Mark-Paul Gosselaar reflects on his time on Saved by the Bell + recent backlash

[@LetsGetitBoah]

This dude never ages. He could still pass for a college student.

[@wendypartida2206]

You took the words right out of my mouth.

[@chinesa90]

Y'all see him now on Found on NBC? He ages WELL

[@UnashamedCaliforniagirl]

​@@donkeygospel6he is ❤

[@UrbanNoizeMusic]

I can understand him being critical of his work as an actor and artist. But he did great work on the original Saved By The Bell. And that shouldn't be downplayed. His rhythm, comedic timing and delivery of lines is what gave the Zack character charm. Honestly couldn't see new generation actors handling the part the way he did. And I'm not alone in saying the the role as well as the writing and other characters stood the test of time.

[@redmusichouse]

SBTB is what it is, but it's still fun and enjoyable after all these years and has more than earned its respected place in TV history.

[@kathleenreynolds7113]

He never ages and just gets more and more handsome

[@tiffany-wt2sb]

Yes. So handsome

[@desireeboone3631]

Oh yes, I had his poster on my wall❤❤❤❤

[@kathleenreynolds7113]

@@desireeboone3631 he’s so dang handsome

[@Jdwest6]

Dead Man On Campus is a gem.

[@xBINARYGODx]

very underrated comedy.

[@aaronhaley6476]

These fuckers want to kick me out for not observing quiet hours!!!

[@rizwanramzan5729]

Yes!!! Hilarious movie. MPG was amazing in that flick!

[@daviddibble2744]

Saw it in theaters I’ll never forget that summer of 1998 🎉

[@thepayne7862]

I also liked him in Franklin and Bash, he was also good in NYPD Blue. Also Zack Morris had one of the best super powers with his Time Out ability. To be able to pause time briefly and be able to physically influence people and objects while they are in Time Out.

[@deesee3622]

He and Evie Garland on Outof this world- two wonderful 80s sitcoms

[@cable7152]

He was breaking the 4th wall long before Deadpool made it cool.

[@rolandofgilead43]

@@cable7152 true i think he became a better actor as he got older NYPD Blue is a good example on how different kind of role he was doing up until that time. at least that's how it feels like to me anyways i have not seen a lot of his work though. Franklin and Bash i have not seen to be fair

[@sleepinglionarchives]

He rocked in The Passage. Seriously good show that wasn't given a chance. Wish he wasn't so hard on himself for the Saved By the Bell years. It was a completely different era. Writing and acting styles of the time, especially on a show aimed at kids and young teens, didn't allow its actors to shine. Seriously, check out some ads from the 80s, they're overly earnest, silly and often cheesy

[@blacklabelholsters1635]

I agree completely! It was an awesome show and I really enjoyed his character and the fact that he though he was a "good guy", then found out he was working for bad people and did what he could to correct it. Too bad it ended so quickly!

[@brownandbeautiful75]

@@blacklabelholsters1635 wish netflix would pick this up like they did Lucifer. FOX don't keep their good shows.

[@UnashamedCaliforniagirl]

He is selling himself short but it's great to see an actor his age be so humble ❤

[@curr62]

Dude an episode of SVU you did was really great

[@hectorlopez1069]

I used to watch SBTB alot, as a kid, it was the greatest sitcom of the past.

[@donkeygospel6]

MPG is so humble and self-aware. I don't even know if he realizes how ICONIC and beautiful he is and what an idol he was for an entire generation of girls (and gay boys!).

[@cable7152]

MLP? You mean MPG?

[@donkeygospel6]

@@cable7152 LOL yes. Fixed.

[@cable7152]

@@donkeygospel6 👍😆

[@ammabu]

I wonder if this is why he stopped doing the Zack to the Future podcast. I enjoy all of his work. My favorite was Paul on Mixedish.

[@thefungoden3978]

Not Breaking Bad? The caffeine pill episode of Saved By the Bell was some of the most important television of it's time!

