Whatever Happened to Leanna Creel? Where ‘Saved by the Bell’s Tori Is Now

SAVED BY THE BELL, from left: Leanna Creel, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, (1992), 1989-1993 — Paul Drinkwater/NBC/Everett Collection

If you watched Saved by the Bell, Tori Scott (Leanna Creel) might still feel like a Bayside mystery. Depending on the episode, Kelly Kapowski (Tiffani Thiessen) and Jessie Spano (Elizabeth Berkley) were either part of the gang or nowhere to be found. In their place was Tori, the motorcycle-riding new girl in the leather jacket who quickly became a love interest for Zack Morris (Mark-Paul Gosselaar). Then Tori disappeared before graduation, while Kelly and Jessie returned as if nothing unusual had happened.

Leanna Creel, who turns 56 on Aug. 27, played Tori in 10 episodes. Her brief time on the show created one of its most memorable behind-the-scenes stories, but acting was only one part of Creel’s career. In honor of her birthday, let’s learn more about her odd appearance on the ’90s show and what she’s doing now in her 50s.

Why did Tori replace Kelly and Jessie?

SAVED BY THE BELL, Leann Creel, (Season 4, 1992), 1989-1992

Paul Drinkwater/NBC/Everett Collection

The strange switch began after Saved by the Bell had already filmed its graduation episode. NBC unexpectedly ordered 11 additional episodes, but Tiffani Thiessen and Elizabeth Berkley did not return for the new batch. Producers did not want Lisa Turtle (Lark Voorhies) to be the only girl left in the core group, so they created the character Tori Scott.

Creel was studying history at UCLA when she got the role. She later told ABC News that the job was expected to last only 10 weeks, and the money helped pay her tuition. Tori made her debut in “The New Girl” as Zack’s rival before the two began dating. Creel filmed 10 of the 11 added episodes. NBC then mixed those installments among the earlier episodes featuring Kelly and Jessie. The three characters never appeared together, and the show never explained the changing lineup.

The graduation episode had been filmed before her episodes, so Kelly and Jessie were back with the original group while Tori was absent. Her last appearance was in “School Song.” The confusing timeline became known to fans as the “Tori Paradox.” Writer Chuck Klosterman explored it in “Being Zack Morris,” an essay from his 2003 book Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs. Klosterman argued that the split group was strangely true to real high school friendships. Creel did not understand at the time that fans would spend years trying to make sense of Tori. “I just showed up and went to work,” she said in a 2022 interview with Tell-Tale TV.

Where is Leanna Creel now?

WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA - AUGUST 20: Leanna Creel (L) and Dennis Haskins take selfie together at The Max Pop-Up national Saved By The Bell Day celebration on August 20, 2018 in West Hollywood, California

Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images

Creel never planned to spend her life in front of the camera. She and her identical triplet sisters, Joy and Monica, began acting while they were in high school. The sisters appeared together in the Disney television movies Parent Trap III and Parent Trap: Hawaiian Honeymoon before Leanna joined Saved by the Bell.

While working on the series, Creel became more interested in producing. She went on to earn an MFA in film and television from UCLA and produced 10 independent feature films. Her credits include But I’m a Cheerleader, Six-String Samurai and Desert Blue. She also directed short films, including Offside and Prom-troversy!, which starred Jane Lynch.

Today, Creel is the founder of Creel Studio, a Los Angeles production company that creates films and photography for brands, nonprofit organizations and other clients around the world. She reportedly lives in Hollywood with her wife and their two sons. She is also a longtime board member of the Phase One Foundation, which helps fund cancer research.