Saved By the Bell’s Elizabeth Berkley Lauren on revival series and that moment between Jessie and Slater

Saved By the Bell was the last series you’d expect to pull off a great sequel, and there was one particular moment that nailed why it worked.

Many if not most reboots and revivals are a misguided endeavour.

In trying to recapture the magic of what made it sing in the first place, whether as a long-anticipated sequel or a remake, something gets lost.

Sometimes it’s because the new team misunderstands the original or because it’s doing something too similar and the world isn’t the same.

Then, occasionally, a revival comes along and manages to balance both a love of the original with a modern sensibility that births new stories worth telling. Saved By the Bell was probably the last series you’d expect to pull it off.

But it really had to work for it, nor was Tracey Wigfield’s series the first pitch to bring back Saved By the Bell.

“There were several things the studio had kind of shared with us, and we had even heard other pitches in the past couple of years,” Saved By the Bell star and producer Elizabeth Berkley Lauren told news.com.au. “But none of them felt right to be honest, and for different reasons.

“The original had such a wholesome and earnest tone that worked not only for its time but also for its timeslot on Saturday morning. But these are different times and it can’t be as earnest unless it was just for comedic value.

“Tracey Wigfield, our creator of the new series, was someone that grew up with the original series and loved it herself. So there was already this love and reverence for it at the core of the show that she pitched.

Elizabeth Berkley Lauren and Mario Lopez are regulars in the new series while Mark Paul Gosselaar and Tiffani Amber Thiessen are recurring guests (Photo by: Trae Patton/Peacock)

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“So we knew that as a legacy show for the fans, we wanted to make sure it was someone who celebrated it for what it was, and if there was any kind of satire that it would be done with that of reverence especially as in this revival it’s progressive, fresh and reflects youth culture now.

“It was the marriage of the two. We knew it was a no-brainer to sign on and do this version.

“People are just loving it and it makes us so happy that we were able to give this joy right now more than ever.”

Berkley Lauren, 46, was 15-years-old when Saved By the Bell first premiered in 1989. After three decades of being associated with the series, she sees herself as something of a “protector of the legacy of this show that meant so much to so many people”.

Still finishing school on set – as were all the teen cast members at the time – she fondly recalled a different era when being a working actor kid meant being part of a “little safe bubble”.

As Jessie Spano, she was one of the core group of six stars who for four years walked the halls of Bayside High as the Saturday morning kids show dealt with fun stories about school dances, romances and pranks but also the occasional more serious subject.

Still, the new series is much more socially conscious of the class system that divides education in the US with the 2020 show kicking off when a group of economically disadvantaged kids join the privileged students of Bayside.

John Michael Higgins joins Lopez and Berkley Lauren in the new series. (Photo by: Evans Vestal Ward/Peacock)

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If there’s one character from the original series who would’ve been fighting for them in 1989, it would’ve been Jessie, even then a feminist and activist who regularly championed causes that others ignored.

Now a counsellor at Bayside with a doctorate, Jessie fits in perfectly with contemporary mores. And there’s one scene that really illustrates what’s changed in how characters like Jessie are depicted on TV, but also the growth Saved By the Bell has invested in its original characters.

Mario Lopez’s Slater is now a coach at the school and in a tender, sincere moment, he apologises to Jessie for having not supported her more when they were teenagers.

“At the table read [for that episode] Mario was sitting next to me and when he read that to me, I was really struck by it. I almost had tears in my eyes just reflecting on how our culture has changed for young women,” Berkley Lauren revealed.

“At the time, Jessie was a unique voice in television for young women, not apologising for using her voice to take a stand for something. So it was really touching to hear it in the context of the characters, of Slater as a man letting her know he was sorry he didn’t have her back at the time, and there is this new generation.

“Thank goodness that is not unique anymore and you really see this new generation who are using their voice, for the most for the greater good. They’re activists and they are not afraid, and that’s starting younger and younger, which is something that’s really special.”

The original Saved By the Bell series premiered in 1989

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For Berkley Lauren, the experience of working on the new Saved By the Bell wasn’t just being able to revive this beloved character from her formative years as an actor, it’s also her first TV producing gig.

“It’s the perfect full circle thing too – my first big job as a kid was on this show and now it’s my first producing job.”

Berkley Lauren has produced other things such as events and a self-esteem program for teenage girls – she has a New York Times best-selling book, Ask Elizabeth – but this is new ground for her.

It wasn’t just a vanity title for her, she said she was there day-to-day, including being involved being involved in the casting of the new kids, the editing and more.

“As a first-time TV producer, I just love that I got the privilege to do it on this show. It was definitely a hands-on experience. Getting to learn from Franco Barrio, our incredible executive producer who also did the original, was amazing.

“And from Tracey, who is a really strong, amazing, talented and team morale showrunner.

“It was an incredible first experience in that realm and one I’m excited to do more of.”

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