[@tiffany-wt2sb]

I'm catching up on his projects. Mark-Paul Gooselaar has been in so many projects. Just now seeing Hyperion Bay. He's Amazing on this show. I will watch him on his other projects.

[@mrmark0987]

#deadmanoncampus epic memories of Mark Paul!

[@bfsgman]

I hate that so many people look down their nose at cheesy things. Shows like Breaking Bad and the Sopranos may be top tier television, but imagine how dark life would be if shows like that were our only entertainment options. There's nothing wrong with a bit of cheesy fun now and then. And as to Mark-Paul's point about child actors being "more talented" today, I'd argue that's a bad thing. It wasn't that child actors in the 80s and 90s were bad, it's that they looked and behaved like real children. In contrast, child actors today are overly polished. They sing, dance, and look and act like miniature adults. It's annoying when every kid on TV has to be mature beyond their years.

[@UnashamedCaliforniagirl]

I couldn't agree more

[@LEDPENNY]

I liked him on NYPD Blue, one of my fav shows of the 90's.

[@SwiftFoxProductions]

He is way too hard on himself. But, I understand that it's hard to be impartial, especially when you're watching yourself as a teen. In reality, Mark-Paul's sense of comedic timing in his teen years was light years ahead of the kids on the current Saved By the Bell (who are mostly older than he was at the time). He knew how to pause for a laugh in a natural way, say a funny line without being overly performative and just live in scenes by doing little bits of business... stupid little things like acting like you're about to say something when you know another character actually has the first line and is going to "interrupt" you. That may not sound like much but, those are naturalistic things a lot of young actors simply don't do (especially in comedy). A lot of kid/teen actors may be triple threats right now (which is great) but, I actually can't think of any that are really hitting it out of the park as comedic actors. Honestly, every time I watch the original Saved By the Bell I am amazed at how good these teens were. I mean, there are full-grown adults that don't know how to do traditional sitcom-style comedy (which is why there aren't very many 3-camera sitcoms on TV right now). It's a very specific skill set that is a lot harder than it seems and should not be undervalued.

[@111highgh]

Only a douchebag would say, "overly performative."

[@UrbanNoizeMusic]

And I couldn't agree with you more. The work he did was great for its time. And the writing was good too. Which is why the original show still stands the test of time. As you highlighted, Mark played his scenes well. Never too much.

[@debwms2550]

The Passage and Pitch are my favorite MPG series. Neither one had 2 seasons. Looking at the various series that have been renewed for a second season really makes me wonder what are they ingesting.

[@allsmilez13]

Agreed!!! Pitch deserved at least 4 seasons

[@cjbobo66]

He brought up The Passage, such a good show still pissed they canceled it after the first season

[@christophergarrett7082]

Love this interview

[@allsmilez13]

Watching him now on Will Trent and enjoyed Pitch with him and Kylie Bunberry. Such a great actor!

[@ppaulys_garage7386]

saved by the bell was so good because of all of the cast not just mark paul

[@michaelversace456]

ya Markus! Halo Dari Australia!

[@jehobden]

i'd rather watch a day of SBtB than an hour of BREAKING BAD.

[@Miselayneous]

Pitch was amazing and it was an ABSOLUTE CRIME it was canceled after one season!

[@tornoofo17]

I’m from San Diego and I was PISSED that they almost traded away the beard.

[@mintytruffle69]

Ikrrr!!

[@lej7898]

I loved Hyperion Bay and The Pitch. I also liked To Tell the Truth. I grew up watching every Saved By the Bell during the first run and syndication.

[@rickindurham]

I have to disagree about the new generation of SBTB.....the original was infinitely better

[@thepayne7862]

I didn't even know there was a new generation of sbtb.

[@rickindurham]

@@thepayne7862 I promise, you aren't missing anything

[@FoxEarendil]

I watched a clip of the new sbtb and it was legit cringe. I don’t understand why Hollywood always has to ruin a good thing.

