On their rewatch podcast Pod Meets World, three of the stars of the ’90s sitcom Boy Meets World—Danielle Fishel, Will Friedle, and Rider Strong—recap each episode, share their experiences on set, and interview guests who were also involved with the show. But, one actor who listeners shouldn’t expect to hear from is Ben Savage, who starred as Cory Matthews. In a new interview with Variety, the podcast hosts revealed that, though they were once close, it’s been years since Savage has spoken to them.
The news may be surprising—and distressing—to the show’s fans. Not only did Savage, Fishel, Friedle, and Strong grow up together on the Boy Meets World set over a seven-year run, but he also reunited with them for the revival series Girl Meets World, which aired from 2014 to 2017. His castmates told Variety that the former child star suddenly “ghosted” them and none of them have been able to get in touch with him in the past few years.
Read on to find out more about the rift, including the extent to which Friedle went in an attempt to get his former friend and co-star to speak to him again.
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After growing up together on Boy Meets World, the cast shared a strong connection, even as they went their separate ways. In 2014, they came back together for Girl Meets World, which focuses on the daughter of Savage and Fishel’s characters, Cory and Topanga. Friedle and Strong also made appearances on the series and worked behind the scenes, writing and directing episodes.
As the Variety interview notes, the cast also attended conventions together where they spoke on panels and interacted with fans. As an example of how close she was with Savage, Fishel noted that when she welcomed a son prematurely in 2019, he offered support.
“We were just so, so close, especially during that time. He was checking in with me regularly,” the 42-year-old actor said.
While Savage was there for Fishel during that stressful time in her life, things changed not long after. “He ghosted us,” Fishel said to Variety.
Fishel, Friedle, and Strong haven’t spoken to their former co-star in three years, they explained.
“He disappeared—I wish I knew why, to this day,” Friedle, who played Cory’s older brother, Eric, on the show, said. “We didn’t have a fight. There’s no falling out. There was no animosity. He just woke up one day, and decided I don’t want this person in my life anymore.“
Best Life has reached out to Savage for comment.
Friedle made the most effort to get Savage to speak to him again amid the unexpected silence.
“I finally sent a text saying, ‘I’ve known you for 30 years, what’s going on?’ I said, ‘I’m gonna call you every day until you tell me not to call you anymore.’ That lasted about three weeks or a month, every single day,” the Kim Possible star said.
“I’ve known him since he was 11 years old, and we have a shared history. And we were doing these conventions together, and we were getting to know each other as adults, and then he just kind of went, I’m done with you,” Friedle continued. “I tried and tried and tried for months, until finally my wife was like, ‘Why are you doing this to yourself? He obviously doesn’t want you in his life.'”
Prior to Savage cutting ties with the other actors, they spoke to him about their podcast idea back in 2018. Savage said that he wasn’t interested, which they were fine with.
“Ben Savage is doing his own thing. He’s doing Lifetime movies. He’s busy. We would love for him to have been a part of the show. We asked him to be a part of the show,” Fishel said on the premiere episode (via Variety). “He said, ‘It just really is not my thing,’ and we have respected that. It’s not his thing. That is why Ben is not here.”
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In February 2022, Savage spoke about his relationship with his childhood co-stars in an Us Weekly interview.
Asked if they have a group text, he responded, “Yeah, there is a group chat. And of course, I’m always very happy for them and I’m always wishing them the best. It’s interesting when you start off as kids with people, because it’s like you’re just kind of connected throughout your lives. So you can go one year, six months, two years, five years, and it’s like you’re always kind of connected to these people who you grew up working with. So it is a very unique and special bond, so you do always have that.”
As Fishel noted, Savage has continued acting, including appearing in Lifetime movies. His most recent onscreen role was in 2022’s Girl in the Shed: The Kidnapping of Abby Hernandez for the network. In addition, Savage, who studied political science in college, has gotten into politics.
In 2022, Savage ran for West Hollywood City Council, but was not voted into one of the three available seats. Currently, the 42-year-old is running for congress as a Democrat in the hopes of becoming a representative for California’s 30th district. In March, he appeared on ABC News to talk about his campaign. He said that his experience working union jobs as an actor since he was five years old and being a part of projects that “are about bringing people together and that are about positivity” are what he would bring from his career in the entertainment industry into the political arena.
The Pod Meets World hosts commented on Savage’s entry into politics on their podcast in April. Strong said that he and Savage disagreed politically when they were younger.
“We often found ourselves on exact opposite sides on almost every issue,” Strong said (via BuzzFeed News). “Now the important thing to state is we were teenagers and it was 1993 through 2000, so maybe a lot has changed. I know my core beliefs haven’t really changed that much but times have changed, I’ve probably changed in ways that I’m not completely aware of, and I’m sure Ben has changed.” He added that he wouldn’t endorse someone politically just because they starred on a show together.
Fishel added, “It’s a little unfair for Ben and for us that so much weight is given to what we all think about what the other one is doing with their lives. I also think it’s really wonderful that we have all taken totally new career paths and that we have other interests that we’ve decided to pursue as adults.”
In the Variety interview, Fishel said that despite being “ghosted” by her onscreen husband, she’s hopeful that their relationship will change for the better.
“If there’s anything this podcast has taught me, it’s that everyone is on their own journey and having their own experiences that can be perceived many different ways, depending on your POV,” she said. “Speaking for myself, Ben and I may be estranged right now and we may have our complaints about each other, but I will always love Ben and want what’s best for him. I don’t think this is the end of our story—but time will tell.”