, he was unsteady afoot, and he performed poorly on all standardized field sobriety tests.”
It was also reported that Justin Timberlake refused to do a breathalyzer. He was arrested and taken to the Sag Harbor Village Police Station. He was released a few hours later.
Although Timberlake himself has not spoken publicly about the situation, his lawyer released a statement. “He will have a lot to say at the appropriate time,” his attorney, Edward Burke Jr. stated. “He is currently awaiting full discovery from the DA’s office.”
Burke said he looks forward to “vigorously defending” the singer against the DWI allegations.