Where Kevin Federline's Relationship With Britney Spears Stands 15 Years After Split

Toxic? Kevin Federline's wishes for Britney Spears are far from it. Amid the pop star's conservatorship battle, here's where the father of her sons stands.

Watch: What Kevin Federline Wants for Ex Britney Spears

While Britney Spears fights to cut legal ties with one man in her life, here’s where another—her ex-husband Kevin Federline—stands. 

As fans well know, the pop icon was married to Federline, formerly her backup dancer, for two years before she filed for divorce in November 2006. By that point, they were parents to sons Sean Preston, now 15, and Jayden James, currently 14. Federline’s attorney Mark Kaplan confirmed in February that the mom and dad continue to share custody with Federline taking the kids 70 percent of the time. 

Of course, their short, but eventful union was more than a decade ago. Now with Spears’ bombshell testimony regarding her long-running conservatorship making headlines, Kaplan shared where the father of six stands in the situation dominating headlines. 

“They share a custodial relationship with the kids and nothing has changed as far as he’s concerned because the conservatorship is still in place,” the powerhouse lawyer explained to E! News. “If something changes in that regard, there will have to be some further dialogue about what the status quo is at that time.” 

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“Framing Britney Spears'” Most Disturbing Moments

According to Kaplan, Federline wishes his ex well, which would ultimately benefit their relationship as co-parents. 

“Kevin wants her to be happy and healthy because she deserves that and that’s the best possible way for the custodial parent to be exercising custody,” Kaplan said. “So he hopes that she is taking actions that promote her happiness and well-being because that’s what would best serve her role as a custodial parent.”

Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage

Though Spears finally got to have her voice heard through the candid and deeply personal testimony she shared, peace remains elusive for the 39-year-old star, a longtime target of the paparazzi. 

While recently vacationing in Hawaii after the hearing, the performer sounded off agains the photographers on social media and accused them of misrepresenting her in photographs. 

“So being here in Maui is pretty crazy now,” the singer wrote, “the paps know where I am and it’s really not fun !!!! It’s pretty hard going anywhere cause these silly faces keep popping up to take my picture [camera and rolling-eyes emoji] … but not only do they take my picture … they distort my body and mess with the image and it’s embarrassing [grimacing, flushed and upside-down face emojis] !!!!!”

She continued, “I know my body is not perfect but I definitely do NOT look like how they portray me. It’s rude and it’s mean so paps kindly F–K YOU AND F–K OFF [kiss emojis] !!!!”

Click here for E! News’ full coverage of her’s conservatorship battle.

Kevin Federline Addresses Britney Spears Conservatorship in Bombshell Attorney Statement

Just six days after Britney Spears gave a shocking testimony during a court heart hearing about her conservatorship battle, ex Kevin Federline addressed the matter through his attorney.

Watch: Britney Spears Feels “Hopeful” After Conservatorship Hearing

Add Kevin Federline to the list of Britney Spears supporters.
 
Less than a week after his ex-wife delivered shocking testimony about her ongoing 13-year conservatorship battle, Kevin’s attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan, revealed the father of six’s thoughts on the matter. Federline is focused on his and Spears’ sons Sean, 15, and Jayden, 14, noted Kaplan. “The best thing would be for their mom to be healthy and happy,” Kaplan shared in a June 29 statement to People. “And if either of those things aren’t true, it doesn’t provide for the best setting for custody to be exercised.”

As for Federline, who ended his three-year marriage with Spears in 2007, Kaplan continued, he “certainly respects Britney and only hopes the best for her because when the best for her is achieved, it’s the best for their kids,” Kaplan continued. “The kids love their mother and he wants there to be a healthy and strong relationship.”
 
Acknowledging the accusations Spears made with her testimony, Kaplan added, “Britney has not been served well by the conservatorship and it’s not consistent with what she wants.” Kaplan also shared that he feels Spears should be able to end the conservatorship that has been in place since the singer’s 2008 hospitalization, stating, “I think that she should be able to challenge that. And if it’s what’s best for her, Kevin supports it.”

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Britney Spears’ Romantic History

Kaplan also explained he believes it’s for the best for Spears’ voice “to be heard.”

Matthew Simmons/Getty Images for Rolling Stone

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One claim of note, he said, was Spears stating that she was reportedly given lithium. “If it was necessary, we have to be concerned about whether she’s okay and if it’s no longer necessary, that’s great too,” Kaplan said. “Just want to make sure that all of the considerations, how she’s doing are taken into account if she seeks to change the custody order in the post-conservatorship era, if that ever comes.”

Former NFL Player Kevin Ware Jr. Named as a Suspect in Death of Missing Girlfriend

Texas authorities have said former professional football player Kevin Ware Jr. is suspected of murdering 29-year-old Taylor Pomaski, who was reported missing by her family in May.

