AJ McLean thinks he was almost 'brainwashed' during a visit to LA's Celebrity Scientology Center

AJ McLean says he thinks he was almost ‘brainwashed’ during a visit to LA’s Celebrity Scientology Center

Backstreet Boy AJ McLean is talking about his close encounters with Scientology.

The Dancing With The Stars competitor, 43, recalled his experience with the controversial religion while inviting vocal critic/ex church member Leah Remini on his own Pretty Messed Up podcast with Cheryl Burke and Rene Elizondo Jr.

McLean revealed he once checked out the notorious Church Of Scientology Celebrity Centre in LA, but quickly feared he they were trying to use a ‘brainwashing technique’ on him.

Scientology scare: AJ McLean talked about his unsettling experience going to the Scientology Celebrity Center in LA in the early 2000s while talking to Leah Remini on his podcast this week

 Scientology scare: AJ McLean talked about his unsettling experience going to the Scientology Celebrity Center in LA in the early 2000s while talking to Leah Remini on his podcast this week

The Larger Than Life singer – who is open about his journey with sobriety – said around 2002/2003 he was ‘living in Los Feliz right down the street from the megacenter of Scientology’ and got ‘curious’ about it.

‘I didn’t know what it was, I didn’t know anything about it. But I wanted to not go alone, so I took a friend with me.’

‘We got a tour of the facility and they brought us to this media room and they sat us down and they said “Would you mind watching this short film?”‘

‘And we watched this short film, it was about 15 minutes long, and then I said “OK, well, that was interesting” and we went to leave and the door was locked.

‘They wouldn’t let us out and they replayed the same film again,’ he said. ‘We didn’t get out of that room for about 15 minutes [or longer.] They played it three times until someone heard me knocking.’

No exit: After getting a tour of the VIP center and watching a video, AJ and a pal weren't able to get out of the screening room, something the Backstreet Boy feared was a 'brainwashing technique'

No exit: After getting a tour of the VIP center and watching a video, AJ and a pal weren’t able to get out of the screening room, something the Backstreet Boy feared was a ‘brainwashing technique’

AJ said he was ‘freaked out,’ sure that they were using some sort of ‘brainwashing technique’ which did not ‘seem normal.’

‘I got close, but I never would have,’ he went on. ‘I’m a very spiritual person. That’s how I’ve been raised, that’s how I’ve been living my life, more about spirituality than organized religion.’

Remini talked about the lifelong impact Scientology has had on her psyche, saying: ‘I felt judged and not right. I wasn’t part of the right crowd, and I still feel like that today.’

‘When I was accepting an Emmy and on the Emmy stage, I thought one day I will feel like I’m a part of this business…’

Leah was raised as a Scientologist starting from age nine after her mother joined the organization. She left in 2013 and has since become a staunch critic of the church.

Impact: Remini talked about the lifelong impact Scientology has had on her psyche, saying: 'I felt judged and not right. I wasn’t part of the right crowd, and I still feel like that today'

Impact: Remini talked about the lifelong impact Scientology has had on her psyche, saying: ‘I felt judged and not right. I wasn’t part of the right crowd, and I still feel like that today’ 

source: dailymail.co.uk