Josie Totah interview: ‘Saved by the Bell’

“I wasn’t really consuming ‘Saved by the Bell’ as a kid,” admits Josie Totah. For our recent webchat, she continues, “I was aware of it but not extremely knowledgeable about the characters and stories. I knew the lead was attractive.” Watch the exclusive video interview above.

The actress stars in the revival of the comedy found on Peacock. The single-cam series returns to Bayside High School in 2020. In season one, the closing of a disadvantaged school results in students being bussed to Bayside for their education. Totah explains, “We take everything from the original that made it so special, like the campiness, fun pranks or relationships. Then we incorporate these new conversations that we are talking about now that we should have been talking about. Through the lens of the past of our show being able to tell these conversations is really special.”

SEETracey Wigfield interview: ‘Saved by the Bell’ developer

On “Saved by the Bell” Totah plays Lexi, an assertive and quick-witted cheerleader. The actress says, “She’s a proud queen bitch. She’s in a Broadway show every moment of the day. She’s never not on. When playing her I feel like I’m on cocaine at all times. If my heart’s not racing there’s a problem. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t take Zyrtec-D on some days.”

The first season also explores some of the struggles faced by Lexi as a transgender female. Totah, who came out herself in 2018, says, “One of the most fun parts of this character is getting to have those moments where you see her true genuine feelings. A lot of that was her not having to grow up as her true self and projecting that resentment that she has for the world onto the people around her.”

Totah also serves as producer on the series. She reveals, “With my character’s storyline it was really important to be involved in order to tell an authentic story about a trans character. It didn’t feel right if there wasn’t that representation on the other side. Because of that we were able to tell a more truthful story. The biggest challenge when it comes to Lexi being a trans character is showcasing that, but also making sure she is a full-fledged human. That’s one part of her identity, not everything about her. Just mentioning it and ignoring it would be tokenizing it. But so much of transgender representation is that she’s a trans character and that’s all that she is.”