Family Matters: Jaleel White Found Steve Urkel Alter Ego Stefan ‘Boring’

Family Matters’ Jaleel White is speaking about his perception of the popular character Stefan Urquelle on the podcast ‘You Made It Weird‘ with Pete Holmes. When asked if he played the character to be cool, his response was typical Jaleel White, saying the role was boring. White worked on Family Matters for nine seasons, playing the clumsy, annoying neighbor with a heart of gold, Steve Urkel. Stefan Urquelle was the cooler alter ego to lovable nerd Steve Urkel and next-door neighbor to the Winslows. 

Family Matters Star Calls Stefon Boring

Video from ‘You Made It Weird’, Courtesy of Pete Holmes 

The family next door, the Winslows, was on TV for nine seasons from 1989 to 1998. During that time, we saw Urkel attempt to win the heart of his love interest, Laura Winslow. In an attempt to get Laura to fall in love with him, Steve Urkel uses his cool juice to change into the handsome Stefon Urquelle,  in Season 5, Episode 8, “Dr. Urkel & Mr. Cool.

His alter ego, like Steve, was supposed to appear in only one episode, but his popularity with the ladies and TV viewers led to Stefan Urquelle being featured in multiple episodes. Stefon was smooth and charming, but according to Jaleel White, the character was boring.

In his sit-down with Pete Holmes for the podcast ‘You Made It Weird‘ he was asked, “Did he play Stefon to be cool and less cartoonish?” White’s response was, ” I actually found the character to be boring, and that Stefan was a “one note joke.”

Unmasking Stefon: Family Matters’ Boring Heartthrob

Yes, Steve was a bit much, breaking furniture, interfering with Laura and Eddie’s Winslows love life, and driving the big guy Carl crazy. However, compared to the dynamics of Steve’s personality and growth throughout the years, Stefon’s character was boring. Stefan was perfect, every girl’s dream guy, and the kind of guy parents want their daughter to date.

Besides being a model, having a big ego, and being smooth-talking, what else did his personality offer? Even Laura grew bored with him and wanted Steve back, with whom she eventually fell in love. 

Explosive Behind-the-Scenes Family Matters Drama

‘Family Matters’ was a nice family show, but the drama behind the scenes was not suitable for a family-friendly audience. As mentioned before, Jaleel White’s character, Steve Urkel, was only supposed to appear in one episode, but the TV viewers fell in love with him, which rubbed some of his fellow castmates the wrong way.

The surprising feud was not with the teenagers, but with the mother of the show, Harriet, played by Jo Marie Payton. In season nine of Family Matters, White and Payton disagreed on the direction of one scene, and because of Payton’s interference, he considered fighting her.

In a 2022 interview with ET, “The Proud Family” actor shared how the co-star threatened her, “He said something about, ‘She must want to melee.’ I said, ‘What’s a melee?’ He said, ‘a fight.’ I turned around, if he wanna fight, I would.”

Nostalgic Family Matters Revival Sparks Buzz

Currently, there are talks of an animated reboot of “Family Matters” in the works, created by show alum Bryton James, who played Richie Crawford. However, if fans want to relive ’90s nostalgia, all nine seasons are available to stream on Hulu/Disney+.