The 47-year-old Saved By the Bell star and Access Hollywood host opened up about an incident during Thursday’s (April 29) episode of E!’s Overserved With Lisa Vanderpump.
The 47-year-old Access Hollywood host recalled, “The last time we saw each other in person was at the People’s Choice Awards, and we got into a little fight backstage before.”
When a photo of himself and Elizabeth during the ceremony was shown on screen, Mario said, “As you can see, I want to point out to our viewers, you’re on the left side—you’re standing on the left side—which is usually the side I like to stand on, purely for superstitious reasons. It’s like a good luck thing.”
This caused a bit of an issue, because Elizabeth had her own reasons for wanting to stand on the left side of the stage.
“You like to do it because you rock your hair a certain way, and because of the part, correct?” Mario asked.
But Elizabeth seemed to remember things a little differently.
“No, no, no! Superstitious, or you like that side?” she jokingly replied. She added, “No, we didn’t get into like a real fight. It was our playful banter, but like brother-sister.”
“No, we’re always laughing and teasing each other,” Mario agreed.
Mario Lopez is remembering his final conversation with his former Saved By the Bell co-star Dustin Diamond.
The Access Hollywood co-host revealed on the show on Tuesday (February 2) that he had stayed in contact with Dustin over the years.
Mario shared, “I’m happy to say and I feel good about always having stayed in touch with Dustin. He had some struggles and a complicated life, but we all do.”
“I don’t abandon, like, my friends or never turn my back on people that are always there for me,” he continued. “And I stood by him and was always a phone call away when he moved to Wisconsin and we stayed in touch and he met his girlfriend recently. We were actually discussing, when I talked to him recently, just two weeks prior to him passing, about the upcoming season and figuring out doing something cool. I was trying to convince him to do something in the reality space that I’d be producing for him. It was actually pretty funny.”
Mario added, “Unfortunately that won’t come to fruition now, but he was in good spirits at least. He was pretty positive and optimistic last I spoke to him.”
He passed on Monday (February 1) after a brief hospitalization, and now, statements are being released. His rep released the following statement shortly after his death.
“We’ve been working alongside Dustin over the last 21 years. It goes without saying that our relationship cannot be categorized exclusively as a business. He has become a larger part of our everyday life: A part of our family and friend circle,” his rep told Us Weekly in a statement. “We are aware that Dustin is not considered reputable by most. He’s had a history of mishaps, of unfortunate events. We want the public to understand that he was not intentionally malevolent. He — much like the rest of those who act out and behave poorly — had undergone a great deal of turmoil and heartache. His actions, though rebukeable, stemmed from loss and the lack of knowledge on how to process that pain properly. In actuality, Dustin was a humorous and high-spirited individual whose greatest passion was to make others laugh. He was able to sense and feel other peoples’ emotions to such a length that he was able to feel them too—a strength and a flaw, all in one.”
On Instagram, Mario posted, “Dustin, you will be missed my man. The fragility of this life is something never to be taken for granted. Prayers for your family will continue on…”
It was reported a few weeks ago that Mario had reached out to Dustin after he revealed he had been diagnosed with cancer.
Saved By the Bell ran from 1989 to 1992, and Dustin memorably played the role of Screech with Mario in the role of A.C. Slater.
Our continued thoughts are with Dustin‘s friends, family, and loved ones during this difficult time.
The announcement comes less than two months after its season one premiere on Peacock.
The series is a sequel to the 1990s teen comedy featuring several original cast members.
“I’m thrilled that Saved by the Bell has been renewed. I’ve been blown away by all the love for the show and can’t wait to go back and make more episodes. Hopefully we stay on Peacock for many more seasons, and then in 30 years, somebody does a reboot of our reboot and invents the threeboot,” says showrunner and executive producer Tracey Wigfield.
Here’s show summary: “In the new Saved by the Bell, Zack Morris (Mark-Paul Gosselaar), now governor of California, gets into political trouble for closing too many underfunded high schools and proposes sending affected students to some of the more affluent schools — including his alma mater, Bayside. An influx of new students gives the privileged kids of Bayside a needed dose of reality.”
Earlier this week, Dustin was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer following a hospitalization in Florida, in which he was “feeling pain all over his body”.
“At this time we can confirm that Dustin does have cancer,” his team shared after the news broke. “Dustin will disclose more information once it is available and a plan moving forward is made.”
After the reveal, both Mario Lopez and Tiffani Thiessen have sent their well wishes to him, with Mario directly speaking with him.
“I connected with Dustin earlier this evening and although the news of his diagnosis is heartbreaking, we remain positive that he’ll overcome this,” Mario shared on his Instagram page with two photos of the two together. “Praying for him & his family and for a speedy recovery. God Bless.”
Tiffani posted a photo of Dustin on her Instagram Story and wrote, “Thinking of you Dustin.”
Dustin was the only member of the original Saved By The Bell cast to be left out of the new Saved By The Bellrevival. His absence was explained though, and you can find out by watching on Peacock.