Mario Lopez breaks silence after Saved by the Bell co-star revealed what she gets paid from the show
Tiffani Thiessen says her Saved by the Bell residual checks have become so small that they are effectively costing her money to print and co-star of the show Mario Lopez appears to agree.
The actress, who played Kelly Kapowski on the hit teen sitcom, recently revealed that she no longer believes she receives meaningful residual payments from the show.
"I think it has dried out," Thiessen said. "It's like, negative now. It costs more to print the check."
Lopez, who played A.C. Slater, backed up his former co-star's comments on X, simply writing: 'Real talk!'
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The revelation comes years after the cast became associated with one of the biggest teen shows of the late '80s and early '90s.
Thiessen recently discussed her earnings during an interview with SiriusXM's Page Six Radio, explaining that she didn't begin 'making real money' until she joined Beverly Hills, 90210 as Valerie Malone.
"We made nothing and we just did our job," she said of her time on Saved by the Bell.
The original series ran from 1989 to 1993 and starred Thiessen alongside Lopez, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Elizabeth Berkley, Lark Voorhies, the late Dennis Haskins and the late Dustin Diamond.
How much did Mario Lopez make on Saved by the Bell?
Lopez reportedly started out earning around $1,500 per episode, according to Denise Simon, a child star manager featured in an episode of the docuseries Hollywood Demons.
'That's a lot of money to a kid,' Simon said while discussing the cast's experiences.
But the show's commercial success quickly grew. Simon said that by the second season in 1991, Saved by the Bell was bringing in roughly $15 million in advertising.
The figures have since offered some context to comments from members of the cast about their original contracts.
Gosselaar, who played Zack Morris, previously discussed the subject during an appearance on Watch What Happens Live in 2019.
He said the cast had made 'really bad deals' during the show's original run.
"Poor deals, back then," Gosselaar said. "It is what it is. You move on, you learn. Great experience."
Despite the show's success, Thiessen's latest comments suggest the financial rewards haven't necessarily lasted as long as the show's popularity.
Does Tiffani Thiessen still get Saved by the Bell residuals?
According to Thiessen, her residual income from Saved by the Bell has effectively disappeared.
The actress said she doesn't think she receives residual checks from the sitcom anymore, describing the payments as 'negative' because producing the check can cost more than its value.
That is a very different financial picture from the one she experienced later in her career.
Thiessen joined Beverly Hills, 90210 as Valerie Malone and has previously said that was when she started 'making real money.'
Topics: Celebrity, Film and TV
Thomas Bamford