Singing Bee Preview: Joey Fatone's Halloween Buzz

With its colorful themes, shouting contestants and big prizes, you'd think NBC's Singing Bee had it all. But on Tuesday, Oct. 30 (8 pm/ET), host Joey Fatone and the rest of the Bee crew — plus audience — will be dressed up for Halloween, and we don't doubt it'll be a spooky and exciting night of singing. TVGuide.com caught up with Fatone about his latest tricks and favorite treats, plus who he's rooting for on Dancing with the Stars!

TVGuide.com: So what did you do at M&M World in New York recently?
Joey Fatone: I tap-danced, did backflips, it was amazing. [Laughs] Actually, I was there because M&Ms is doing a huge campaign to kick off the Halloween season — and I love Halloween because I love to go trick-or-treating with my family — by giving someone a chance to win $1 million. So what you do is, you buy any kind of M&Ms, take the UPC code and go to mms.com and you get a chance to win. It's more of a treat than a trick.

TVGuide.com: Are you going trick-or-treating with your daughter?
Fatone: Yeah, and I'm hoping to get lots of bags of M&Ms.

TVGuide.com: What's the one piece of candy you always tried to stock up on while trick-or-treating?
Fatone: I think it was anything, it didn't matter what it was, except for those little suckers. Anything to do with chocolate. Then sometimes it was cool when people gave money. It was always a handful of pennies. [Laughs]

TVGuide.com: What has been your favorite costume throughout the years?
Fatone: I had a few interesting costumes. Not that long ago, I actually got a friend of mine who does special-effects makeup and I sat four and a half to five hours getting prosthetic makeup [put] on, and I was Hellboy. That was last year, if I'm not mistaken.

TVGuide.com: What are you going to be this year?
Fatone: I'm not sure exactly. When I go trick-or-treating with my kid, we go themed. So one time she was Pooh, my wife was Eeyore and I was Tigger. Then the other year, I wore this ridiculous costume... my daughter was Alice in Wonderland, my wife was a card, and I was the Queen of Hearts. This time, she wants to be Princess Leia, because of the Star Wars thing I did for Dancing with the Stars. I'm going to be Darth Vader, I think. [My daughter's] little boyfriend is going to be Luke Skywalker.

TVGuide.com: Tell us about Singing Bee's Halloween episode.
Fatone: Ray Parker Jr. performs the Ghostbusters song. I dress up in a Dracula outfit, the audience is dressed up, the singers, everybody.

TVGuide.com: Is it shocking to you how many songs and lyrics people actually know by heart?
Fatone: Oh, yeah! It's crazy. You watch these people, and it's like, "How do you know it word for word?" It's useless knowledge that people have, and they get to win money!

TVGuide.com: Were you worried at all about going up against Don't Forget the Lyrics!?
Fatone: Not really. Me and Wayne [Brady] are actually good friends, and it all happened quickly, and I called him up and said, "Hey! Congratulations," and he said, "Yeah, congratulations on Dancing with the Stars!" and I said, "No, I'm doing a show similar to yours." [Whispers] Ours is better. No, it's a friendly competition. Theirs is more of a take on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Ours is more variety.

TVGuide.com: It doesn't matter, because singing on TV has taken over reality shows! With American Idol kicking things off years back, it's America's addiction.
Fatone: Music is definitely universal.

TVGuide.com: So have you been watching Dancing with the Stars?
Fatone: I haven't been watching 100 percent, but I'm obviously a huge fan of Kym Johnson because she was my partner, and she's doing really well. Marie Osmond is really good, a few people are really good.

TVGuide.com: Would you do it again if they asked?
Fatone: I don't know. Maybe I would for the cardio that it did. It's ridiculous.

TVGuide.com: So how do you feel about your career now compared to when you were in 'N Sync? You're doing some interesting projects now. Do you like the freedom of choosing your next move?
Fatone: Yeah, that's the greatest thing about what's going on. It's interesting how it just took off into a different direction. I never thought I'd be hosting something like this. If someone had told me a while ago that I'd be doing this show about singing along with lyrics, I would have said, "You're out of your mind." I want to do more acting and be able to pave my way back to that. For now, it's smooth sailing.

Sing along with Singing Bee clips in our Online Video Guide.

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