Why NSYNC's Star Wars: Attack Of The Clones Cameo Was Cut At The Last Minute

The Battle of Geonosis in "Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones" featured the most Jedi anyone had seen in one single frame up to that point. It's the special effects centerpiece of the film, a chance for George Lucas to cram as many robes and lightsabers into one giant set piece so he could excitedly show how badass these once-mysterious warrior monks actually are. There are tons of minor characters who briefly pop up and then reappear in future media like Kit Fisto and Ki-Adi-Mundi, but the real shocker is that the boy band NSYNC almost became a part of the "Star Wars" extended universe.

Ok, so maybe the members of NSYNC would have never gone on to become Glup Shittos, but some of them did almost appear in a cameo during the scene. "Star Wars" has had its fair share of special celebrity cameos, mostly in the post-Disney acquisition era, where Daniel Craig, Ed Sheeran, and Jason Sudeikis have all briefly played Stormtroopers. Tom Hardy and, even more randomly, Prince Harry and Prince William were also slated to make cameos in "The Last Jedi," but, like NSYNC, their scenes were cut from the final film. And who could ever forget the spate of celebrity appearances in the "Star Wars Holiday Special" that included Bea Arthur, Art Carney, Diahann Carroll, and the members of Jefferson Starship?

News broke upon the original release of "Attack of the Clones" in the summer of 2002 that NSYNC had made a cameo in the film, but eagle-eyed fans tried to look for them to no avail. Two decades later at a convention panel for last year's Fandemic Tour Atlanta, baritone singer Joey Fatone revealed that since he and his other boy bandmates were SAG-AFTRA union members, their scenes were ultimately cut to avoid additional costs as part of a SAG rights fee. Justin Timberlake and Lance Bass wouldn't have even shown up, either, since they were too worn out from touring to visit the set. Fatone has fond memories of the experience and said that he has tried to dig up the old footage. He described the shoot that day:

"They put us in the wardrobe, I had a Padawan tail. George actually came out and directed us, which was really cool. Somebody was taping this, so I asked Rick McCallum, the producer of 'Star Wars,' 'How do I get this footage?' He's like, 'Ah, I can't give it to you.' So there's actual footage of it, there's actual footage of us shooting it and doing it. It was a cool experience..."

He also recalled how they were "in [front of] this big green screen where we're literally fighting nothing" while they were making lightsaber noises to try to immerse themselves in the role. Alas, all their hard vocal work was for naught, and they were lost in the "Star Wars" aether.