Even if Family Guy is actually done with Star Wars tribute episodes, Seth MacFarlane’s popular animated series will never be at a shortage for pop culture moments to parody. Some people may argue the gimmick has grown old after 14 seasons, but it’s hard not to look back fondly on Chris walking right into a-Ha’s “Take On Me” video or an entire episode being based around the 1985 comedy Spies Like Us. And when things do seem stale or repetitive, the best course of action is always to bring in surprise special guest stars to revive one of the most memorably terrible (and therefore hilarious) moments from their old TV series.
For the upcoming 15th season, that surprise guest is Mark-Paul Gosselaar, who has proved in recent years that he’s not above returning to Bayside High to make fun of the awful-but-beloved ‘90s series Saved by the Bell. Sure, a full-blown reunion for nostalgia junkie Jimmy Fallon seems like a no-brainer, but making fun of a scene that was supposed to teach a serious lesson to ‘90s kids? Turns out that isn’t much of a long shot, as Gosselaar will make fun of the classic “I’m so excited!” scene in an upcoming episode of the Fox series.
“It’s a very famous scene where Stewie is in the Elizabeth Berkley role,” executive producer Richard Appel teases. “It was one of those times when we were like, ‘Do you think Mark-Paul Gosselaar would play [Zack]? Let’s try.’ And he did it quite enthusiastically.”
Adds EP Steve Callaghan, “It was great, he was hilarious.” (Via TV Line)
Two thoughts on this: 1) Is Gosselaar the Saved by the Bell star that they should have targeted for this episode, or would Elizabeth Berkley have been the bigger get? After all, she did tease the pill scene in the aforementioned Fallon reunion, so it’s her performance in that scene that really makes people light up when they hear the phrase “I’m so excited!” after all these years.
More importantly, though, 2) Can Family Guy land Berkley for a Showgirls parody? Specifically, the pool scene. You know, that scene. Because, at the risk of delivering the hottest of hot takes, the pool scene is always going to outshine “I’m so excited!” in terms of her most hilarious moments.
