Nick Carter speaks: Paris tried to destroy me
When Nick Carter made headlines in July 2004, it wasn’t because of his band’s latest hit single (the Backstreet Boys have sold more than 78 million albums worldwide to date) but rather it had more to do with accusations that he had abused his then girlfriend Paris Hilton, who showed up at a Hollywood club with bruises on her arms and a fat lip.
Two years later, the 26-year-old singer, who makes his reality show debut on October 2 with a no-holds-barred peek into his troubled family life on E!’s House of Carters series, is finally ready to talk about his rocky romance with Hilton, now 25.
“I thought the fact that she had money and was famous meant I wouldn’t have to worry about somebody using me,” he says. “I thought that. Wrong. I kind of fell head over heels for this girl. And I probably shouldn’t have.”
Indeed, while the Simple Life star was shooting her thriller House of Wax in Australia that summer, Carter heard through the grapevine that his girlfriend was getting too friendly with costar Chad Michael Murray, now 25, who was then on the verge of engagement to Sophia Bush, now 24. The singer says he was so hurt that he retaliated with a little cheating of his own. Shortly after their infidelity showdown, the bruises appeared.
“I would never lay a hand on a woman,” Carter insists. A source close to Hilton disputes this claim: “This is a lie. Nick has a well-known problem with his temper.”
So where did Paris’ injuries come from? What happened when Nick’s younger brother, Aaron, took Paris out on a date? For these details and more, check out the current issue of Us Weekly, on newsstands this week.
By Noelle Hancock
September 27, 2006
US Magazine