[@r0ckz]

@@FoxEarendil cringe or not, they shouldn't have done it at all or should've written a proper ending to the seasons, because now that it's cancelled it ended with a cliffhanger between Jessie and Slater. IMO that's the biggest problem, what a way to end the entire franchise (probably) for good, lol.

[@FoxEarendil]

@@r0ckz I agree they shouldn’t have done it to begin with, because that’s what happens. They take something that was perfectly fine dead, revive it just long enough to understand no one asked for it, and end it on some cliffhanger. Luckily I didn’t get into this, and even if I had, I have an imagination of how I would have probably thought it could have ended. But then that’s why they should not have brought it back, people have their own opinions about what could have happened between characters.

[@rizwanramzan5729]

MPG was amazing in Deadman on Campus....amazing movie...so underrated

[@video198712]

I loved him in "The Princess and the Marine".

[@sierrascottxoxo]

The new generation of kids are sassier, more edgy, & more apt to present or be presented as more adult. Kids in the 90s were more likely portrayed as kids. It’s nice to see kids doing stupid kid stuff & experiencing childhood growth in a time where people valued the childhood experience. It’s a little sad to see kids today being forced to mature so early. You never get that time back once it’s gone.

[@hodown1735]

I watch the original and the new cast members every Saturday.

[@pluto545]

I think the missing word is "charisma." Which is something you cannot teach someone or give to a person. MP, he nailed that part of the equation, pretty early on, I dare say, during the Good Morning Miss Bliss Years, I believed MPG and Dustin Diamond (R.I.P.) probably stood out the most from that cast, outside of the adults, like Mills, Ryan, Haskins, and Carter. In the "Engel" universe, they tried to re-create that "Zack Morris" character in other shows, and it always came off as poor imitation. I feel like the New Class tried it a few times, but realize that they needed to create new characters that worked to the talent of their cast, which was always pretty talented (93-2000). Other teen shows of the 90s and a few, during the 2000s tried it as well, and it did not work. That character had such unique charm to it that really only MP could do well and convincingly. For MP, he's a tough critic of himself, like alot of actors are and have to be. Especially, if you don't see success after the show, like he did in real life, considering most of his other cast members were getting some really good breaks. Which says more about typecasting than anything else. Michael and Mark are both right about "SBTB." It was not groundbreaking material or something you would win alot of prestige with especially, when you have shows, like BH 90210, My So-Called Life, or... Degrassi (Jr . High/High). I loved SBTB, watched everytime it was TV, but I was never under impression it was high art.

[@deannagordon550]

I loved him on NYPD Blue he was amazing

[@Presice]

He was great in Mixedish

[@leannepritchett6323]

Another gem from this amazing episode ❤️

[@cable7152]

While I agree SBTB was no Breaking Bad, Zack was definitely dealing Blue Magic to his classmates.

[@christianfinkbeiner684]

He was excellent on "NYPD Blue."

[@gretchenposton9450]

The original SBTB was corny & marginally acted by a group of actors who had the chemistry to carry it for several seasons & not try to infuse Shakespeare into the scripts. That was pretty smart “Zach”. The show is so well loved by the audience it entertained as teenagers & still holds that special place now that we are middle age. Give it the credit it deserves & don’t dwell on what a different show it could have been. We fell in love with the characters & wouldn’t change a thing. Cmon it’s charming & silly & sometimes terrible and we still tuned in Saturday morning for our Bayside “fix”. I wish Dustin Diamond were still we us. A part did die with him. I cried & cried when I knew it was close to his end on this earth. It wasn’t fair..Shows how invested the fans were to this group we considered like friends.

[@UrbanNoizeMusic]

Saved by The Bell was never meant to be high art and that's okay. I wouldn't have wanted it to be. Same goes with other great shows like Family Matters and Full House.

[@bioglassmusic]

My fave MPG show is franklin and bash.

