The 90s sitcom Boy Meets World is a touchstone for many millennials who dreamed of having a friend group as tight-knit as the show's characters.
But according to actor Trina McGee, who played the role of Angela, the show's only Black principle character, things among the cast weren't quite as hunky-dory behind the scenes as they were when the cameras were on.
During a recent sitdown with her former castmates Danielle Fishel, Will Friedle and Rider Strong on their podcast Pod Meets World, McGee revealed some behind-the-scenes drama that occurred—including the reason she did not appear in the show's finale—that left her former colleagues shocked.
McGee has previously spoken about incidents of racism she experience while working on Boy Meets World, including one in which Friedle called her "Aunt Jemima" on set.
During appearance on the podcast, McGee revealed how much further her mistreatment went. She told her former costars that she was told they demanded she be cut from the show's finale.
She said:
“This is some ground we have not covered. I was told, in kind of a weird, offhanded way by a very important person, that you guys all went to [showrunner] Michael Jacobs, and you said, ‘We don’t want her in the last episode. She’s somehow taking our light.’"
All three castmembers expressed their shock at the revelation.
McGee went on to say:
“That was really hurtful to me for a long time. To make it worse, people of color tend to look into things a little harder sometimes. So I had cousins calling me, saying, ‘How come you weren’t in the last episode?'"
According to Fishel, Strong and Friedle, however, the request was never made.
Friedle said:
“Can we say for the record, Trina, that never happened."
Fishel agreed:
"Swear on my children — on the lives of my children."
McGee told her costars she believed them, saying, "I can tell by your reactions" that they were telling the truth.
McGee also revealed she was asked to tone down her "Blackness" by a producer who once told her:
"‘Hey, Trina, just turn down the Telma Hopkins about eight notches.'”
On social media, McGee's revelations definitely left many people feeling shocked.
\u201c@Variety Can I keep one thing unscathed from my childhood please!!!! \ud83e\udd2c\u201d— Variety (@Variety) 1663535911
\u201cTrina \ud83e\udd7a\u201d— \ud835\udcfca\ud835\udcfba (@\ud835\udcfca\ud835\udcfba) 1663790098
\u201cThe more I learn, the more tainted that show becomes.\u201d— BLACKLIVESMATTER (@BLACKLIVESMATTER) 1663536905
\u201cIs nothing from childhood sacred?!?!\u201d— bubba (@bubba) 1663602521
\u201cThe Pod Meets World episode with Trina McGee was really good. It\u2019s good to hear that she\u2019s cleared the air with everyone that matters and actually considers them friends. \n\nBen Savage can kick rocks though.\u201d— Venika Dewan (@Venika Dewan) 1663128584
\u201c@emilylongeretta @realtrinamcgee A question I\u2019ve been asking MYSELF for the last 20 years\u2026especially since Angela was such a formative character for me as a kid. \n\nIt was literally Angela, Moesha, Laura Winslow & Lisa Turtle for me!\u201d— Emily Longeretta (@Emily Longeretta) 1663535982
\u201cWhenever I hear people harken back to the 90s as some sort of wonderful time where "we didn't talk race all the time", I wonder how many stories like these happened and are never revealed.\u201d— Chuck Yeager's Acura (@Chuck Yeager's Acura) 1663561049
\u201cmichael jacobs the day i ever see you in person i swear\u201d— shameika (@shameika) 1663704554
\u201cAs a show that was a huge part of my childhood, I\u2019m really disappointed reading this. Not my first hearing this, but reading about it more in-depth makes me want to throw something. Black women can\u2019t just be ourselves and shine. I hate this happened to Trina McGee.\u201d— Angelica McDonald, Esq. (@Angelica McDonald, Esq.) 1663612669
McGee previously spoke out about on-set tension between her and her Boy Meets World costars back in 2020, including the "Aunt Jemima" comment from Friedel.
The two have since reconciled.
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