Saved by the Bell star Mark-Paul Gosselaar recalls show’s most problematic moments

Saved by the Bell is a popular 90s teen sitcom following the hilarious antics of the students at Bayside High. Mark-Paul Gosselaar played teen heartthrob Zack Morris, one of the show’s main characters.

Throughout the series Zack and his friends often get into trouble. Some of the episodes were humorous, while others delved into serious social issues such as drug use.

Like many past sitcoms, Saved by the Bell has come under criticism for moments that were deemed controversial.

Mark-Paul Gosselaar says these were Saved by the Bell’s most problematic episodes

Gosselaar’s character Zack was always coming up with some crazy scheme, which resulted in chaos. While fans laughed at these moments, some of them wouldn’t be considered funny in today’s society.

In a recent interview on the Pod Meets World podcast, Gosselaar talked about Saved by the Bell episodes he viewed as problematic. One episode Gosselaar mentioned was “The Lisa Card” from Season 1.

In the episode, the gang tries to help Lisa after she overspends using her dad’s credit card. To make money, Zack charges the boys in his class a dollar to kiss Lisa.

"“In terms of storylines, there was one where I was basically whoring out Lisa Turtle to charge people to kiss her without her consent, that was a tough one.”"

Another episode Gosselaar felt uneasy with is “Running Zack” from Season 2. In the episode, Zack dresses up in a Native American outfit to give a presentation about his ancestry.

"“The other one was where Zack Morris claimed that he was Native American. Seeing Zack Morris in a full headdress…that was one we had to be a little sensitive on, there’s things that you just would not film these days.”"

This isn’t the first time Gosselaar has discussed the show’s problematic episodes. On his Zack to the Future podcast, the actor says that now that he’s older and mature, he realizes how wrong the episodes were.

"“And you find yourself at that point, you’re trying not to be negative. It’s a watch party. People want you to celebrate the product. It’s fragile but overall you’re trying to be positive about the work, saying, ‘It was a different time. And we don’t condone that now but this is what it was. Enjoy!”"