Rumors Justin Timberlake cheated with 90s girlband star Nicole Appleton have resurfaced after his ex Britney Spears claimed he was unfaithful to her with ‘another celebrity.’

Spears, now 41, who dated Timberlake, 42, from 1999-2002, made the shock claims in memoir, The Woman In Me, due for release on October 24 – with the pop icon not naming the woman because ‘they have a family and she doesn’t want to embarrass them.’

Timberlake, who Spears revealed she got pregnant by in late 2000 and underwent an abortion, was famously seen with the All Saints star, now 48, heading back to his London hotel after a night out in 2000.

The photos – now recirculating on social media – showed Timberlake, then 19 and Appleton, then 25, hiding their faces in the back of a taxi as they tried to lose photographers. 

The pair were also papped walking down the street from The Mayfair Club to the St. Martins Lane hotel where Justin was staying. There is no indication Timberlake was unfaithful and it is not known if Appleton was the celebrity Spears was referring to.

Rumor mill: Rumors Justin Timberlake cheated with 90s girlband star Nicole Appleton have resurfaced after his ex Britney Spears claimed he was unfaithful to her with ‘another celebrity (Timberlake seen left 2004 and Appleton right in 2000)

Happier times: Timberlake and Spears are pictured in 2000 – the year she got pregnant by him and later had an abortion

The story, with the headline ‘Nic and guy act so shy’ wrote  Timberlake was still ‘dating American teen temptress Britney Spears’ at the time of the photos.

DailyMail.com has contacted representatives for Timberlake and Appleton for comment.

At the time of the night out, Timberlake was a year into his romance with Spears and at the height of his fame with NSYNC while Appleton was riding high on her success with All Saints – who scored a top 10 US hit in 1997 with Never Ever.

Appleton and Timberlake never commented publicly on their night out. 

In 2022, Spears’ former make-up artist Julianne Kaye told The Mirror the singer was jealous of Timberlake’s night out with Nicole.

She claimed: ‘I knew they had some issues. She had her questions about who he was with because stuff would be out in the press. They were very famous. So he’d be out with some girl from All Saints and she’d get very jealous, you know what I’m saying?’

Appleton went on to marry Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher, 51., and welcomed a son, Gene, 22, with him before their split in 2014 after it emerged he had fathered another child behind her back.

She wed Stephen Haines in 2021 and they share a daughter Skipper, three.

In her memoir, Britney also revealed that had an abortion with Justin at the age of 19.

The star said she made the ‘agonising’ decision to terminate the pregnancy, after conceiving in late 2000. 

She writes in an excerpt obtained by People: ‘It was a surprise, but for me, it wasn’t a tragedy. I loved Justin so much. I always expected us to have a family together one day. This would just be much earlier than I’d anticipated.

Iconic: Appleton’s band All Saints scored a top 10 US hit in 1997 with Never Ever (pictured L-R Melanie Blatt, Nicole, Shaznay Lewis and Natalie Appleton in 1998)

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What happened? The photos showed Timberlake, then 19 and Appleton, then 25, hiding their faces in the back of a taxi as they tried to lose photographers (Appleton pictured 1998)

Bye, bye bye! At the time of the night out, Timberlake was a year into his romance with Spears and at the height of his fame with NSYNC

‘He said we weren’t ready to have a baby in our lives, that we were way too young. I’m sure people will hate me for this, but I agreed not to have the baby. 

‘I don’t know if that was the right decision. If it had been left up to me alone, I never would have done it. And yet Justin was so sure that he didn’t want to be a father.’

The star claimed while she wanted the baby and ‘dreamed of having a family’ with Timberlake, he ‘wasn’t ready’ for the responsibilities of parenthood and thought the pair were too young. 

The star said the abortion was ‘one of the most agonising things I have ever experienced in my life.’

It was also claimed in the book Spears reveals she was raised ‘not to get an abortion’ due to religious reasons and what she had learned from her family, reports TMZ.

Back tnen: Appleton went on to marry Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher , 51., and welcomed a son, Gene, 22, with him before their split in 2014 after it emerged he had fathered another child behind her back (pictured 2001)

Spears would later welcome sons Sean Preston, 18, and Jayden, 17 with Kevin Federline while Timberlake shares sons Silas, eight and Phineas, two with wife Jessica Biel.

Justin and Britney dated as teenagers after meeting at The Mickey Mouse Club and were an iconic star duo, but split abruptly in 2002 and rumours soon emerged that she’d cheated on him.

His career soared in the wake of the split, with albums and songs promoted under the narrative that Spears broke his heart. 

In the music video for his 2002 hit Cry Me A River, he even used a Britney lookalike, with the singer herself vilified for their break-up.

In 2018, Timberlake said he was so emotional following his split from Spears that he unloaded his feelings by writing Cry Me a River in just two hours.

The former teen heartthrob’s hit song has long been rumored to be about the pop princess, following claims she cheated on him.

Over: The singer, who made the claims in her upcoming memoir, also revealed she had an abortion with Justin when she was 19

The star wrote of the breakup ballad: ‘I’ve been scorned. I’ve been p***ed off. The feelings I had were so strong I had to write it.

‘I translated my feelings into a form where people could listen and hopefully relate to it. People heard me and they understood it because we’ve all been there.’

Timberlake didn’t mention Spears by name in his book but made clear he was a changed man, crediting wife Jessica and  son Silas for his transformation, he wrote in Hindsight: And All The Things I Can’t See in Front of Me.

In 2021, Timberlake wrote in an open apology that he was ‘deeply sorry’ and would ‘take accountability’ admitting that he had ‘failed’ her, after their relationship came under fresh scrutiny following the release of documentaries looking into Spears’ conservatorship.