Jaleel White Reveals Why He Turned Down Family Matters Reboot

TV reboots aren’t a rare condition in this day and age, but don’t expect Family Matters to get that same treatment.

Jaleel White, who famously played Steve Urkel on the iconic ’90s sitcom, confirms in a new interview that he turned down an offer to reprise his nerd-next-door role on a new iteration of the show.

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“I embrace the TGIF legacy, but I’m also careful to acknowledge that TGIF was a sinking ship, and you cannot make shows like that right now,” White revealed Tuesday during a visit to SiriusXM’s Andy Cohen Live. “I feel like [Fuller House] got away with it because they have a schmaltzy, kind of vanilla thing that they do that’s very Hallmarkish to be quite honest and it benefits Candace [Cameron Bure] and that’s wonderful, but I just didn’t feel like we could get away with that same brand of humor.”

To be clear, White says he “was not offered a direct reboot.” He refers to his proposed deal as a “blind contract with no script and half the pay that [he] made leaving the show.” In other words, producers wanted to lock him in as Steve Urkel before developing anything.

“If it’s just a cash grab … I’m not interested in that,” White clarified. “If I touch anything that’s associated with Family Matters, I want to advance the legacy and I want to help the kids’ careers.”

Family Matters aired from 1989 to 1997 as part of ABC’s TGIF block, before moving to CBS for its final season. White has reprised the role of Steve Urkel several times since the show ended in 1998, but only in animated form; he voiced Steve in a 2019 episode of Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?, then returned to star in the 2023 Christmas special Urkel Saves Santa.

Hit PLAY on the video below for more of White’s thoughts on a potential Family Matters reboot, then drop a comment with your thoughts below. Would you still like to see the show come back, or is it best to leave it in the past?

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