[@mattholt9065]

My fav role of his is raising the bar

[@albertruggiero1032]

Zack Morris is one of the greatest characters in pop culture history and I’ll take sbtb over breaking bad any day of the week.

[@bradleycullinan1210]

Don't sell yourself short bro you were killer on NYPD blue

[@tiffany-wt2sb]

I watched" Saved by the Bell".

[@zabut2301]

Here's the thing, Mark Paul was charismatic as Zack. You can be the best actor in the world and have the charisma of a dumpster fire.

[@willn8664]

This whole time never knew Mark was half Dutch and Indo. I probably should have picked it up from his last name. I am also half Dutch and Indo but people say I look either Filipino or Mexican.

[@tammybrinegar6617]

I'm still in love with Zach 😍

[@fieldysgrl98]

Zach’s still my fave

[@hectorlopez1069]

Zack Morris will always be his best character.

[@AubreyBlackRose]

Passage was great

[@stunfunone1527]

NYPD Blue he was fantastic

[@hectorlopez1069]

Zack Morris graduated from Bayside High School.

[@thesolidsnakealpha]

MPG has made the error of judging his past work by todays standards. If you're one of those that think kids are smarter these days, ask yourself this: why are there so many more teen suicides these days?

[@thepayne7862]

Kids aren't smarter these days, they are however more indoctrinated and most lack critical thinking skills.

[@thesolidsnakealpha]

@@thepayne7862 I completely agree, friend 🙏

[@thepayne7862]

@@thesolidsnakealpha when I was a kid I didn't really have critical thinking skills either but I was taught them as I was growing up.

[@thesolidsnakealpha]

@@thepayne7862 I think the main root of the problem lies in the fact that some kids just aren't left to be kids. Don't burden children with adult complexities.

[@thepayne7862]

@@thesolidsnakealpha agree with you on that 100%. It seems a lot of people want to turn kids into mini-adults as you said give them adult complexities.

[@mikedicesare7460]

Pitch was great! It wasn’t given enough of a shot😤

[@naruto73syfy]

He was very good in passage👍🏿👍🏿👍🏿

[@visitorzeta1669]

I loved The Passage, disappointed it was cancelled.

[@primabellas6856]

Why have regrets? It was for kids and it was for fun. No need to take it so seriously.

[@oshikuru09]

Sing it with me everyone Zach Morris is trrraaaAAAaash

[@BlutigeTranen]

I look forward to the next season of The Boys, you make a great Homelander. /s

[@damaniqphillip2756]

Wow 😮

[@khankake9576]

The original SBTB shits on the new one.

[@chromatinkiss]

You're too hard on yourself Mark. There was a different consciousness back then. The internet, technology, our social discussions changed everything. Kids today are so much more conscious, much more smarter because of these things. Look at the fashion back then. That should say it all.

[@JoybuzzerX]

He was what? 14 and these kids are 20 year olds. Also, was a fun show.

[@12gbpack]

MPG seems annoyed every time he's asked about SBTB. The reality is as cheesy as it may have been, it was a cultural icon of a show, and impacted Saturday mornings and weekday afternoons for millions of kids. You can criticize the acting/writing, etc.... but not sure of any other show of the sort that impacted culture like SBTB. I'd be indebted forever if that's where I started. Really wish they would've reunited earlier and while Screech was still here. Ironically now, it feels like MPG and others are "too cool for school." Dennis Haskins (Mr. Belding) is the only one who has kept up the enthusiasm and they don't give him the time of day.

[@adamkhabazian3249]

it's amazing how twisted their thinking is about sbtb. they're so hard on themselves and can't appreciate it like everybody else. millions of kids grew up wanting to be like zack and he was that and doesn't appreciate it one bit.

[@Catman1798]

Is that Seth Rogan interviewing mark Paul????

[@jeanemlicar]

Mark Paul hated the Character of Zack Morris just as much as Dr. Bruce Banner hates being the Incredible Hulk. Everyone has apart of themselves that they hate.

