Why Peacock Canceled Saved By The Bell's Reboot
'90s nostalgia isn't always a bankable trend. For proof of that, look no further than the topsy-turvy nature of sitcom revivals staying on the air. Back in 2024, Netflix canceled "That '90s Show" after two seasons, with the sitcom failing to replicate the success of a different legacy revival, "Fuller House." Before that, NBC pulled the plug on the "Will & Grace" reboot after three seasons in 2020, with the show's creators claiming that it ended because the series reached its natural conclusion. Elsewhere, Peacock excused the "Saved by the Bell" class for the last time in 2022, but that cancellation was quite surprising.
As documented by Deadline, the first season of "Saved by the Bell" — which reunites most of the original gang 26 years after Zack (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) and Kelly's (Tiffani Thiessen) wedding — was a modest hit for Peacock — at one point, it was the platform's most-streamed original of all time. What's more, it earned some pretty positive reviews and won some notable accolades, including Outstanding Comedy Series at the GLAAD Media Awards. "Saved by the Bell" was notably praised for its handling of topics like inclusion and diversity, while still providing plenty of laughs.
Sadly, some beloved characters didn't return for the reboot, including the late Dustin Diamond, the actor famed for playing Samuel "Screech" Powers in the '90s series and subsequent spin-offs. Despite the absence of some cast members, however, the revival still showed plenty of promise, but it seems that it didn't align with Peacock's vision at the time, and the show was cut after two seasons.
Saved by the Bell was the victim of a regime change
As previously mentioned, the "Saved by the Bell" reboot reportedly attracted a decent viewership early on, but it supposedly wasn't strong enough to warrant a third season. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, former NBCUniversal executive Susan Rovner explained that her predecessors — the people who greenlit the sitcom along with the short-lived "Punky Brewster" revival — had a different creative vision for Peacock that didn't quite work out in the end. As she put it:
"I didn't greenlight either one of the shows. I think that also falls under it's hard to get scale on a streaming service with comedies. They didn't bring in the scale that the people that greenlit them were hoping for. I think it was just too soon. The people before me were leaning more into comedy, and I can't really speak to as to why. Ultimately, it wasn't the right thing to lean into initially."
Who knows? If the "Saved by the Bell" revival came along at a different time or aired on a different platform, it might have enjoyed a longer tenure on the screen. As it stands, though, it will go down in history as another slice of '90s nostalgia that didn't quite land the way the folks at Peacock had probably hoped.