If there ever was a role that could have forever typecast a young actor, it was the role of Zack Morris, the blond, blue-eyed, charming social butterfly who was immortalized byMark-Paul Gosselaarin the NBC Saturday morning sitcomSaved by the Bellbetween 1989 and 1993. Indeed, the specter of typecasting practically envelopedSaved by the Bellco-star Dustin Diamond, who spent the rest of his all-too-brief life living in the shadow of practical joker character Screech.
After the original sitcom ended in 1993, after four seasons, Gosselaar reprised the role of Zack Morris in theSaved by the Bellspinoff seriesSaved by the Bell: The College Years, which only lasted one season between 1993 and 1994, and a 1994 made-for-television film. Of course, most recently, Gosselaar, for the first time in over twenty-five years, reprised the role of Zack in the 2020 revival seriesSaved by the Bell, in which Zack is revealed to have become the Governor of California.
By returning to the role of Zack, Gosselaar, who turns fifty in less than six months, seemed to be making the statement that as Gosselaar has firmly established himself as a skilled and versatile adult actor, outside theSaved by the Bellbox, Gosselaar seemingly harbors no trepidation toward embracing his past.
Beyond Bayside High
Mark-Paul Gosselaar’s eventual successful transitionfrom teen idol to successful adult actor is especially impressive given the fact that Gosselaar remained with theSaved by the Bellfranchise until the bitter end – through the original sitcom, a spinoff series, and two made-for-television films.
Moreover, Gosselaar’s evolution from teen idol to adult actor not only depended on Gosselaar’s ability and determination to make a successful transition but also the willingness of Hollywood to look beyond, and through, Gosselar’sSaved by the Bellpersona to see his true potential as an actor.
Saved by the Bell: The Best Episodes, Ranked
Produced by Peter Engel, this NBC sitcom had its premiere in 1989 and was a huge hit among its audience.
Gosselaar’s first major post-Saved by the Bellacting role, following the 1994 made-for-television filmSaved by the Bell: Wedding in Las Vegas, came in the 1996 made-for-television filmShe Cried No, in which Gosselaar stars as a sociopathic college student who date-rapes his best friend’s sister, played by Candace Cameron Bure, at a fraternity party.
Gosselaar returned to his comedic roots with a starring role in the 1998 black comedy feature filmDead Man on Campus. In the MTV film, Gosselaar plays a hard-partying college student who attempts to remedy his poor academic record by finding a suicidal roommate and then convincing said roommate to commit suicide, thus triggering an arcane rule that states that a student will receive straight As if their roommate commits suicide.
While the film received generally negative reviews, Gosselaar’s conniving and witty performance was deservedly singled out for critical praise. However,Dead Man on Campusmarked Gosselaar’s last major feature film appearance.
All Grown Up
Mark-Paul Gosselaar returned to series television in 1998 with the drama television seriesHyperion Bay, in which Gosselaar stars as Dennis Sweeny, a successful computer programmer who returns to his small titular coastal hometown, where he attempts to start a relationship withhis high-school crush.
WhileHyperion Bayreceived largely negative reviews and was canceled after one season, Gosselaar’s sensitive, subtle performance suggested that he was poised for a dramatic breakthrough.
Saved by the Bell: Every Major Character, Ranked
From one of the most popular shows from the ’90s, we look at Zack Morris and the rest of the Bayside crew, ranked.
Of course, Gosselaar’s dramatic breakthrough came in 2001, when Gosselaar joined the cast of the acclaimed ABC police procedural television seriesNYPD Blueat the start of the show’s ninth season. As Detective John Clark, Jr., Gosselaar followed in the footsteps of David Caruso, Rick Schroder, and Jimmy Smits by playing the partner of series stalwart Dennis Franz’s character, Detective Andy Sipowicz, who became Clark’s mentor over the show’s final four seasons.
Moreover, through his role inNYPD Blue, Gosselaar found his most powerful career advocate in the form of the show’s co-creator, producer Steven Bochco, who cast Gosselaar in Bochco’s TNTlegal drama seriesRaising the Bar,which debuted in September 2008 and ran for two seasons.
InRaising the Bar, a stringy-haired Gosselaar simmers with fiery intensity as Jerry Kellerman, an idealistic public defender who goes to extreme lengths to assist his often helpless clients.
Indeed, Gosselaar’s somewhat malleable appearance has played a prominent role in Gosselar’s continual growth as an actor and in terms of distancing Gosselaar from the role of Zack Morris, whom Gosselaar portrayed by dying his dark-brown hair blond and wearing blue contact lenses over Gosselaar’s brown eyes.
Zack Morris Isn’t Here Anymore
Mark-Paul Gosselaar has playedso many different types of characters in various genres since the firstSaved by the Bellseries ended in 1993 that most people who are under the age of thirty probably don’t even recognize Gosselaar as the blond, blue-eyed teenage incarnation of Zack Morris.
Gosselaar’s latest stark transformation appears in the current NBCcrime drama television seriesFound, in which a bearded Gosselaar plays Hugh “Sir” Evans, a serial kidnapper who is kidnapped by one of his victims, a recovery specialist who has locked Hugh in her basement, where she forces Hugh to use his creepy knowledge to help her solve cases.
Confident, intelligent, and wryly humorous, despite being chained up in a basement, Gosselaar’s hateful character is the most compelling aspect of the series and demonstrates that Gosselaar’s impressive versatility is boundless and enduring.
Moreover, as audiences, especially those who grew up watching Gosselaar inSaved by the Bell, have expressed a willingness to accept Gosselaar in so many different roles over the past thirty years, Gosselaar has become a uniquely nostalgic figure, like a long-lost high school classmate who now appears as a familiar stranger.