[@krissanders987]

Him and Alan richson sound a lot alike. Him and Mario Lopez still don’t look much different than late 90’s lol dude is close to 50, but looks 35

[@FoxEarendil]

Look, I admit that the original SBTB was cheesy and not great film at its best, but I loved it as a kid in the 90s. It was just a cute show back then, and I will forever love Zack and Kelly. BUT, the new one is another thing Hollywood just keeps reviving because they have nothing else to do. They have no ideas. Add to the fact, the original cast looks fake in this one, plastic surgery and such. None of them need it. Which makes me sad because Jessie was a hardcore feminist who didn’t care about looks, it’s like they threw it all up and it made terrible plastic vomit. And as far as his acting goes, he did fine. The times were just different and more cheesy. I’ve seen him in other stuff where he was really great, so he shouldn’t sell himself short.

[@DAMNNATIONROCK]

Zack Morris was one of my idols as a kid

[@MedalionDS9]

Saved by the Bell was Breaking Bad? Does that mean Heisenberg was one of their Chemistry teachers?

[@CoolCATs2814]

Mix-ish went downhill when it forgot it was supposed to be a comedy.

[@wileyjdraws7594]

Modern child actors feel like souless robots imo.

[@NickScholl]

Years ago I took part in a G+ Hangout with the Good Day LA crew that had him and Breckin Meyer as guests promoting "Franklin and Bash" and everyone was asking Mark-Paul "Saved by the Bell" questions. I cheekily asked Breckin if he was going to be in anymore Garfield movies. Mark-Paul laughed and answered "If there is a God!" 😐

[@corymiller536]

He's tripping, kids today suck at acting, save by the bell was a show for teens, also you can't compare a cheesy fun teen show, for an adult show like breaking bad

[@Jackson.T]

The original is way better

[@rjc7289]

They re-run SBTB every Sunday morning on MeTV, and I can understand how Mark feels that part of his life was about as cringe-worthy as it gets. The acting was just an awful and hokey representation of 1980's and early 1990's high school life. Hell would've frozen over before any of those actors ever turned in an Emmy-winning performance.

[@starbrand3726]

The Passage was really good. Sadly it wasn't appreciated.

[@everyoneash]

Saved by the bell was the only show to tackle the scourge of caffeine addiction...breaking bad just stuck with little old meth and it's consequences. So whose the darker show now... right???

[@JL-ho1tc]

Uhhhh the new saved by the bell is a joke.. The only decent actors are the original cast.. The young kids can't act for shit at all.

[@mattf49006]

It was a teen show..stop treating it like it was a tour de force of cinema and a example of bad acting

[@TheSands83]

The new actors are terrible. No charisma at all

[@Mood_Slime11]

The passage was a great show but when you kill everyone off and jump the series like 300 years in the future and kill all the good characters your destined to fail

[@SIX6SIXer]

Dead Man on Campus🤘

[@Criticalthinker0515]

Imagine being screech...

[@RetroR0bbie]

Nice guy but no way any of those new actors were more talented than him.

[@pixelpat777]

Josh Thomsons brother? WTF 😂

[@ShortyRock801]

Listen to his podcast with the Zack Morris Trash guy… they should just name it ..oh we couldn’t do that today .. unlistenable

[@Kingdom70X7Ministrie]

Yeah man kissing Tiffani Amber Thiessen must’ve been so bad Dude you can’t be serious! and Saved by the Bell was the run home from school show

[@firefoxanglelight4715]

Mark no your king of Save by the bell and Kelly sorry your a hunk nope

[@Shawn152]

Darker doesn’t mean better though. I get what he’s saying but when you put it like that it kinda diminishes the experience of people who love it. Like there is something wrong with them for liking a show that isn’t even good. Also saying it’s just ‘A kids show’ is really cringe. As if it can’t be good or enjoyable because of that 😒