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‘Saved by the Bell’ Revival Boss: The ‘Door Is Open’ for Dustin Diamond to Appear

Time out! The Saved by the Bell gang is back together for Peacock’s revival series, which follows a new group of teens through high school, including the sons of Zack Morris (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) and Kelly Kapowski (Tiffani Thiessen) and Jessie Spano (Elizabeth Berkley). The original cast — Gosselar, 46, Thiessen, 46, Berkley, 48, as well as Mario Lopez and Lark Voorhies — will also appear.

Related: ‘Saved by the Bell’ Reboot: See the OG Cast in the ’90s vs 2020

Saved by the Bell, which aired from 1989 to 1993, also included Dustin Diamond‘s Screech Powers, who is the only main star not reprising his role. The actor, 43, has faced many legal troubles over the years and has lost touch with his former costars.

“We talk about Screech’s character and there are little Easter eggs throughout the show of what he’s doing now, and you can find some if you look for them,” showrunner Tracey Wigfield said during the Friday, November 13, episode of the “TV’s Top 5” podcast. “And this season, he wasn’t tied to any of the new characters or anything. But that’s not to say it’s not open for the future, not knowing what stories will be or anything for a cameo maybe.”

Saved by the Bell Dustin Diamond Cameo Reboot
Dustin Diamond Abc-Tv/Kobal/Shutterstock

 

So, although he may not be in the initial 10 episodes, it’s possible he’ll appear in the future. “I do think it could go many seasons,” she said. “Seeing these new kids and following them … by the end of [the first season] you’re invested and care about what happens to them.”

Related: TV Reboots and Revivals

The producer, whose credits include 30 Rock and Great News, also noted that the revival series doesn’t really feature a specifically nerdy character — like the one Screech played in the ’90s series.

“I thought about it and I was having a hard time finding, like, the 2020 version of this,” she said. “The normal kid who’s good at STEM and everyone respects? Is that what it is? There was nothing that sort.”

Saved By The Bell New Cast Reboot
(L-R) Mitchell Hoog as Mac Morris, Belmont Cameli as Jamie Spano, Dexter Darden as DeVante, Josie Totah as Lexi, Aisha Alycia Pascual-Pena as Aisha and Haskiri Velazquez as Daisy at The Max. Chris Haston/Peacock

Wigfield shed light on working with the original cast members again, noting that Berkley, who is also a producer on the show, was very vocal about where her character is today.

Related: '90s Stars: Then and Now

“Elizabeth was very smartly protective of Jessie,” she shared. “Comedy-wise, I feel like often comedy writers will be like, ‘Oh the funniest thing is, like, you’re life’s the worst. Your marriage is bad, you have a bad job and you’re a loser.’ That’s funny! Elizabeth was very careful, and in a really smart way was like, ‘But a lot of girls looked up to Jessie and really cared about her and what happened to her.’ So it was important that she was kind of at Bayside for a different reason than … [Slater] is back at Bayside, he’s just a terrible loser, which he was fine with!”

All 10 episodes of the new Saved by the Bell debut on Peacock on Wednesday, November 25.

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