Danielle Fishel Says There Was a Pay Disparity Between Her and 'Boy Meets World' Co-Stars

etonline.com:

Danielle Fishel is opening up about the pay disparity between herself and her co-stars during the early years of the hit sitcom.During a recent episode of — a rewatch podcast hosted by Fishel and former co-stars Rider Strong and Will Friedle — Fishel reflected on how much less she got paid when she was first bumped up from a recurring role to a series regular during the show's second season.«If you guys knew the pay disparity, even after I became a series regular, and it was always — the excuse that was used was 'Well, we didn't know you would be on the show.

We weren't anticipating you,'» Fishel recalled to her co-hosts and special guest Lauren Lapkus.While Fishel's character, Topanga, has become a fixture in the pop culture consciousness, her character was not part of the show's plan from the beginning.

As such, Fishel claims the show used that character development as a way of paying her less.«It doesn't make any sense,» Lapkus lamented.«By season 2, [they] did know… that excuse should go out the window,» Fishel continued. «And then season 3 rolled around and it was still the same excuse.»By this point, Topanga's romance with Cory (played by series lead Ben Savage) was already being narratively cultivated and she'd become a fixture on the series.Fishel recalled that she finally threw down the gauntlet, explaining, «I had to threaten to not show up to a table read.»As it turns out, Fishel's father and her agent were both working together to negotiate on Fishel's behalf for higher pay.