TV heartthrob totally unrecognisable almost 40 years after sitcom launched
The former child star has been in the industry for 40 years.
He rose to fame in the hit NBC series Saved by the Bell, which won him a Young Actor award in 1991.
But this child star looks very different now, as he made a rare public appearance on the red carpet for this year’s Critics Choice ceremony.
Dressed in a white tuxedo jacket with a bow tie, the American actor looked every inch a distinguished gentleman as he beamed for cameras.
But do you recognise him?
Perhaps if we call him Zack Morris, that might help, as that’s the name of Mark-Paul Harry Gosselaar’s character who stole people’s hearts back in the day.
Rocking up to the Santa Monica, California, venue on Friday night, the TV star flashed his pearly whites, also sporting a flashy watch and smart pair of specs.
Mark-Paul Gosselaar put in a rare red carpet appearance at the 2025 Critics Choice Awards (Picture: Steve Granitz/FilmMagic) The former child star flashed his pearly whites as he posed in a white tux (Picture: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for Critics Choice Association) He also presented an award alongside Shanola Hampton (Picture: Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Critics Choice Association)His brunette hair styled in a quiff, the now 50-year-old’s locks are vastly different from the blonde quiff he became known for as a teen.
While appearing in Saved by the Bell, Mark-Paul’s hair was much more golden, inspired by Vanilla Ice’s famous highlights.
However, Mark-Paul later shattered a widely upheld illusion, confessing to Jimmy Fallon that he isn’t a natural blonde.
‘People think, “Oh, that’s your natural hair colour”—it” was not. That was colour by Clairol,’ he said as the late-night talk show host held up an old photo.
‘That is not natural, guys; you can see the brown going through.’
Saved by the Bell first hit screens in the US in 1989 and quickly garnered an invested audience by airing every Saturday morning.
Throughout the 90s, it had various spin-off shows too, including Saved by the Bell: The College Years.
Mark-Paul rose to fame as Zack Morris in Saved by the Bell (Picture: NBCUniversal via Getty Images) Comment nowWere you a fan of Saved by the Bell?Comment NowAnd in 2020, Mark-Paul reprised the iconic role, having bagged himself a recurring slot as Zack in the Peacock sequel series, hitting us all with the nostalgia we’d been craving.
The hugely popular character of Zack became one of Saved by the Bell’s most famous. In 2016, Mark-Paul even voiced an animated version of him to appear in Family Guy.
But that’s not all he’s known for, as Mark-Paul has been acting for over 40 years.
His other parts include Paul Johnson in the ABC sitcom series Mixed-ish, Detective John Clark Jr. in NYPD Blue, and Peter Bash in Franklin & Bash.
Film-wise, he took the lead in 1998’s Dead Man on Campus, appeared in 2002’s Atomic Twister, 2011’s 12 Dates of Christmas, and 2016’s Precious Cargo.
His latest movie role was in 2023 when he played Brookes in The Portrait.
As for the small screen, Mark-Paul has dozens of credits to his name, with his latest being in NBC’s Found, of which the second season just premiered.
After being catapulted to fame in the 1990s, he’s enjoyed a successful career across TV and film (Picture: Sheryl Noday/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images) His latest role is Hugh ‘Sir’ Evans in Found (Picture: Matt Miller/NBC via Getty Images)Despite a lengthy back catalogue of roles, though, Mark-Paul believes he’s still very much a student.
‘I still feel like I have so much left to learn. Every time I walk on a set, I learn something,’ he told Newsweek
With regard to his personal life, the screen star lives in Los Angeles. He married former model Lisa Ann Russell in 1996, and they share two children but split in 2010.
Then, in 2011, Mark-Paul got engaged to advertising executive Catriona McGinn in August 2011. They married the following year and share one son and a daughter.
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