‘Unauthorized Saved By the Bell Story’ peek shows hormones raging

For a significant segment of the population, “Saved By the Bell” is a major cultural touchstone. The after-school sitcom that launched the careers of Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Mario Lopez, Dustin Diamond, Tiffani Thiessen, Elizabeth Berkley and Lark Voorhies aired from 1989 to 1993 and then in various reruns and spinoffs for years after.

But like any TV series in which the stars are simultaneously dealing with fame and their own raging hormones, not everything was smooth sailing on the series. At least according to Diamond, whose tell-all book about life on the series, “Behind the Bell,” was released in 2009.

Now those who didn’t want to read the book can mainline the gossip through the more easily digestible TV movie format, thanks to Lifetime’s “The Unauthorized Saved By the Bell Story,” which is based on Diamond’s book.

Based on this clip, there were rivalries aplenty, with the show’s three female leads vying for the attention of Gosselaar. And in case you missed the death stares and hissed lines, the filmmakers have helpfully supplied the perfect early ‘90s soundtrack song: Bell Biv DeVoe’s “Poison.”

Since the book’s publication, Diamond has expressed regret about its contents, claiming many things in the book were added by the ghostwriter.

Asked about the book during a recent HuffPost Live interview, Gosselaar said, “It’s like everything that I’ve heard about his book is that it is negative and I don’t remember those things because my experience on the show was very positive.”

Fans will get to see for themselves when the film airs on Lifetime on Sept. 1.

Follow me on Twitter: @patrickkevinday