Justin Timberlake breaks silence at Chicago concert after DWI arrest

Justin Timberlake has made his first public remarks following his drunk driving arrest this week in the Hamptons, which saw his glassy-eyed photo go viral around the world.

“It’s been a tough week,” the “Cry Me a River” crooner told the crowd at Chicago’s United Center Friday night as he resumed his “Forget Tomorrow” world tour, his first performance since the embarrassing Tuesday’s DWI bust.

Timberlake has reportedly previously apologized to his team behind the stage, but his onstage comments were the first time the ten-time Grammy winner, 43, publicly acknowledged the incident.

“I know I’m hard to love sometimes, but you guys continue to love me back,” the former NSYNC member continued from the stage, as the audience cheered.

The “SexyBack” singer, who has two upcoming tour dates at Madison Square Garden on June 25 and 26, downed a $21 Vesper Martini at the American Hotel, where he was “dining with a group of friends,” sources said.

After stopping in his gray BMW 2025 around 12:15 a.m., authorities said Timberlake almost immediately ran a stop sign, prompting cops to arrest him in front of the charming hotel — a celebrity favorite where rooms cost up to $625 per night.

He was charged with driving while intoxicated and cited for running a stop sign and failure to maintain lane, according to court documents.

The police officer who arrested the world-famous singer was “so young he didn’t even know” who Timberlake was, sources said, without recognizing him or his name.

When he complained that the trouble with the law “was going to ruin the tour,” the cop replied “what tour?” as captured on body camera footage.

Timberlake told arresting officers that he had just had one drink, but refused to take a breathalyzer test three times. He attempted to take field sobriety tests, but failed and was taken into custody, according to court documents.

A witness at the bar told the Post that the “Mickey Mouse Club” alum was “wasteful,” even grabbing someone else’s drink from the table and downing it when the owner went to the bathroom.

Timberlake appeared in court later that morning looking disheveled, wearing a black baseball cap, a gray graphic T-shirt with “Live Circuit” on it and a short-sleeved black button-up. He was released without bail.

The “In Time” star admitted to suffering from “excessive drinking” in the past.

He has two children with actress Jessica Biel, whom he married in 2012.

Biel, 42, who was in Manhattan filming a movie, according to sources, told Us Weekly she was “shocked” and “extremely upset” by the news of her husband’s DWI arrest.

If convicted, he faces up to a year in Suffolk County jail, but experts told The Post that sentence is highly unlikely given Timberlake’s clean criminal record.

More likely, he will be fined $500 and have his license suspended in the Empire State for 90 days.