Justin Timberlake Is In Hot Water After Reportedly Getting Cozy With His Co-Star

It's been a wild few days since photos and videos that appear to show Justin Timberlake and Alisha Wainwright holding hands at a bar in New Orleans and looking pretty cozy began circulating the internet on Saturday, Nov. 23. While fans don't know what to think of the situation, a source "with direct knowledge of the situation" is now speaking out about the matter and saying it got blown out of context. Elite Daily reached out to both Timberlake and Wainwright's reps for comment on the reports, but did not hear back by the time of publication.

According to People, an inside source told the publication that despite rampant speculation, the situation was "completely innocent" following footage of their outing at a bar in New Orleans. In a video and still photos shared by The Sun, Wainwright appears to put her hand on Timberlake's leg numerous times while they are talking. In others photos, the Palmer co-stars appear to be holding hands as they enjoy drinks. Onlookers reportedly told The Sun that the pair was "laughing and smiling" and appeared to be drinking heavily.

"At one stage, he grabbed her hand and rested it on his knee. She then gently started stroking his leg," a source reportedly told the publication. "Then he clutched her hand with both of his and was playing with her hands."

While the footage and the description of the evening's happenings might seem pretty incriminating at first glance, especially considering that Timberlake has been married to Jessica Biel since 2012 and they share their son Silas together, multiple sources reassured People that the co-stars' rendezvous was not what it seemed.

First of all, People's source reassured the publication that the pair, who is currently filming for the upcoming movie Palmer, were actually hanging out with a group of people and weren't on a one-on-one outing, as it initially appeared from the photos and video.

"It’s a balcony with a group of people and it was definitely nothing happening," the source explained. "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."

Meanwhile, a rep for Wainwright echoed these sentiments to the publication, 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."

Her rep concluded, "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."

On Wednesday, Dec. 4, Timberlake broke his silence by posting a screenshot of an iPhone Note on Instagram. "I displayed a strong lapse in judgement — but let me be clear — nothing happened between me and my costar," he wrote. "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."

At the time of publication, Wainwright has yet to publicly comment on the controversial footage that's been circling the internet. However, from the sounds of things, it was a friendly situation between two co-stars that got blown out of context, so Timberlake and Biel stans can rest easy for the time being.