The audio book for Britney Spears‘ memoir, The Woman In Me, was read by Michelle Williams. Not the Michelle Williams from Destiny’s Child, but five-time Oscar nominee Michelle Williams, who is every bit as good in Manchester by the Sea as she is pretending to be Britney Spears while recalling the time Justin Timberlake tried to act “Black” around Ginuwine.
But Williams wasn’t the only choice for the audio book.
That’s the basis for the SNL sketch “The Woman in Me: Auditions,” at least. Cast member Chloe Fineman does a solid imitation of the pop star, who reveals the other choices to read her words. The list includes Martin Scorsese (as portrayed by guest host Timothée Chalamet), John Mulaney (Sarah Sherman), Jada Pinkett Smith (Ego Nwodim), and Julia Fox (Fineman). It’s a time-honored SNL impression-a-thon, but not everyone was amused.
“Wow. The writers of SNL are getting worse and worse,” Spears’ manager Cade Hudson wrote on Instagram on Sunday, according to the Daily Beast. He claimed that “no wonder you all reached out to me to get Britney on the show… SNL is on life support. You all are pathetic and this Chloe isn’t funny. Did you find her on Craigslist or something?”
I thought it was pretty good? Although not as great as Fineman’s Natasha Lyonne. You can judge for yourself below.