In this, our year of 2023, NSYNC has broken the internet with a reunion and confirmation that three members of the group were in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. My ‘90s nerdy teeny bopper brain can’t process two of my core fandoms almost crossing over: boy bands and Star Wars.
On Sean Evans’ Hot Ones, NSYNC sat down for one of their first major interviews since the reunion for a song on Justin Timberlake’s next Trolls movie. But as it’s revealed in the episode, way before Timberlake went Hollywood, his bandmates Chris Kirkpatrick, Joey Fatone, and JC Chasez shot a crazy cameo for George Lucas’ Attack of the Clones. Kirkpatrick confirmed, “It’s very true. We were the three.”
Timberlake piped in, “I think I remember us getting a call like ‘you’re never believe what happened. We were Stormtroopers’—”
“—Jedis,” Chasez corrected; I’m internally screaming at my fave member of the band having been a Force-sensitive lightsaber wielder. He continued, “We had to learn a bit of sword choreography.”
“Heck yeah!” Fatone echoed as Lance Bass snapped back, “But they got cut out anyway.” (Both Bass and Timberlake ribbed the guys.) Fatone described what it was like being on set for what we can only assume was the arena scene, where their characters probably died, and noted,“The dumbest thing though, as we were doing the scenes, you’re literally going phvrmm phrvmm like an idiot.” One reason to get cut, possibly, or as Bass recalled, “Didn’t the Star Wars fans go crazy that’s why they edited it? Yeah, they did not like that idea.” Thanks, toxic fanboys.
Kirkpatrick expressed that he wished there was video, and Fatone affirmed that it exists, “They do [have it] because they filmed it. I have asked [producer] Rick McCallum, ‘Where’s the footage?’ Because I know he has it. So let’s get that footage, please, I want to see it.” Yes, we need it—just throw it on Disney+!
Watch the rest of the NSYNC interview on Hot Ones below.
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