Fans of *NSYNC shouldn’t hold their breath over the possibility of the beloved ‘90s boy band reuniting for a Las Vegas residency like their rival Backstreet Boys anytime soon — but Joey Fatone hasn’t ruled out the idea.
The 41-year-old told Fox News his former bandmates have no plans on touring, but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t reconsider the idea in the future.
“I don’t know,” said Fatone about the idea of a Las Vegas residency. “You know, that would take a lot of time, a lot of effort. I’m sure it would take a lot of money since Justin [Timberlake] is always on tour. .. But you know what, you never know. I say 'never say never.' It’s just one of those things where it’s sitting down and going, ‘Hey, do you want to do this or not?’ That’s really what it boils down to and everybody obviously, as you get older, everybody has lives.”
“You know I have two kids,” the singer continued. “Justin has a kid. Chris [Kirkpatrick] has a kid. J.C.’s [Chasez] been writing and producing. Lance [Bass] wants to have a kid. He’s been doing stuff on the radio as well. So everybody’s been doing their own thing. It’s really hard to kind of focus and get everybody together. But again, never say never.”
JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE: THERE'S NO REUNION
The quintet last got together in 2018, when they received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Before then, *NSYNC participated in a one-night reunion for the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards. Their last studio album was 2001’s “Celebrity” — *NSYNC never officially broke up, but the following year the group announced an indefinite hiatus.
Timberlake, now 37, explained to The Hollywood Reporter a couple of years ago that he felt that he was “growing out of it” and was eager to pursue his own solo career.
“We had a great time,” recalled Fatone on *NSYNC getting back together for the Walk of Fame ceremony. “It was really surreal in a sense of coming out and seeing that many people be there for the star. … The ceremony’s less than an hour long and so many people came out and it was amazing. … It was fun just to hang out with my boys, my brothers.”
Fatone has been keeping busy carving out his own identity in Hollywood. Since *NSYNC, he has pursued acting both in film and on Broadway, as well as competing on “Dancing with the Stars.” In addition, he has established himself as a television personality, taking on a slew of hosting roles.
JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE REVEALS HE ONCE HOOKED UP WITH A SPICE GIRL
These days Fatone is turning to game shows. He’s currently the host of “Common Knowledge” on the Game Show Network, which focuses on practical, everyday questions everyone should know.
“It feels great,” said Fatone on his latest role. “It’s one of those fun progressions I think for me because I, from being in a boy band, always traveling and running around, this is a little bit more laid back as far as I would say in the sense of the workload, which is fantastic. Now don’t get it twisted, when we shoot the shows we’re doing six shows a day, shooting 65 episodes in about three weeks. So it’s a lot of work in a short amount of time. [But] I get to go home and spend time with my kids.”
Fatone, a proud father to 17-year-old Briahna and 9-year-old Kloey with high school sweetheart Kelly Baldwin, said he’s grateful to entertain audiences, all while dedicating quality time with his family.
“That’s why it feels good for me right now,” said Fatone. “As opposed to if I was still in *NSYNC traveling and touring I think it’d be a lot harder, a little tougher on me in the sense for my kids. But it’s been great. And you know, I love this show ‘Common Knowledge.’ It talks about everyday questions that everybody should know. It’s fun to see the answers from all the other contestants because you never know what’s going to come out of their mouths.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Fatone says he never felt pressured to launch his own solo music career.
“I just was never pressured into it,” he explained. “… I’ve always been talking about possibly doing something like that. But … other duties and other jobs take me in other directions. … I haven’t really had that bug to record something as far as a full album. But you never know. I’d love to do something like that just for fun.”
*NSYNC performed at the Super Bowl, the Olympics as the Oscars, as well as recorded tracks with Elton John, Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson. According to the Hollywood Reporter, at the height of the band’s fame they eclipsed even The Beatles in sales, as the group was selling nearly 2.5 million albums a week to starry-eyed teens across the country.
It might be tempting to launch a reunion for old time’s sake, but Fatone is perfectly content pursuing his passion to entertain on his own terms.
“I think for myself as an entertainer, you just want to entertain,” said Fatone. “Of course you want to make the money and everything — and it’s great. But I think the entertainment factor is what it is and I think so far I haven’t sucked in anything. People have told me I’ve been doing a great job and that’s what I do. It’s not like, ‘Oh, I’m so amazing.’ … No. I’m always learning.”
"Common Knowledge" airs weeknights at 5:30 p.m. on the Game Show Network.