The popular NBC sitcom Saved by the Bell is officially coming back, reboot style.
The new series already has a lead actress, a few of the older cast members to reprise their roles, and an intriguing plot synopsis involving Bayside alum Zack Morris.
Josie Totah lands lead role in new Saved by the Bell
In a report from The Hollywood Reporter, they mention that transgender actor Josie Totah has the lead role in the sitcom as a cheerleader named Lexi. She’s described as the “most popular girl at Bayside High, who is both admired and feared” by the fellow students there.
Totah, currently 18 years old, has appeared in a number of projects over the years including the hit series Glee, the movie Spider-Man: Homecoming, and Disney Channel’s Jessie. In the 2018 Champions series, she played the role of Michael Patel.
In 2018, Totah also officially came out as transgender.
She’ll now take on the lead role for what’s considered a follow up to the original Saved by the Bell sitcom. In addition to acting on SBTB, she’ll also be credited as a producer, per THR.
Saved by the Bell reboot details
It’s only natural that Saved by the Bell would get reworked as the series originally was a reworking of the sitcom Good Morning, Miss Bliss. That show launched the highly popular NBC sitcom about a group of kids navigating life inside and outside of Bayside High.
It spawned two spinoff shows as well. Saved by the Bell: The College Years saw most of the same group of kids at college. Saved by The Bell: The New Class featured a new group of students attending Principal Belding’s Bayside.
It appears Principal Richard Belding won’t be part of the new show, though, as IMDB credits John Michael Higgins with the role of Principal Toddman. Dustin Diamond aka Samuel Screech Powers doesn’t appear to be involved either.
Elizabeth Berkley will return as Jesse Spano and Mario Lopez will be back as A.C. Slater. However, there won’t be any Zack Morris or Kelly Kapowski in the new series as both have said they are too busy with other projects to even make a cameo. Zack is mentioned as an important part of the show’s story, though.
The plot synopsis involves the former Bayside student now serving as a governor. According to IMDB’s listing: “A group of California low-income high school students are transferred to Pacific Palisades’ wealthy Bayside High, following a program by California Governor Zack Morris.”
Emmy-winning 30 Rock writer Tracey Wigfield will be behind the 30-minute sitcoms. There currently appears to be 10 episodes for the new series.
The show will be an exclusive sitcom for NBCUniversal’s new streaming service called Peacock, giving viewers the ability to watch on-demand. That’s much like the original Saved by the Bell seasons, all of which are currently available to watch on Hulu.
NBC Universal’s Peacock arrives this April. As far as an official SBTB release date, that is still to be announced. However, the new kids at Bayside as well as returning alumni Jesse and Slater should be on screens sometime in 2020.