The Jonas Brothers' Dad Worried They Looked 'Too Sexual' in Their 2009 Concert Film, New Book Alleges

Mar. 15, 2025

Joe Jonas, Kevin Jonas and Nick Jonas of the Jonas Brothers in 2008.Photo:Eugene Gologursky/WireImage

Eugene Gologursky/WireImage

In the mid-2000s, theJonas Brothersbecame some of the biggest teen heartthrobs of the decade. But according to a new book, their father,Kevin Jonas Sr., fretted over their squeaky-clean image early in their careers.

According to Spencer, Kevin Sr., then a pastor in the family’s New Jersey hometown, “shepherded” his sons’ early careers, ensuring that their public image aligned with the Jonases’ values.

Kevin Jonas, Joe Jonas and Nick Jonas of the Jonas Brothers in 2008.Lester Cohen/WireImage

Lester Cohen/WireImage

When it came time to put together the group’s 2009 concert filmJonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience, Kevin Sr. worried that footage would lead toKevin,JoeandNickbeing “perceived as too sexual," Spencer writes.

Filmed in New York City in early August 2008 when Kevin was 21, Joe 19 and Nick 16, the movie captured behind-the-scenes footage as well as the Jonas Brothers’ performances at Madison Square Garden during their Burning Up tour. As Spencer notes inDisney High, the concert footage showed the Jonas Brothers “using foam guns to spray the ecstatic crowd with a white soapy substance. Later, the Jonases soaked themselves while banging on water-doused drums.”

The cover of ‘Disney High: The Untold Story of the Rise and Fall of Disney Channel’s Tween Empire’.St. Martin’s Press

St. Martin’s Press

“A lot of times you could see their nipples because they’d be wearing fitted shirts, and they would be soaking wet,” tour photographer Elise Abdalla says in the book. “Their team would be like, ‘No, you have to crop it. No nipples.’ Anything that was too sexy was out.”

WhenSouth Parkparodied the Jonas Brothers in a March 2009 episode poking fun at the apparent contradiction between their wholesome Disney image and their sex appeal to young fans, Kevin Sr. “was not pleased,” Spencer reports. The episode lampooned theboys’ purity ringsand featured a very suggestive animated recreation of the concert film’s foam scenes.

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The Jonas Brothers as depicted in the 2009 ‘South Park’ episode “The Ring”.Comedy Central/Everett Collection

Comedy Central/Everett Collection

“When theSouth Parkepisode came out, their father was super offended,” Abdalla recalls inDisney High. “But I was like, don’t you think the foam thingdoeslook a little weird?”

In a 2016 Reddit Ask Me Anything quoted in the book, Nick also expressed his initial displeasure with the episode. “When it first came out I didn’t think it was funny to be honest,” he said. “But years later and once the purity rings were no longer around, it was very funny to me.”

While Kevin Sr. may not have appreciatedSouth Parkbesmirching the Jonas Brothers’ image, Disney corporate brass apparently saw it differently, according to former Disney Channel president Anne Sweeney.

“We were absolutely thrilled because it meant that the rest of entertainment actually noticed us,” she says inDisney High. “I thought it was funny.”

source: people.com