Elizabeth Berkley Teases If Dustin Diamond Will Reprise His 'Saved by the Bell' Role for Revival (Exclusive)
Elizabeth Berkley couldn't be happier about returning to the halls of Bayside High for the Saved by the Bell revival!
The all-new series, premiering next week on Peacock, is a reimagining of the beloved '90s sitcom that starred Berkley as Jessie Spano, Dustin Diamond as Samuel "Screech" Powers, Mark-Paul Gosselaar as Zack Morris, Tiffani Thiessen as Kelly Kapowski, Mario Lopez as A.C. Slater and Lark Voorhies as Lisa Turtle.
Now, in a new interview with ET, Berkley is opening up about everything from what it was like suiting up for her iconic role as Jessie again, to her hopes for a second season.
"Literally, I wear a lot of suits now. It's a wardrobe decision," Berkley, who's also a producer on the series, told ET's Deidre Behar. "Jessie has her PhD now. She's a best-selling author of parenting books. And it's quite comedic when you see her dynamic. Her overprotective nature and her nurturing with her own son on the show, which is played by Belmont Cameli."
"But it felt so amazing, especially walking through the hallways of Bayside and seeing those red lockers. In life, it's really special when you get to have a full circle moment and that was not lost on me," she continued. "To also be a producer on the show, as a woman now, to revisit something that was a big part of my childhood is, there's a lot of reflection and a lot of sweet joy with this one."
Dustin Diamond as Screech Powers on original 'Saved by the Bell.'
In another portion of the interview, Berkley teased whether Diamond will return to reprise his role as Screech. Gosselaar, Lopez, Thiessen and Voorhies were previously confirmed to appear in the reimagining.
"Hopefully there is a season 2," Berkley exclaimed. "I am one of a whole group of great producers, and Dustin, listen, I don't know, we're discussing, but I just don't know yet. It depends on the storylines and how they play out and all of that, but I wish Dustin nothing but the best. I just haven't seen him for a lot of years but I do wish him the best. He was always kind to me."
Showrunner Tracey Wigfield also weighed in on Diamond's potential cameo, telling ET, "We definitely hear about Screech, like where there's jokes about what he's doing now, and there's some Easter eggs about his life or whatever if you look closely in the show."
"But it was a hard thing this season," Wigfield admitted. "It's just 10 episodes, and in addition to trying to find places to use the original cast, it felt more organic because they're already parents of the students. It's like you really want to spend the majority of your time with these new characters and invest in them and really care about what happens to them. Because if you don't, it's a one-off."
"They can't miss a show that goes on for season after season, as a fan of the show," she added. "Sure, I'd love to see Screech and I would be open to it if there is another season. But he's not making a cameo in this one."
The Saved by the Bell revival premieres Wednesday, Nov. 25 on Peacock, with all 10 episodes dropping at once. In the meantime, watch the video below to hear how Gosselaar feels about becoming Zack Morris again.
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