Mark-Paul Gosselaar Was Never Asked to Do the Saved by the Bell Reboot

Mark-Paul Gosselaar, who portrayed the mischievous, golden-haired Zack Morris, says he was not asked to be a part of the reboot coming to NBC’s streaming service Peacock, revealed Tuesday.

“I read it in the trades just like everybody else this morning,” the 45-year-old actor revealed to Variety Monday at the premiere of ABC’s show Mixed-ish.

“Honestly, I was never approached. I haven’t been approached, and I woke up to the news this morning with a ‘huh’ kind of response.”

SCAD aTVfest 2019 - "The Passage" — Mark-Paul Gosselaar attends the “The Passage” press junket during SCAD aTVfest 2019 at Four Seasons Hotel on February 8, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Getty Images

Gosselaar said he understood why his phone might not have been ringing. Considering he is under contract with Disney, he would’ve needed to get permission to do a second show for a rival service, which may not have even been approved.

“I kind of understand it ’cause I’m on ABC, so it kind of doesn’t fit into that considering Disney+,” he said, “So, I understand the business side of things, but I had no idea that it was that far along.”

Gosselaar is set to star on Mixed-ish, the second spinoff of ABC’s Black-ish which follows Tracee Ellis-Ross’ Bow as a pre-teen, with Gosselaar playing her father. The series premiere of Mixed-ish airs on September 24.

It seems, however, that the revival will still involve Gosselaar’s character: On the new show, Zack Morris has become California governor and faces backlash for closing too many low-income high schools. As a solution, he suggests the affected students move to the highest-performing schools in the state, including his alma mater Bayside High, disrupting the school’s privileged environment.