Britney Spears' latest music video director initially disagreed with her decision to feature real-life boyfriend Jason Trawick in the promo, insisting she should have hired an actor instead.

The singer stars opposite Trawick in the Bonnie and Clyde-themed video for new single Criminal, but moviemaker Chris Marrs Piliero reveals he didn't like the idea when she first suggested it.

He tells MTV.com, "When she first hit me up, she had a basic story in mind, and she actually always originally planned to have Jason, her boyfriend, play the role, and I wasn't super stoked on that idea at first, actually.

"I wanted to make a really rad (radical), epic video, and I definitely got the sense from her she wanted something really cool. And in my mind, I was just thinking then, 'We really should not be using your boyfriend; we should get an actor.' So, I mean, I didn't say that, but in the back of my mind, I'm like, 'I don't like this idea at all.'"

However, Piliero admits Trawick did a good job, adding: "At the end of the day, Jason killed it. That was one of those things I was really stoked (about), as much as I went into it like, 'Wow, he's not an actor. This is going to be interesting,' but I really do like a challenge, and I really do like the idea that I'm a director and my job is to direct and get the performance.

"For me, it was a fun challenge to be like, 'I'm gonna make sure that you are awesome,' and he was."