Montgomery County Jail

A former NFL player has been identified by authorities as a suspect in the death of a missing 29-year-old Texas woman. 

Kevin Ware Jr., who played for the San Francisco 49ers, appeared in court on June 14 as part of a separate case, where he’s being charged with possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and unlawful possession of a firearm as a felon. 

In a document filed by state prosecutors and obtained by E! News, they requested Ware is denied bail because of his suspected involvement in girlfriend Taylor Pomaski‘s death. 

“The defendant is suspected of murdering his girlfriend, Taylor Pomaski, while on bond for these charges,” the documents stated.

Additionally, prosecutors said Ware’s “significant financial resources” resulting from his football career, paired with prior bond violations, gives him “motivation to flee this jurisdiction and country” and “demonstrates he is a danger to the community.” 

Ware has not been formally charged in Pomaski’s disappearance and has not entered a plea in the aforementioned charges against him. 

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E! True Hollywood Story Covers Crime

According to Montgomery County Jail inmate records viewed by E! News, the 40-year-old was arrested on April 19 and released on $23,000 bond. Then, two months later on June 11, Ware was taken into police custody for allegedly violating the conditions of his bond. 

Since then, he’s remained behind bars as Pomaski’s loved ones search for her whereabouts. 

The Harris County Sheriff’s Office said Pomaski was last seen attending a party on April 25. 

Pomaski’s family filed a missing persons report on May 10 when they realized she had not contacted them on Mother’s Day, her father told ABC13. 

“I’m terrified for the potential outcome. It breaks my heart,” Stephen Pomaski told the outlet. 

According to Pomaski’s father, Ware told him he last saw her departing their house without her personal possessions or dog Molly. “No matter what happens in her life,” he noted to ABC13, “she always makes sure Molly is taken care of.” 

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An attorney for Ware told ABC13 in a statement, “Previously, law enforcement reached out to Kevin regarding Ms. Pomaski, and he told them what he knew, and let them in his home.”

E! News reached out to Ware’s attorney for comment but did not hear back. 

How Kevin Smith and Harley Quinn Smith Became the Coolest FatherDaughter Duo in Hollywood

In an exclusive interview with E! News, director Kevin Smith and actress and podcaster Harley Quinn Smith opened up about their unique bond and working together.

Watch: Kevin Smith Wants “More Pictures” From Ben Affleck & Jennifer Lopez

Most 21-year-olds would rather be out with their friends, hitting up a club or doing almost anything other than co-host a podcast with their father. Then again, most young adults don’t call Kevin Smith dad.

The director, known for cult films such as Clerks, Mallrats and Jay & Silent Bob, is undeniably cool. But his daughter Harley Quinn Smith might be even cooler…just ask her dad, who couldn’t help but gush over the recent success of her Freeform series Cruel Summer.

“She’s amazing,” Kevin told E! News in a recent Zoom interview alongside Harley. “When the show became real buzzy and everybody’s talking about it, my Twitter feed stopped being about me and started being about her.”

But, being a parent, the filmmaker was admittedly excited about the show’s success for another, slightly more selfish, reason.

“Cruel Summer was a great gift in this house because suddenly she had financial autonomy and stuff and now we’re in a world where I’m like, ‘Can I have some money?” he joked. “Because she makes more than I do!”

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First-Time Dads: Father’s Day 2021

“I’m very happy for her,” the proud dad continued. “I mean to see somebody get financial independence is great, but also to see her get creatively inspired when the show ended, she was just crying. So when you see your kids swept up in the arts like that means everything, especially being an artsy fartsy kid myself.”

Paul Butterfield/Getty Images/Paul Archuleta/FilmMagic/E! Illustration

Like father, like daughter it seems as Harley has followed in Kevin’s footsteps, carving out a unique career as an actress, musician and podcast host. She also, incidentally, got her start appearing in her dad’s movies—including Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks II and Yoga Hosers—before becoming his collaborator.

The duo are currently co-writing a series and though they remained tight-lipped when it came to to the details of the project, they were more than happy to discuss working together.

 

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“It’s such a cool gift to be able to work with somebody you’re related to,” Harley said. “We have pretty similar minds, so it’s kind of like you’re shooting with another version of yourself. It’s so much fun and we’re working on another thing together now which has been, in my opinion, the most fun yet, and I can’t wait for us to be able to share with the world what that is.”

Kevin reflected on the rare journey of going from asking his daughter to audition for his movies to writing and pitching a project with her. 

