The Los Angeles Times wrote that while Strong's script "isn't autobiographical, it's definitely informed by his own experience of living in the spotlight.In a new interview on the podcast Kevin Pollak’s Chat Show, Strong tells guest host Samm Levine (of Freaks & Geeks fame) that Disney Channel didn’t allow series creator Michael Jacobs to get quite as dramatic as he would’ve liked to on GMW. And the idea that fame and money could be trauma for a family" more than it is about Jackson or that specific trial.Ī review on Stage Raw stated that while the play's "subject matter is compelling, Never Ever Land never quite packs the punch it promises" and that it "has all the elements of an intensely dramatic story but never narrows its focus: Its most crucial and dramatic events are only referred to in conversation." Would they have let me go? Probably."īut Strong told VICE that the play " really about fame as trauma. "What would that have been like? And what would my parents have done if I wanted to go spend the night in Neverland. "I actually was one or two degrees away from meeting him a bunch of times," he said quietly. In a 2019 interview, Strong - who is the same age as Chandler and lived within a couple of miles from Jackson's estate in Encino at the time of the trial - told VICE that he used to think about the possibility of him meeting the famous singer. Michael Jackson sexual misconduct case, although Jackson's name is never brought up in the play. The play is loosely based on the 1993 Jordan Chandler vs. In September 2019, Strong's play Never Ever Land had its world premiere at a studio/stage in Los Angeles, presented by the ensemble company Theatre Unleashed. "Even when I'm not acting, it would still be better for my writing and directing for me to do more interviews and put myself out there more, but I just I find it all pretty awful." "I ended up being a very private person, and I maintain this line of privacy that is bad for my career,” he told VICE. While he did take off time for a few acting jobs, he generally focused on his studies and went to bed by 9 pm most nights.Īfter completing his academic studies, Strong moved back to Los Angeles, but he has continued to shun the spotlight as he pursues his writing, directing, and occasional acting work. While attending Columbia University, Strong lived a quiet life in the East Village. "I didn't drink or, but every woman I dated was over 20, every friend I had was older, and I would literally go in disguise when I didn't want to deal with it." So, by the time I was 16, I was living and functioning as an adult," he told VICE in 2019. "I would always gravitate toward people who had no idea who I was, and when Boy Meets World was on the air that just meant anybody over 18. In order to try and deal with his career and the attention, he associated with people not involved with Hollywood. Strong reportedly hated the fame that came with being on Boy Meets World so much that he nearly quit the show. the Forces of Evil. But he's also focused on his award-winning directing and writing work, his political activism, and his role as a husband and father. He still acts - he reprised the role of Shawn for Girl Meets World and more recently took a voice role for the animated series Star vs. So where is the erstwhile Shawn Hunter now? Well, while he returned to California after years on the opposite coast, he has continued to keep a fairly low profile. So instead of staying in Hollywood and attempting to build on his high profile, he headed off to college shortly after Boy Meets World finished its initial run, earning bachelor's and master's degrees while finding at least some extent of the privacy he desired. But he hated fame and the overwhelming attention that often came with it. The writers even gave Shawn a number of storylines that were generally far more serious than one might typically find on a sitcom, dealing with topics such as homelessness, his father's problem drinking, and being involved in an interracial relationship.īoy Meets World made Strong a TV star and teen idol. Rider Strong was just 13 years old when he was cast as Shawn Hunter, the rebellious best friend of lead character Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) on ABC's Boy Meets World. The sitcom became a huge hit for the network and ended up running for seven seasons.
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