It’s not uncommon for celebrities to not want their children to watch their famous roles. (Just ask Daniel Radcliffe who has been blunt about his plans to NOT tell his son that he’s Harry Potter.) It turns out, there’s an iconic ‘90s star who felt the same way, as Family Matters’ Jaleel White wasn’t too keen on introducing his kid to nerd-god incarnate Steve Urkel, at least until his mom stepped in with her two cents.
White is currently hosting HGTV's renovation competition show Totally ‘90s House, in which other stars from the decade such as Melissa Joan Hart, Brian Austin Green, and Jodie Sweetin are competing against each other. So, of course, when discussing the nostalgia of the decade, USA Today brought up his suspender-wearing character, and asked if his daughter has ever watched his beloved sitcom. While I expected the question, I didn’t expect that decision to be taken out of his hands. He explains:
My mom gave my daughter the full indoctrination when she was 4 years old during a weekend that she watched her. I was away and I came back and she had the Urkel doll. I'm like, ‘What are you doing?’ [My mom said,] ‘She needs to know who her daddy is and what he did. That was great work.’ Okay, Mom, we're not having this argument.
Sometimes mom knows best. Or is at least loudest about it. Clearly, she knew what she was doing. Though while he wasn’t keen on the idea, he has expressed in the past his love for playing Steve Urkel and his time on set, including that infamous food fight. The actor has been honest about the ups and downs of playing the cheese-loving neighbor of the Winslows and his quick rise to fame, which can be read about in his memoir, Growing up Urkel.
However, I always love seeing how protective he is of Steve, to the point he didn’t even want to play Stefan (Steve’s cool alter ego) because he thought the character was “boring.” And in his defense, Laura did choose Steve over Stefan after both men proposed. Though I wonder what his daughter thinks about his comedic chops on the sitcom or the different characters. (White famously played multiple roles on Family Matters: Steve, Stefan, and of course, cousin Myrtle.) And his daughter may not have kept up with the “love and tradition,” but at least she was given a love for comedy. The actor shares:
So my daughter got over that between age 4, 5 and 6 when Fuller House was actually running hot. She loved Family Matters. She loved Fuller House, and she quickly moved on. By the time she was 9 and 10 years old, she was in love with Modern Family.
At least she has good taste. Though maybe he was glad she quickly moved on. And while a big part of me would love to see what happened to Steve and Laura after the series finale (where we didn’t see their wedding), I’m not sure a revival will ever happen. White doesn’t seem confident that the sitcom would “work with modern life.” Though the actor did have an oddball idea of how to bring Family Matters back in a roundabout way by following “another kid.”
Plus, he did revive the character for an animated holiday special in 2023 called Urkel Saves Santa: The Movie! So hope is not lost! Maybe he’ll change his mind about not wanting a revival if he’s pitched the right idea, as he has said before: “I'm not going to try us out on the field for anything less than absolute victory.” But for now you can rewatch the sitcom for the 100th time with a Disney+ subscription.
Of course, you can watch him host Totally ‘90s House and decide which ‘90s team deserves to win. And maybe the nostalgia will convince his mom that it’s time for a family rewatch of Steve Urkel’s best (and clumsiest) moments.
