‘Saved By the Bell’ Star Dustin Diamond Hospitalized for Mysterious Ailment

Former Saved By the Bell star Dustin Diamond has reportedly been hospitalized in Florida for a mysterious ailment. According to TMZ, sources close to the situation told the outlet that Diamond had been experiencing pain and unease in his body over the weekend and opted to seek medical care. Doctors are said to have been running many tests on the actor to try and determine the cause of his pain and discomfort.

Per TMZ’s sources, it is possible that cancer could be the cause of Diamond’s health issues, but a biopsy is being done to confirm if this is the case or not. The outlet stated that their sources advised that Diamond has a family history of cancer, which may contribute to why doctors suspect the illness. The actor’s mother passed away after a fight with breast cancer. TMZ notes that no specific type of cancer has been named by Diamond’s doctors as what he could be facing.

Diamond is most well-known for his role as Samuel “Screech” Powers throughout the Saved by the Bell franchise. This includes the original series run, as well as Saved by the Bell: The College Years and Saved by the Bell: The New Class. In later years, Diamond became more of a reality TV star, appearing shows such as Celebrity Fit Club and Celebrity Big Brother.

Notably, Diamond has not turned up in the recent Saved by the Bell revival on Peacock, with stars his former castmates Mario Lopez, Elizabeth Berkley, Mark-Paul Gosselaar and Tiffani Thiessen. Lark Voorhies also turned up on the show, but neither Diamond or Dennis Haskins — who played Principal Richard Belding — appear to have been asked to make an appearance. While Diamond is not present on the series, Screech’s fate was shared in an episode when the old gang was back together and reminiscing. “Screech is so lucky he and Kevin get to live on the International Space Station, so he doesn’t have to deal with all this,” Slater says at one point. Fans will remember that Kevin was the name of the robot that Screech had built during the original series.

Voorhies previously offered her personal take on why Diamond may not have been invited to be part of the new series, essentially boiling it down to money. “[With] Dustin Diamond, the almighty dollar rules on that,” Voorhies told Toronto’s KiSS 92.5. She went on to add, “He wants to be paid and respected. We would love for him to come back on set. He’s going through his growing pains…He’s going through his adult issues and all of that, but I am sure he’ll be back — granted, they have the perfect contract for him. I’m sure he would be back.” At this time, it does not appear that any of Diamond’s former co-stars have commented on his health scare.