Sam Asghari has insisted he had to "work harder to prove himself" after marrying Britney Spears.

The 31-year-old model and actor met his ex on the set of her 'Slumber Party' music video in 2016, and they tied the knot six years later, before separating in August 2023 and finalising their divorce in May 2024.

Speaking to 'Page Six Radio', he said he "absolutely [had] to work harder to prove myself."

He was also working as a waiter and for his own Asghari Fitness brand, with some casting agents seeing him as a "cheesy trainer".

He added: "'Oh, and he's associated with a pop star, which is also cheesy as well.' Or 'can we see him as a character?' There was that line as well."

However, Sam acknowledged that there were advantages to being in a high profile romance with the 'Toxic' pop star.

He said: "I can't sit here and lie and say, 'It wasn't good for me'.

"When you're in such a public relationship ... it sort of gave me that platform for who I am."

However, he recently rubbished the suggestion that he tried to take advantage of Britney's fame and success.

Sam told the 'Trading Secrets' podcast: "I never get mad at the general public or fans or people that are seeing your life from a distance, especially now that I'm not in a relationship for over two years or a year and something.

"Looking from an outside perspective, I see there's an age difference, there's a fame difference, there's this, there's that. But realistically, we met as co-stars."

Despite this, Sam insists he's not worried about the opinions of fans.

He explained: "It's all for me. So it's not really focused on the fans or whoever … My career is always going to be, I'm always going to do things that's going to benefit the fans and people that are watching me. And I want to be a good example. But at the same time, it's because that makes me feel better."