Alan Ritchson Claims He Had to Punch Neighbor to Protect His Children as He Breaks Silence on Viral Brawl: 'Scariest Thing I’ve Ever Been Through'

Alan Ritchson is sharing his side of the story months after his headline-making fight with a Tennessee neighbor.

The Reacher star broke his silence during the July 27 episode of Dax Shepard and Monica Padman's "Armchair Expert" podcast, claiming he was forced to punch neighbor Ronnie Taylor after the man allegedly confronted him while he was riding dirt bikes with his children.

Ritchson, 43, described the incident as the "scariest thing I've ever been through," insisting he and his children were barely moving on their motorbikes when Taylor allegedly stepped directly in front of them.

"I was putting along," the actor recalled. "Hardly moving."

According to Ritchson, the confrontation escalated almost immediately.

"All of a sudden, he stepped in front of us," he claimed. "That's when it got weird."

Ritchson alleged Taylor approached him "pretty aggressively" and noted the man was "huge — the same size as me."

Ritchson further claimed he "smell[ed] alcohol" on Taylor's breath and repeatedly attempted to leave the situation before things turned physical.

Ritchson claimed he was left with no choice but to defend himself.

"He two-hand shoved me off the bike," he claimed. "At that point, there's no conversation. I've got to protect me and got to protect my kids and get us off the street safely, and that means getting the guy out of the picture."

"So I hit the guy," he admitted.

The actor said the altercation has continued to affect his family months later.

"It robbed me" of riding bikes with his sons, Ritchson shared, explaining they no longer want to go because they don't want to "deal with that dude" again.

"I don't blame them," he added before bluntly saying, "F--- that."

Ritchson admitted he was terrified in the immediate aftermath of the confrontation.

"My wife was at a retreat," he explained. "I had no way to contact her. I was the sole caretaker of my kids ... calming them down, assuring them, 'I'm not gonna get arrested, I don't think,' [with an] army of cops on my porch."

Although no criminal charges were ultimately filed against him, Ritchson feared the worst.

"I thought my entire career had tanked," he confessed.

Ritchson also revealed what he believes saved him from being arrested — a body camera he purchased a year earlier and happened to wear for the very first time on the day of the fight.

"If anything makes you go, 'Maybe God is real,' it's [that]," Ritchson said. "If I hadn't had that, dude, I'd probably still be in jail."

According to the star, responding officers initially only had access to a neighbor's video of the incident.

"The cops came to arrest me that day and only had [a tape from a neighbor] to go off of," he explained. "[My video] changed the course of my life forever."