AJ McLean Recalls Fist Fight with Nick Carter Over a Comic Book — Which a Naked Kevin Richardson Tried to Break Up

AJ McLean is looking back at all the hijinks from decades of touring with the Backstreet Boys.

On Sunday, March 30, the singer, 47, appeared among tons of stars at 90s Con this weekend, taking the stage alongside members of Wilson Phillips took the stage for the "Music of the 90s" panel moderated by PEOPLE's Breanne L. Heldman at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford.  

During the panel, the musicians reflected on their careers, sharing some of their most entertaining stories from years of touring and making music.

While replying to a fan question about whether anyone in the band has ever been in a fist fight, the singer admitted, "Nick and I have actually been the only ones ever."

"He was a big comic book collector, and I went through a really bad acne phase when I was a teenager. I was 14 or 15, and he kept calling me pizza face. And he had just picked up an Alien vs. Predator number one," he recalled.

"I was like, 'Call me pizza face one more time,' And I held the comic book over the sink at Kevin's apartment with a lighter. I didn't realize that the flame was at its highest, so it burst into flames. I'm like, 'Oh, s---, s---!' To make it worse, then I turn the water on. So now it's it's burnt and it's soggy, and he came up and put me in a headlock and just started punching the back of my head."

The fight occurred while Carter lived with bandmates Kevin Richardson, Brian Littrell and Howie Dorough.

"At this time, Kevin, Brian and Howie lived together, so Brian was in his room on the phone. Kevin came out, in a towel out of the shower. Towel falls off. That's when Howie runs out, sits down. He's eating popcorn like it's a movie. He's like, 'This is amazing,'" he laughs.

"And I'm like, 'Damn it! Kevin, put it away. Nick, stop punching me. What's happening? There was so much happening at one time."

Backstreet Boys are returning to Las Vegas for a residency at the Sphere. The “Into the Millennium” experience will bring the 1999 album Millennium back to life from July 11 to August 17.

“I can guarantee you, Kevin will cry multiple times a night, I know he will,” McLean told PEOPLE on the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards red carpet on March 17. 

“He’s the most emo, especially the song ‘Back to Your Heart,’ which he wrote. [I] guarantee you he bawls his eyes out,” he added. 

The residency will be “an homage to having the best fans in the world,” McLean noted. 

“We truly have the most loyal fans. We’re coming up on 32 years together next month. Holy crap,” he said. “No one has gone and kind of redone their biggest album or biggest tour… So, we’re hopefully setting the bar.”

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90s Con runs through Sunday, March 30 at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford.