Whatever Happened To Lark Voorhies?
There is an entire generation of people who spent much of their adolescence watching "Saved by the Bell." They would wrap up their week of school only to turn on their televisions on Saturday morning and visit the colorful halls of Bayside High. You would be hard-pressed to find a child of the '90s that was not insanely jealous of The Max, the show's brightly colored diner hangout; or the Malibu Sands, a beach resort where the cast spent a summer working and causing mischief. But most iconic of all were the six teenage cast members meant to appear as an eclectic collection of relatable youths, despite being a group of popular rich kids living their best lives on the beaches of California — on and off screen.
After spending their most influential years in front of the camera, most of the "Saved by the Bell" crew grew up to have moderately successful careers. Zack (Mark-Paul Gosselaar), Kelly (Tiffani Thiessen), Slater (Mario Lopez), and Jessie (Elizabeth Berkley) each managed to find regular acting work after the franchise could no longer find reasons to keep them together. Meanwhile, Dustin Diamond, the show's resident nerd Screech, remained in the limelight for less positive reasons.
However, star Lark Voorhies, who played Lisa Turtle from the first episode, seemingly disappeared after the last bell rang. Keep reading to discover what happened to one of the show's most beloved cast members and find out what Voorhies is up to nowadays.
An award-winning run on Saved by the Bell
Starting her acting career in the late '80s with "Good Morning, Miss Bliss," also known as "Saved by the Bell: The Junior High Years," Lark Voorhies remained a significant part of the franchise for years to come. One of the few original members to make the leap into the high school era, Voorhies continued to portray Lisa Marie Turtle through every iteration of "Saved by the Bell" until the final goodbye in the made-for-television movie "Saved by the Bell: Wedding in Las Vegas." Although it should be noted that she only made one appearance in the prime-time 1993 spin-off "Saved by the Bell: The College Years."
Interestingly, despite numerous nominations for all of the cast of "Saved by the Bell," Voorhies was the only one to win more than one Young Artist Award for best young actress in an off-primetime series – one-time winners from the show include Mario Lopez, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, and Tori Spelling. Thanks to being a stand-out performer in the franchise, Voorhies continued to find work on comedic sitcoms such as "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" and "Martin" after the primary "Saved by the Bell" series ended in 1992.
Her religion got in the way of a soap opera career
Following her run on "Saved by the Bell," Lark Voorhies made the logical jump from the high school sitcom to the more adult-oriented daytime soap operas. Joining the cast of "Days of Our Lives" in 1993, Voorhies portrayed single mother Wendy Reardon for over 50 episodes before being replaced by actress Tammy Townsend. Thankfully, Voorhies would find more work with a more substantial role in "The Bold and the Beautiful," portraying fashion designer Jasmine Malone starting in 1995.
Unsurprisingly, Voorhies maintained a successful career on "The Bold and the Beautiful" for 65 episodes, until her religious beliefs got in the way of her performance. It has since been documented that Voorhies has been a practicing Jehovah's Witness since her time on "Saved by the Bell." According to tell-all books from Dustin Diamond and a follow-up Lifetime documentary "The Unauthorized Saved by the Bell Story," Voorhies struggled to connect with her co-stars because of her religion, even turning down birthday presents as they went against her beliefs. Following her religious practices, Voorhies refused to do a sex scene for "The Bold and the Beautiful" in 1996 which resulted in her being fired from the program.
She has had a few acting roles since
Sadly, beyond Lark Voorhies' time on "Saved by the Bell" and daytime dramas, the actress has struggled to land any major work. She has made appearances on some significant programs, including "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," "Family Matters," and "The Parkers." Unfortunately, past the '90s, Voorhies no longer received many calls from Hollywood.
One of the more substantial roles Voorhies has had since "Saved by the Bell" was a supporting role in the Method Man and Redman-led 2001 stoner comedy "How High," where she portrayed an established student at Harvard University. Most notably, Voorhies had a one-episode voice appearance on "Robot Chicken" where she reunited with "Saved by the Bell" co-stars Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Mario Lopez, Dustin Diamond, and Dennis Haskins, for a skit about their former series becoming a horror movie. In 2012, she reunited with Diamond once again for the independent film "Little Creeps." Until recently returning for the "Saved by the Bell" reboot in 2020, Voorhies' last credit was in 2012.
She tried to start a music career on multiple occasions
Any fan of the original "Saved by the Bell" series is certain to remember the season three episode "Rockumentary." The plot centers around Zack having a dream about him and the gang becoming famous musicians. Narrated by Casey Kasem, the episode is filmed like a mockumentary about the rise and fall of their rock group "Zack Attack," and is topped with a rendition of their big hit single, "Did We Ever Have a Chance?"
Lark Voorhies had her own dreams of becoming a famous musician which she tried to achieve after "Saved by the Bell" ended. Her first music group, the X-Girls — later named Geneva – was a collaboration with Stacee and Yashi Brown, the daughters of Rebbie Jackson, the oldest sibling of the famous Jackson family. Voorhies later became the lead singer of the short-lived alternative rock group Third Degree. In 2011, the actress branched out on her own as a musician releasing the album "The Mixer" which featured two songs, "Roll with Me" and "Saturday."
She sued a tabloid over drug-use allegations
Unfortunately, for Lark Voorhies, troubles began to arise in the mid-2000s, starting with a since-deleted article from the National Enquirer that claimed the actress was hospitalized for an addiction to cocaine. Voorhies hit back by suing the publication for libel, calling the story "patently false and heinous." Surprisingly, the lawsuit was quickly dropped with her attorney stating, "The allegations are untrue, and the matter has been resolved."
In a 2010 interview with the blog The Four Fs, Voorhies addressed the source of the drug use rumors as "desperate sources seeking improper vein." It is easy to mark the strange wording used by the former teen actress, and her eccentric dialogue only made people more suspicious. In 2012, Voorhies made a rare appearance for an interview with Yahoo! which featured the once bright starlet with odd make-up choices and even odder behavior. An article released in October 2012 by People added further flames to the rumors after an unnamed former costar was quoted as saying "I thought she was on drugs" referring to her Yahoo! interview. In the same People article, Voorhies' mother noted that the "Saved by the Bell" star was facing mental health struggles, depression, and trauma, but failed to go into further detail. Meanwhile, the Jehovah's Witness actress dismissed drug and mental health allegations, stating, "We're alive in a major time of all-in-all prophecy."
If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
There have been lots of rumors about her over the years
Following Lark Voorhies' public transformation, another People interview with her mother revealed that the actress could be dealing with bipolar disorder. "I care deeply about my daughter, and I want her to resume her life," said Tricia Voorhies. However, Lark was quick to dispel the rumors, calling her erratic behavior "moments of pray" and her mother "over-loving." The actress followed up with an interview with Inside Edition speaking to the allegations of her being unwell: "It has no relevance to me, so it does not relate to me whatsoever. And I do not carry any association with it at all."
In 2015, the former "Saved by the Bell" star had more rumors spread about her. Notably absent from social media, a fake Instagram account for the actress made claims that she was facing the chronic autoimmune disease, lupus — which she quickly called a hoax. "Lark has never been diagnosed with lupus. It's upsetting her that people are coming out about it," read a statement in People from her representative. "She doesn't want to be perceived as someone faking an illness." However, in 2015, Voorhies admitted on Instagram that she had been diagnosed with lupus since 2007.
If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.
She has had even more trouble with love
Lark Voorhies' love life has been as dramatic and over-the-top as the campy teen drama she starred in for so many years. There have long been rumors that Voorhies had an ongoing relationship with costar Mark-Paul Gosselaar throughout the filming of the show. However, the way the Zack Morris actor puts it, "All of us dated at one point or another — it was incestuous!" Following the cancellation of "Saved by the Bell," Voorhies was briefly engaged to "Martin" star Martin Lawrence. Sadly, news came out that their relationship ended after Lawrence announced his engagement to another woman on the "Arsenio Hall Show."
