Jaleel White is hitting back at his “Family Matters” co-stars’ comments about his alleged “difficult” behavior on the set of the beloved ’90s sitcom.
White, 47, stops by SiriusXM “andy cohen liveto promote this week “Growing Up Urkel,” his newly-published memoir About his life growing up as nerdy neighbor Steve Urkel on “Family Matters” from 1989 to 1998.
During the interview, Andy Cohen asked White how he felt about his co-stars Jo Marie Payton and Reginald VelJohnson, who he claimed were a handful on the set.
“He said publicly at one point that you’re not easy to work with,” Cohen said. “Are you surprised to hear that?”
White expressed no objection to his statement.
He replied, “He is also over 70 and since I was 12, I have been told not to argue with my elders.” “So you know, with Joe Mary, it’s always like which day did I catch her or which day did the interviewer catch her? I talk about it in the book.
He explained: “So, when you say ‘hard,’ I’ll be self-aware enough to say, ‘Okay.’
Recalling that he started the show when he was about 13 years old finished when he was 22The actor further added, “You know, as a 13-year-old kid, whenever I was called on the set, I would always bring my basketball. I dribbled my basketball everywhere, and to this day I can hear script supervisor Joyce Webb saying, ‘Oh, here he comes with that basketball.’ it was Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap Continuous.”
Cohen interjected, saying, “It upset everyone,” to which White replied, “If that’s the extent of being called ‘difficult’, then so be it.” “I digress.”
In 2022, Peyton – who played Harriet Baynes Winslow, matriarch of the family that lives next door to Urkel – told entertainment tonight You know White will “run wild and do whatever he wants, thinking he can say whatever he wants, and hurt people’s feelings.”
that later His comments were supported,
“Yeah, sometimes you bump heads and things,” Peyton, 74, said in 2023. per people“But I will always love him. He was always a kid to me, and I don’t care how old he is, he’s still a kid to me… To me, no matter how old he gets, he’ll still be a kid. And I forgive everything because I have that kind of heart to forget things.
VelJohnson, 72, played the family patriarch, Carl Winslow, and talked about his relationship with White. Speaking to ET During the outlet’s “Iconic TV Dads” special for Father’s Day 2022.
“He was a wonderful child, [but] I think working with him was a challenge. Working with everyone was a challenge and there were moments when it was a little difficult,” said the actor, “but overall, I have nothing but good memories of them.”
White also spoke to Cohen about a possible “Family Matters” reboot, and told fans not to hold their breath.
“I was offered a blind contract without any script and it was half the salary I was supposed to make if I left the show, right? So, I say, ‘Wait, wait, what do you mean?’ I don’t get a chance to meet any producer. I don’t get to see any scripts. ”We’ll make you pay for it,” he claimed he was told during the reboot talks. “And it’s like, you know, if it’s just a cash grab and, you know, I’m just not interested in it.”
“If I touch something that is connected to family MattersWhite continued, “I want to carry on the legacy and help kids with their careers.”
White’s memoir hits bookshelves today (Tuesday, November 19). She made headlines earlier this week after claiming in the book that “Family Matters” executives had instructed her to replace Urkel’s signature tight overalls with loose-fitting jeans. Because of his “bulge”.
“Family Matters” ran for 9 seasons over 10 years. The series was nominated for an Emmy during its TV reign and won several NAACP Image Awards. White went along seven image awards For Outstanding Performance in a Youth or Children’s Series/Special and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for the role of Urkel.
