Britney Spears and Mel Gibson are apparently trying to extend their friendship. The odd couple left for Costa Rica in a private jet Thursday morning, E! Online informs.

The troubled singer will apparently spend a mini-vacation at Gibson’s Costa Rican home, together with her father, Jamie Spears, and Gibson’s wife Robin.

A source for E! Online said there were also some unidentified youngsters who got off the plane as well.

The Gibson family befriended the Spears since Britney’s hospitalization in February. Apparently, Gibson and his wife felt sorry for the troubled singer, who was obviously going through a crisis at the time. They thought they should reach out to her and show her she had some supporters in such a difficult period of her life.

Rumors about the two celebrities’ friendship started when the two were spotted having dinner in a Russian restaurant in March. Britney was accompanied by her friend Victoria and Gibson joined them a little later, together with his wife and some friends.

As Gibson has had some experience in dealing with negative press, he might be able to help Britney leave behind her the dark times she has been through.

“I feel compassion for someone like Britney,” Mel said in 2006, as quoted by Ok! Magazine. “She never gets a moment... Your heart goes out to her because I'm positive that, at her core, she's a good woman.”

Since the rumors started to spread, several sources close to the two stars insisted that the collaboration of the two was not a professional one, but a friendly one. Well, judging by Britney’s behavior in the past months, it seems Gibson’s trial to aid the pop star in distress was quite successful.

It’s not the first attempt of this kind for Gibson, who also met Lindsay Lohan some time ago, and gave her advice about how to deal with the media.