Voorhies later married actor Miguel Coleman in 1996 but they split in 2001, which Voorhies' mother said "caused a kind of break" for the actress. However, it was Voorhies' next relationship that would make headlines and have people questioning her mental health once more. In 2015, it was a shock to everyone when Voorhies tied the knot with music engineer Jimmy Green who she had met on Facebook a year prior. Not long after the honeymoon, Lark's mother Tricia filed a restraining order from her new son-in-law claiming he was affiliated with a gang, which the "Saved by the Bell" actress quickly denied. However, six months after the wedding, Voorhies and Green separated. In the aftermath, Voorhies released a long and angry message about her new ex-husband on Instagram, although she again claimed later that her account was hacked.
A career in self-publishing
Amidst all the excitement in Lark Voorhies' life, the former teen actress has found solace in starting her own projects. Alongside her work in music, the "Saved by the Bell" star also began writing and publishing her own books. Through 2010 and 2011, Voorhies released three titles, all available on Amazon. However, her collective works ended up leading many readers to be concerned about her mental health even more.
The three books released by the former starlet are each written in a uniquely complicated manner. Featuring commas after nearly every individual word, the books are almost impossible to read. For example, the synopsis of her second title "True Light" reads: "The ideal, on, 'True Light.' Impress upon the reader, the, all, atoned, importance, resting, upon, the, formatted, nuance, applicable, of, orations, in, genuine." Sadly, some reviewers have pointed out that many of the words that she chooses are made up and every chapter in the book shares the same title.
She was mysteriously absent for more than one Saved by the Bell reunion
Unfortunately, all the rumors, scandals, and drama surrounding Lark Voorhies have resulted in her being snubbed and excluded from multiple "Saved by the Bell" reunions. For many years, the cast of the show went their own ways, but as the nostalgia of the campy Saturday morning series grew, the beloved group of heartthrobs began collaborating more and more. In 2015, Jimmy Fallon created a skit on "The Tonight Show," which featured a group of original "Saved by the Bell" cast members reprising their roles as Zack, Slater, Kelly, and even Mr. Belding. It was unsurprising at the time that Dustin Diamond and Lark Voorhies were left out of the reunion due to the controversies surrounding them.
Years later, in 2019, the same group of former teen sitcom stars united for a special dinner occasion, once again snubbing their former onscreen best friends. Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Mario Lopez, Tiffani Thiessen, and Elizabeth Berkley each shared the special event on their social media accounts. Alas, the offscreen get-together likely began the talks of the 2020 "Saved by the Bell" reboot, and the absence of Screech and Lisa Turtle foreshadowed that the pair would be absent from the upcoming series.
She has opened up about her struggles with mental health
Many years after Lark Voorhies' mother revealed concerns about her daughter's mental health, the once-teen idol finally set the record straight. In February 2020, the former actress appeared on "Dr. Oz" to discuss her challenges. After asking to explain her condition, the television personality Dr. Oz prefaced that her condition may cause her to struggle with articulating her thoughts. "Schizoaffective thought disorder ... and that was a perfect example of what it does and how it behaves and what it creates around and about it," she said about attempting to communicate effectively.
Interestingly, Voorhies was scheduled to appear on "Dr. Oz" over two years before her appearance. Oz explained how at that time it became evident that the former teen actress was unwell and "the first order of business was to get Lark some off-camera support." Thankfully with the help of psychiatrist Dr. Modir, Voorhies was able to reach a proper diagnosis after denying claims years earlier of bipolar disorder.
If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.
She fought to appear in the Saved by the Bell reboot
During the same interview on "Dr. Oz" where Lark Voorhies opened up about her mental health struggles, she also addressed the "Saved by the Bell" reboot that was currently being produced. "I have to admit I did feel a bit slighted and hurt when I was not invited to be part of the 'Saved by the Bell' reunion as well as other cast members' events," the award-winning star of the original series stated. "Of course, I also realized that having this puzzling disorder may have played a major part in that factual decision." The segment ended with Oz and Voorhies agreeing that they should call the "Saved by the Bell" cast and crew about the snub.
Months later, Voorhies received a call from her former castmate Elizabeth Berkley and was asked to return to the show that they once made popular. Lisa Turtle made three appearances in the new "Saved by the Bell" series, with the former fashionable teen reimagined as an established designer. Unfortunately, the sequel series was canceled ahead of its third season and will not be returning.