Current:Home > MarketsBoy Meets World's Original Topanga Actress Alleges She Was Fired for Not Being "Pretty Enough" -Clarity Finance Guides
Boy Meets World's Original Topanga Actress Alleges She Was Fired for Not Being "Pretty Enough"
View
Date:2025-04-12 19:11:44
Before there was Danielle Fishel, there was Bonnie Morgan.
The Rings actress recently opened up for the first time about being cast and subsequently fired from Boy Meets World after one day of production, which her alleging her quick tenure on the sitcom came down to a decision from director David Trainer.
On a June 26 episode of the podcast Pod Meets World, co-hosted by Fishel and fellow Boy Meets World alumni Rider Strong and Will Friedle, Morgan explained the reason she was given for her firing, saying, "The director said I couldn't take direction, which is one thing I had never been accused of."
However, she says she soon learned that wasn't the case.
It came out very quickly to my agent that the director didn't think I was pretty enough," the contortionist and stunt performer continued. "Literally, did not think I was pretty enough. So that meant that a grown up, a man, a boss, could lie about me and tell me I was untalented because the fact was, he didn't think I was pretty."
E! News has reached out to Disney–ABC Domestic Television and Trainer for comment and has not heard back.
And Morgan—who was 12 years old when she was cast in Boy Meets World—recalled having the "weirdest day" of her life ahead of her firing, with her noting that Trainer was becoming frustrated with her acting.
"I was becoming a nervous wreck," she said. "David was just like, 'Get it together!'"
Still, Morgan remained optimistic about her job following the tough day. "I woke up the next morning to celebrate," she recalled. "I made myself blueberry pancakes, because I was so grown up, with a job now—and brought them up to my parents' bedroom to sit and eat them when the phone rang. My dad picked up the phone and he didn't wait to get off the phone. He just said, 'What? You're kidding. They fired you. You're fired.'"
Morgan continued, "I left my pancakes, ran into my room, took a blue blueberry-smelling marker and wrote, 'The worst day of my life' on my hummingbird calendar."
And the experience left her largely unable to watch Boy Meets World, with her admitting she's only seen one episode. "I saw the Barbie Mattel girl, a literal doll, as Topanga and it was like, 'Oh,'" she said. "It was the only time I would ever watch the show because I was not about torturing myself."
While Trainer has yet to comment on Morgan's claims, he previously spoke about feeling like she wasn't working in the role.
"There's sort of problems that you think you can solve," he said on Pod Meets World last year. "And then there's problems that you think you can't solve. And certainly, by working with her, she moved from one camp to the other. To the insoluble camp."
He added that he told colleagues at the time that she was a "disaster" in the role and they needed "to get rid of her."
Fishel, who ultimately went on to play Topanga in the sitcom and its sequel series Girl Meets World, has also reflected on her experience seeing Morgan on set having been cast in a minor role in the episode.
"She seemed to have trouble there. He'd give her a note telling her to change something, and she'd do it the exact same way again," she wrote in her 2014 memoir Normally This Would Be Cause for Concern. "On set the next day, she wasn't there. They had let her go, and the executive producer, Michael Jacobs, needed to find a new girl to play Topanga."
Ultimately, Morgan harbors no hard feelings toward Fishel over the role. "Yes, of course, for a long time, it was like, 'You took it from me,'" she told her on Pod Meets World. "But you were not in the corner, conniving and conspiring."
After Fishel responded in agreement, Morgan added, "The seat was open and you were ushered into it."
For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News AppveryGood! (2611)
Related
- Sam Taylor
- Who is Antonio Pierce? Meet the Raiders interim head coach after Josh McDaniels' firing
- Sidewalk plaques commemorating Romans deported by Nazis are vandalized in Italian capital
- Chase Young trade is latest blockbuster pulled off by 49ers' John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan
- Alex Murdaugh’s murder appeal cites biased clerk and prejudicial evidence
- 15 must-see holiday movies, from 'The Marvels' and 'Napoleon' to 'Trolls 3' and 'Wish'
- Officer charged in Elijah McClain’s death says he feared for his life after disputed gun grab
- Buybuy Baby is back: Retailer to reopen 11 stores after Bed, Bath & Beyond bankruptcy
- B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
- Small earthquake strikes in mountains above Coachella Valley
Ranking
- Bodycam footage shows high
- Cornell student accused of threatening Jewish students held without bail after first court appearance
- Former Delta co-pilot indicted for threatening to shoot captain during commercial flight, officials say
- Geaux Rocket Ride is second horse based at Santa Anita to die in lead up to Breeders' Cup
- Will the 'Yellowstone' finale be the last episode? What we know about Season 6, spinoffs
- Kentucky report card shows some improvement in student test scores but considerable work ahead
- Facing elimination in World Series, D-backs need All-Star performance from Zac Gallen in Game 5
- Daniel Radcliffe’s Stunt Double Recalls Harry Potter Accident That Left Him Paralyzed
Recommendation
Costco membership growth 'robust,' even amid fee increase: What to know about earnings release
Bulgaria expels Russian journalist as an alleged threat to national security
Bankrupt and loving it: Welcome to the lucrative world of undead brands
Oprah's Favorite Things 2023: 25 Chic & Useful Gifts Under $50 For Everyone On Your List
The city of Chicago is ordered to pay nearly $80M for a police chase that killed a 10
NFL hot seat rankings: Which coaches could be fired after Raiders dropped Josh McDaniels?
Where Dorit Kemsley's Marriage Really Stands After Slamming Divorce Rumors
Israel criticizes South American countries after they cut diplomatic ties and recall ambassadors