- Trina McGee says the "Boy Meets World" showrunner asked her to "turn down" her Blackness on set.
- She also said she wished Shawn and Angela's interracial relationship was discussed on the show.
"Boy Meets World" star Trina McGee said she was asked to "turn down" her Blackness while filming episodes of the sitcom that were centered on her character, Angela Moore.
McGee, who starred on the series from 1997 to 2000, spoke about the moment when she was a guest on Monday's episode of the "Pod Meets World" podcast, where her former costars Rider Strong, Will Friedle, and Danielle Fishel rewatch and reflect on "Boy Meets World" episodes and interview former castmates.
"Coming from Black sitcoms, I always had to have like a Black meter," she said around the one-hour and eight-minute mark of the podcast while discussing how she would change her speaking voice on the "Boy Meets World" set.
Before starring on "Boy Meets World," McGee previously appeared on episodes of "A Different World," "The Sinbad Show," "Martin," and "Family Matters."
"On 'Boy Meets World,' my Black meter was probably down to about a two," she added. But while filming a season seven episode centered on Angela called "Angela's Ashes," McGee said her "Black meter had slipped up" and was "at about a nine."
She said showrunner Michael Jacobs came over to talk to her and instructed her to "just turn down the Telma Hopkins about eight notches," referring to the jazz singer and sitcom star who played Harriette Winslow's (Jo Marie Payton) sister Rachel Crawford on "Family Matters" between 1989 and 1997.
On the podcast, McGee laughed as she recalled the interaction with Jacobs, saying she "knew exactly what he was talking about" and complied with his request. But she said her costars were "lucky" that they didn't have to think about things like that. "Sometimes, it was too much," she added.
A representative for Jacobs didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
Earlier in the podcast, McGee also discussed how she regrets a Daily News opinion piece written by her publicist and her ex-husband under her byline which claimed that she liked the fact that "Boy Meets World" didn't address the fact that Shawn (Strong) and Angela were in an interracial relationship.
She said it wasn't her "organic view" but that she was more concerned with keeping her job and raising her kids at the time.
This isn't the first time McGee has spoken about her experiences being one of very few Black cast and crew members on "Boy Meets World." She and Friedle previously made headlines for an interaction on set when Friedle referred to McGee as "Aunt Jemima."
Friedle apologized to McGee and the pair spoke about the incident at length on Monday's podcast episode but said they both want to move on.
McGee also expressed frustration on the podcast that the press often framed her stories as "extreme racist moments."
She said the confrontation with Friedle was a memory she has, "but I don't count that as my entire experience on the show," she clarified.
"We need everyone else to be over it, too," McGee said of Friedle's mistake.
"Pod Meets World" releases new episodes weekly.