Fans are seeing a piece of Britney Spears like never before.
More than 20 years after she auditioned alongside Ryan Gosling to play fated lovers in The Notebook, footage of the "Overprotected" singer reading as Allie has been released.
In the two-and-a-half-minute clip published by the Daily Mail Oct. 23, the Grammy winner becomes teary-eyed while in character as she breaks the news to Noah (Ryan) that she's marrying Lon (James Marsden).
"I'm not staying, I tried to call you to tell you that I wasn't going to stay—but nobody answered the phone," she says, before becoming emotional. "Noah, you can't marry two people. And I'm marrying Lon, so I should go, okay?"
And while the "Lucky" artist didn't end up starring in the 2004 romantic drama—Rachel McAdams famously ended up playing Allie—the film's casting director Michael Barry will remember her audition until the world ends.
"Britney wasn't just good—she was phenomenal," he told the Daily Mail of the 2002 tryout. "It was a tough decision. Britney blew us all away. Our jaws were on the floor. I was blown away. Absolutely blown away. She brought her A-game that day."
Britney also reflects on not landing the part in her upcoming memoir, The Woman in Me, revealing her relief at not having to step back in front of the camera soon after her role in the 2002 film Crossroads. Instead, she got to refocus on her music.
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The Woman in Me by Britney Spears
In this powerful memoir, Britney tells her own story on her own terms.
"The Notebook casting came down to me and Rachel McAdams, and even though it would have been fun to reconnect with Ryan Gosling after our time on The Mickey Mouse Club, I'm glad I didn't do it," she wrote, per an except published by People Oct. 17. "If I had, instead of working on my album In the Zone I'd have been acting like a 1940s heiress day and night."
But the conversation surrounding The Notebook still isn't over. Keep reading to find out more secrets behind the hit film.