‘Saved by the Bell’: Haskiri Velazquez on Daisy’s New Crush & Bayside’s School Spirit
Preview
Saved by the Bell is almost back and the students and faculty of Bayside High are making up for lost time as they return to in-person learning following the pandemic.
Eager to get back to the swing of things is Student Council President and former Douglas transfer Daisy (Haskiri Velazquez) who is looking forward to putting Bayside nonsense behind her and making Junior year the best one yet. As Bayside High prepares to compete in the Southern California School Spirit Competition, Daisy’s motivations should be at an all-time high, but some distractions are getting in the way.
(Credit: Tyler Golden/Peacock)
“It’s a fun distraction,” Velazquez admits. “We get to see Daisy in a different light, which is allowing herself to cut herself some slack and have fun exploring these feelings.” So, who is catching Daisy’s eye? Bayside’s new addition, Gil (played by Matthew Sato) who is Student Council VP alongside Daisy.
“This new kid is just right up her alley,” Velazquez notes, adding, “he loves books, he wants extra homework, and he’s thinking about his future and going to these Ivy League schools.” Sounds like a dream, right? Well, there’s still an underlying need to fulfill her academic goals.
(Credit: Greg Gayne/Peacock)
“It’s kind of fun to explore that within Daisy’s character and experiencing that first-time crush and those butterflies,” Velazquez says. “But also, you still see her applying pressure on herself, not to get fully distracted and trying to find balance within friendships, a crush, and school.”
While there’s new love budding, some things don’t change. “At Bayside, I think there’s no all real normal school day,” Velazquez acknowledges. “Something crazy has to happen, or it’s not Bayside at all.” Bayside’s drive to win the school spirit competition is certainly a contributing factor.
“We put a lot of pressure on ourselves, in a fun way, to make sure we beat Valley this time around and bring home what wasn’t possible in the original series,” she says. This extra show of school spirit manifests in a school dance like no other, service projects, and much more.
Along the way, viewers will see the bond between Bayside’s original students and the Douglas kids has also grown since Season 1. “You see this [open-minded] dynamic happen, where everyone from Douglas kept an open mind and everyone from Bayside kind of kept an open mind,” Velazquez says. “Eventually [the Bayside kids] came around and saw that they should be a part of the solution in a way to help these kids from Douglas.”
Tune into Season 2 of Saved by the Bell to see what they’ll accomplish together as Bayside High ramps up their school spirit and Daisy explores the thrills of first love on Peacock.
Saved by the Bell, Season 2 Premiere, Wednesday, November 24, Peacock
