When it comes to being a distant relative of Britney Spears, Lance Bass had no idea it was gonna be him.
The NSYNC alum, 42, found out that he and Spears, 39, are sixth cousins once removed while investigating his family tree on a new episode of Ancestry's 2 Lies & a Leaf series. The revelation came after Bass and his husband, Michael Turchin, had to guess whether he was related to the "...Baby One More Time" singer, Faith Hill or Elvis Presley.
"I really hope it's Britney, but there's no way," Bass remarked, before guessing Presley. Meanwhile, Turchin went with Spears as his guess, prompting Bass to say that it would be "too good to be true."
Well, it turns out that God must have spent a little more time on Bass' family because he does indeed share a lineage with Spears. Having already been friends with the pop star for decades, Bass was floored by the discovery.
"This is amazing. Oh my gosh!" Bass, who welcomed twins Violet Betty and Alexander James with Turchin via surrogate last month, raved. "Look, I wanted to be related to the Queen. Well now I'm related to the queen of pop!"
"That is so crazy though, 'cause, I mean, I feel like she's my little sister and this whole time she's been my little cousin. And it makes sense because we were born an hour from each other. This is so cool," he added. "For some reason I always felt like we looked like family, even when we were kids. I mean, this means so much to me. She is like family to me, so the fact that we are blood-related is amazing."
Bass and Spears' friendship goes way back to when both broke out on the pop music scene in the late '90s. In fact, Bass had opened up about his sexuality to Spears in 2004, two years before publicly coming out in 2006.
According to the "Bye Bye Bye" artist, he told Spears shortly after she had tied the knot with Jason Alexander in Las Vegas.
"I went up to Vegas to kind of see the craziness that was happening, and she was a little upset once she realized what she had done," he recalled during an appearance on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen in 2019. "Because, you know, it was like a funny thing, and then she started, like, really crying and, like, she was so upset. And so, I took her to her room, and we're sitting on the bed and she wouldn't stop crying. So, I was like, 'I'm gay.' And it made her stop crying. She chuckled."
Which other celebrities are related? Scroll on to find out!
Lena Dunham & Larry David
On an April 2 episode of Finding Your Roots, host Henry Louis Gates Jr., revealed that Lena Dunham had a distant ancestor in common with Larry David on her mother's side.
Stassi Schroeder & Gypsy Rose Blanchard
Genealogist Dr. Adina Newman, known on Instagram as My Family Genie, revealed Blanchard and the Vanderpump Rules alum are allegedly related on their paternal grandmother's side dating back all the way to the 1600s.
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Johnson got emotional when she presented an award to Banderas at the 2019 Hollywood Film Awards.
"I come from a family of many a marriage and I got very lucky," Johnson, whose dad is actor Don Johnson, said. "I got a bonus dad who I realized that, over time, is actually one of the most influential people in my whole life," she said. "When I was six years old, my mother married a man who brought an unbelievably bright light and a whole new world of creativity and culture—and one remarkably magical little sister into our family."
Robyn Lively & Blake Lively
The Teen Witch star and the Gossip Girl alum are half-sisters who share the same mom, talent manager Elaine Lively.
The "Ex's & Oh's" singer is the SNL vet's daughter, born from his relationship with former model London King.
The Fast & Furious star is cousins with the R&B singer thanks to her stepfather, Reverend Edward Best, who happens to be the rapper's uncle.
The late-night host and the Rescue Me creator are third cousins.
The onetime Grey's Anatomy doc has called the legendary director stepdad ever since he married her mom Kate Capshaw in 1991.
The Grown-ish star calls the rapper her second cousin. She was even the flower girl in his 2005 wedding with now ex-wife Kelis!
The actress is the daughter of the Back to the Future icon.
Not only did the Veep vet make a name for herself playing a famous daughter on the HBO comedy, but she's also a famous daughter in real life. The erstwhile Jack Bauer star is her father.
Phil Collins & Lily Collins
Some Emily in Paris viewers were très shocked to discover Lily is the daughter of the English Grammy winner.
The comedian and the New York Senator are actually related, as he's the first cousin of her father.
Kate Middleton, Dakota Fanning & Elle Fanning
According to a 2014 People interview, a family historian from Ancestry.com claimed that the Fannings and the Princess of Wales are all descendants of King Edward III, who ruled England from 1327 to 1377, making them very distant relatives—21st cousins, to be exact.
The actors are actually brother and sister!
Niecy Nash, Danielle Brooks & Sterling K. Brown
Talent runs in this family, as the Reno 911! alum, Orange Is the New Black actress and This Is Us star are all cousins.
"We are blood related!" Nash wrote on Instagram January 2024, sharing a photo of the trio at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Third Annual Fundraising Gala. "REAL cousins!"
The SNL alum calls the Cheers icon Uncle George whenever he seems him. At least, we assume he does.
Stephen Dillane & Frank Dillane
Yep, Game of Thrones' Stannis Baratheon is the real-life dad of Fear the Walking Dead's Nick Clark.
The brunette beauty and the "Stay With Me" singer are third cousins. During a radio interview, Smith admitted that the pair have never met because their family is "huge."
Liev Schreiber & Pablo Schreiber
The Salt actor and the memorable Law & Order: SVU guest star are half-brothers.
Melissa McCarthy & Jenny McCarthy
You may not have guessed but the Bridesmaids comedian and the former View co-host are cousins.
Julia Roberts & Emma Roberts
The We're the Millers actress has the perfect mentor in the Pretty Woman star, who happens to be her auntie.
Lacey Schwimmer & David Schwimmer
Who knew the stunning Dancing With the Stars pro is second cousins with the Friends alum?
Alexander Skarsgård & Stellan Skarsgård
The True Blood vampire caught the acting bug from his dear old dad who stars in both The Avengers and Thor franchises.
The Ghost Rider actor comes from an extremely talented family. One of his cousins directed The Bling Ring, the other starred in Saving Mr. Banks and his uncle directed The Godfather.
Lily Allen& Alfie Allen
The outspoken British singer is the older sister of the Game of Thrones star. She even wrote a song about him titled "Alfie."
The Damages star and the Lipstick Jungle actress are second cousins.
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty actress originally inspired her baby brother to get into show business.
Rashida Jones & Quincy Jones
The Parks and Recreation actress is the daughter of the legendary music producer.
The Lost actor has a very famous cousin in the Mission: Impossible star.