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“We’ve been writing together which is so much fun because that’s make pretend, right? Like I used to make pretend with her when she was a kid,” he explained. “Now she’s an adult and you rarely get to do that. But in this way we can, because it’s the same thing, you sit around go, ‘What if they did this, what if this happened, what if this happened,?’ So you get to play again, which is a rare gift for a parent now. I thought those days were long behind me, You know she’s acted with me, but writing with her it’s been this whole incredible different experience than that I’ve absolutely adored because it is like getting to play all over again.”

James Devaney/WireImage

And the shift in their working relationship has been smooth, with Harley saying, “It’s crazy because he’ll say something and I’ll finish a sentence and then he’ll be like, ‘Yes! Or I’ll say something that he’s thinking and he’ll be like, ‘high-five!’ And that’s it, we’re just good creative partners because we have the same brain.”

In case it wasn’t clear by now, Kevin and Harley get along, playing off each other more like friends than a father and daughter.

“Somebody asked me about being an only child the other day and I was like, ‘Well honestly, my dad really took the place of being my sibling,'” Harley shared. “He played video games with me, took me to arcades to get enough tickets to win a bubblegum dispensary machine. We would just always do fun stuff together and we still do so. He’s just like my friend, my pal.”

For Kevin, that’s how he always envisioned he’d be as a father, saying he “rolled a tear” when Harley once told him he felt more like a “really rich cool older brother.”

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After meeting when she interviewed him for USA Today, Kevin married Jennifer Schwalbach Smith in 1999 and the couple welcomed Harley later that same year. (Yes, she’s named after the iconic DC Comics character.) 

“I never felt like truly comfortable being somebody’s father, particularly because like me and Jen we became parents, young, like we were still in our 20s, but like still kids,” Kevin admitted. “I’ve worked in the make-believe business, so I never had to grow up. I’ve been making film since I was 22. So, suddenly somebody’s like, ‘Here, here’s your kid, you’re responsible now.’ Everything I’ve done in my life is to avoid responsibility, there’s no way I’m prepared for this. So I never really fancied myself like the person that could be a dad, the same way when I was like did Q&A at film festivals.”

Paul Butterfield/Getty Images/E! Illustration

When Harley was young, her mom “hung the moon,” but Kevin knew his time would come to become “the favorite parent” after their daughter eventually learned what he did for a living.

“And that day came to pass,” he said. “Suddenly, she was like, ‘You make things? I like making things!’ And suddenly we had a lot more in common.”

That’s not to say Harley wasn’t ever embarrassed by her dad’s movies, especially 2009’s Zack and Miri Make a Porno. 

“It’s not really kosher to have your dad make a film with the word ‘porno’ in it, so it was complicated for a while until I got older,” Harley said. “But as a kid, my friends will come over to my house and be like, ‘Why does your house smell so weird?’ and I’d be like, ‘it’s like a candle,’ and it would just be, like, so much weed. So, I was pretty embarrassed for a while but then, once I got older, then I was like, ‘Oh, you’re cool, I guess.'”

Kevin then joked, “Once she became a stoner, it was all OK.”

But a passion for storytelling and marijuana aren’t the only interests the pair share, as both Kevin and Harley are vegans—though their journeys to that lifestyle were vastly different. 

Rich Polk/Getty Images for IMDb

After starting out as a vegetarian, Harley, an activist for animal rights, adopted veganism four years ago. But it took a serious health scare—a massive heart attack in 2018—for Kevin to go plant-based at his daughter’s demand. 

“The truth is that I did not give my dad an option to not go vegan after his had his heart attack,” she explained. “A lot of the time, animal fats can clog your arteries, and so that’s one of the leading causes of heart attacks. Knowing this, I was like, ‘I’m not risking anything ever again, you have literally no choice.'”

What started off as a two-month trial to appease his daughter became an entirely new lifestyle for Kevin, who went on to lose 51 pounds. But the heart attack had just as much of an impact on Harley.

“I’ve had a very blessed life, but almost losing your dad, like three minutes away from dying, is traumatizing,” she explained. “It’s an insanely traumatizing thing to have happen to you. It was the worst f–king thing that could ever happen to me.”

But three years later, Kevin is healthier than ever and the duo have started a podcast called Vegan Abbatoir, about veganism, though Kevin doesn’t exactly like to use the V-label. 

“The internet I guess is very triggered about veganism,’ he explained.  “I’ve switched to the term plant-based just to take the heat off and stuff.”

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Celebrity Vegans

Still, it’s factoring into their Father’s Day celebration, with the Smith family ordering a special vegan BBQ box from one of their favorite restaurants, Veggie Grill.

“We’ve been looking forward to this for a while,” Harley said.

“We saw the ad and we’re like, ‘Oh my god, we need an occasion!” Kevin added. “Which is so weird because generally we’re, like, ‘It’s Tuesday, let’s over-order!’ For some reason we’re like, ‘That is Father’s Day.'”

Or, as it appears to be in their household, Best Friends Day. 

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