What's Really Going On With Justin Timberlake And Alisha Wainwright's Relationship?

On October 19, 2012, Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel tied the knot in Italy after dating on-and-off for five years. However, it wasn't the smoothest road to the altar. In March 2011, the couple went their separate ways after being together for three and a half years. A few weeks after the split, one of Timberlake's friends told People that calling it quits was ultimately what JT needed. "Justin was dying to be single and have fun," the source revealed. "He was torn, because Jess is an amazing woman and considered to be 'marriage material,' and he loved that about her. But he couldn't drag her along just because one day in the far future he'd want to marry her. It was making her crazy, and it was making him hate himself." 

Despite the fact that it sounded like Timberlake wasn't at all ready to take a trip down the aisle at the time, he ended up proposing to Biel in December of the same year. Instead of taking the time to get his party boys ways out of his system, it definitely seems like Timberlake just put a band-aid on the situation and hoped it would stick. 

Well, in November 2019, Timberlake came a bit undone after he showcased some shady behavior reminiscent of his early, bachelor days. In pictures and a video seen 'round the world, the 38-year-old was caught getting super cozy with his Palmer co-star, Alisha Wainwright. Of course, the photos caused an immediate media frenzy which left both Timberlake and Wainwright's camps scrambling, but were they trying to work PR magic to stop false news from spreading or to cover up a secret relationship? 

Hand-holding, knee-touching — sounds like a romantic date night, right? Well, if you're Justin Timberlake, that's just how some co-workers roll on a typical night out. On November 23, 2019, Timberlake was spotted at a bar in New Orleans, La., where he's currently shooting the upcoming drama Palmer. Included in JT's small crew that night was his co-star Alisha Wainwright. In footage and photos obtained by The Sun, Wainwright can be seen with her hand on Timberlake's knee and holding hands with the singer. In addition to the fact that he was getting way too close to a woman who wasn't his wife, the former NSYNC star also appeared to be sans-wedding ring that night, as well. Boy, bye (bye, bye)!  

Sources told the media outlet that Timberlake had been "drinking heavily" that night, but does that excuse his behavior, or the fact that the two enjoyed quite a bit of alone time that evening despite going out with an entire group? Hint: The answer is "no," and as we're about to point out, even those who rushed to explain away the sketchy situation couldn't help but admit how bad it looked. 

Justin Timberlake and Alisha Wainwright's teams have seemingly been working around the clock to mitigate the damage — but, after all, that is what celebs pay their "teams" for, right? To wit: A source with "direct knowledge of the incident" gave People their perspective on what exactly went down that night. "It's a balcony with a group of people and it was definitely nothing happening," the source said. "He's down there shooting [his film] Palmer, they're starring in the movie together and they're cool and everybody was just hanging out." The source went on to say, "The video may look a way, but literally it was nothing. It was some friends, members of the team, crew and people like that. They all know each other and were hanging. Like come on, they're on an open balcony in New Orleans and he's famous. It was nothing."

Not to be left looking like the guilty party, Wainwright's camp also issued a statement to the outlet saying,"There is no validity to this speculation. They are currently working on a project together. Members of the cast and crew were all together."

The statements and sources are all well and good, but, considering the fact that real-life sparks seemed to fly between these on-screen love interests, it's not a stretch to think that there's a possibility of life imitating art. 

If he could have, Justin Timberlake probably would have cried a river to show just how sorry he was for publicly embarrassing his wife, but instead he did the next best thing. In typical celeb fashion, Timberlake took to the Notes app on his phone to pen a lengthy apology which he subsequently took a screenshot of and posted to Instagram. "I stay away from gossip as much as I can, but for my family I feel it is important to address recent rumors that are hurting the people that I love," he wrote. "A few weeks ago I displayed a strong lapse in judgement (sic) — but let me be clear — nothing happened between me and my costar. I drank way too much that night and I regret my behavior. I should have known better. This is not the example I want to set for my son. I apologize to my amazing wife and family for putting them through such an embarrassing situation, and I am focused on being the best husband and father I can be. This was not that."

He then plugged his movie, as one does when apologizing for what appears to be a brazen infidelity scandal: "I am incredibly proud to be working on Palmer. Looking forward to continuing to make this movie and excited for people to see it."

Is there a better way to authentically communicate your feelings than a PR-crafted statement released on your social media account?  

Recent cheating rumors aside, this isn't the first time Justin Timberlake has been accused of having a wandering eye. While filming 2011's Friends with Benefits with Mila Kunis, Timberlake was accused of being quite friendly with the actress. The singer reportedly tried to shoot his shot, allegedly telling Kunis that things were over with Biel, but she shot him down. A source close to the actress told US Weekly (via HollywoodLife), "Mila knew he had a girlfriend and made it clear it wasn't going to happen." Apparently, even Timberlake's own friends weren't attempting to cover for him with one source telling the outlet, "He tried every trick in the book, but Mila is not attracted to him." He wasn't the first celeb to cozy up to a co-star and (unfortunately) he probably won't be the last. 

Just a year earlier in 2010, Timberlake was accused of having a "three-day fling" with actress Olivia Munn. According to US Weekly, a source revealed that the singer allegedly also told her that he had called it quits with Jessica when, in reality, he was really just sneaking around — super classy. Munn's reps ultimately denied the cheating allegations, but where there's smoke there's fire. In JT's own words, "What goes around, goes around, goes around. Comes all the way back around." So, if the rumors have any truth to them at all, he better watch out because there's probably a good deal of bad juju headed his way.  

While we wait and see if Biel issues a public response to her husband's apology, here are some things that were a little off about their relationship even before cheating rumors started swirling.