Now starring on L.A.'s Finest, Jessica Alba had guest roles on some of the most iconic '90s TV shows early in her career. And some of those experiences were evidently better than others. In an Oct. 1 interview on the streaming show Hot Ones, Alba asserted that her time on teen soap Beverly Hills, 90210 was awkward because she "couldn't even make eye contact with any of the cast members, which was really strange when you're, like, trying to do a scene with them." Ever since, several Beverly Hills, 90210 have responded to Jessica Alba's bombshell claim.
By the time Alba filmed her two episodes of the show, 90210 was already an institution. Her character Leanne appeared in Season 8, which aired in 1998. The actor told Hot Ones host Sean Evans that the eye contact rule was enforced—or at least that that's what she was told. "It was like, 'You're not allowed to make eye contact with any one of the cast members or you'll be thrown off the set,'" she said. Alba didn't reveal exactly who relayed this message to her, but it seems that she took it seriously.
In the wake of her interview, some of the main cast have addressed Alba's comments. Here's what they've said. And to see what the 90210 cast and their contemporaries are up to these days, check out The Biggest '90s TV Teen Idols, Then and Now.
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1 Ian Ziering
"I can't confirm whether it's true or not," said Ian Ziering, who played Steve Sanders, in an Oct. 6 appearance on Entertainment Tonight. "I'm not doubting [Alba], I'm sure that was her experience. Someone probably told her [that]. She's not a liar."
However, Ziering expressed doubt that Alba could have heard the directive from one of the actors themselves, saying, "At the end of the day, I can't see that demand being made by any of my former castmates." His guess is that it came from someone on the crew.
For all the styles you loved in the 90210 era, check out Fashion Trends Only Cool '90s Kids Will Remember.
2 Jason Priestley
Jason Priestley, AKA Brandon Walsh, also didn't dispute Alba's recollection. Calling into The Roz & Mocha Show on Oct. 6, he said (via People) that while "'don't look at the stars of the show' was never an edict that came down" from the cast, "apparently somebody [in the production] did [tell her that] because they thought that was a thing to do."
Priestley said that he didn't think he shared any scenes with Alba, but that, as a rule, he "always went out of [his] way to make sure that [their] guests always felt incredibly welcome."
"I'm sorry that that happened to her, and it seems really incongruous with everything else that happened on our show," he added.
3 Jennie Garth
In conversation with costar Tori Spelling for their new iHeartRadio podcast, 90210MG, Jennie Garth jokingly asked whether Spelling had instructed Alba not to make eye contact with her, People reports. When Spelling wondered why the warning would have been specific to Garth, the other actor said that it was because she "had all the scenes with her."
"Like, if anybody was, you know, didn't want to have their eyes looked into, it would've been me," recalled Garth, who played Kelly Taylor. "But I don't remember, because I have the world's worst memory."
Garth went on to say, "I only remember [Alba] being super talented. She was very young and she was really sweet, and it does not surprise me that she's gone on to be so successful."
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4 Tori Spelling
For her part of the discussion, Spelling, who fans know as Donna Martin, also considered that the production may have issued the rule without the actors being aware.
"Imagine we just thought, like, guest stars didn't like us," she said. "They never looked at us! We don't know why! We were so nice!"
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