Saved by the Bell residuals a shocking bust, 2 co-stars say
“Real talk.” That was Mario Lopez’s two-word verdict on Sept. 30, when he shared Tiffani Thiessen’s claim on X that her Saved by the Bell residuals have shrunk to nothing, Page Six reported Thursday, Oct. 1.
Lopez, 52, who played A.C. Slater, did not add anything else to the post, according to Page Six.
Thiessen: ‘It costs more to print the check’
Thiessen, also 52, made the comments during a Sept. 24 appearance on Page Six Radio, E! News reported. Asked about the money from the NBC series, which aired from 1989 to 1993, she said the payments had “dried up.”
“It’s like, negative now,” said Thiessen, who played Kelly Kapowski. “It costs more to print the check.”
She also described how little leverage the young cast had during production. “We didn’t have pull on that show,” she said, adding that the cast “made nothing” and simply did the work. Pay rose “a little bit” during the one season the show moved to prime time, she said, but she “didn’t start making real money” until she joined “Beverly Hills, 90210” in 1994.
E! News said it had contacted NBC about her remarks on Saved by the Bell residuals but had not heard back.
Saved by the Bell residuals and the cast’s ‘poor deals’
Thiessen and Lopez are not the first alumni to talk about Saved by the Bell residuals and salaries. Mark-Paul Gosselaar, who played Zack Morris, said on “Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen” in 2019 that the cast signed “really bad deals,” Us Weekly recalled. He also said he had a “great experience” on the show.
Page Six pointed to a May episode of the Investigation Discovery series “Hollywood Demons,” in which child-star manager Denise Simon said Lopez has recalled starting at about $1,500 an episode, “a lot of money to a kid.” Simon added that by 1991, after its second season, the show was bringing in roughly $15 million in advertising.
The same episode included Lark Voorhies’ mother, Tricia Holloway, who said the family did not feel it was in a strong position to negotiate. A friend of the late Dustin Diamond also claimed Diamond made $1,250 a week on the show, Page Six reported.
Other stars with tiny residual checks
The complaint about Saved by the Bell residuals echoes stars from other hit shows. E! News cited “Gilmore Girls” star Lauren Graham, who said on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in 2025 that there “really are no residuals on Netflix.” Us Weekly pointed to the late James Van Der Beek, who told “Today” in 2012 that his “Dawson’s Creek” contract was a bad one and that he “saw almost nothing” from reruns.
Other actors have described the same problem, including Drake Bell on Nickelodeon residuals, while a few, like Ray Romano with “Everybody Loves Raymond,” still collect.
The Bayside cast has also been in the news this week after the death of Dennis Haskins, who played Principal Belding.