Dennis Haskins, ‘Saved By the Bell’s Mr. Belding, Dies at 75

It’s a sad day for ’90s kids.

Dennis Haskins, best known as Mr. Belding, the goofy yet kind principal on Saved By the Bell, has died. He was 75 years old. No cause of death has been announced.

Haskins’ death this past Saturday was confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter by his agent, Jay Schachter, who gave the trade this statement:

It’s a tragic loss. Everyone loved Mr. Belding, and those of us who got to know Dennis loved him even more. He was a great person, and he loved, I mean absolutely LOVED his fans. He always had time for them, no matter what. He was my client and dear friend for over 20 years, and I will miss him terribly.

Haskins first portrayed Mr. Belding on Good Morning, Miss Bliss, the 1988 Disney Channel show that was turned into Saved By the Bell after one season. Producers retained half the series’ cast (including Haskins), and relocated the setting rom the Midwest to California.

As the lovable and perpetually chuckling Mr. Belding, Haskins co-starred on all four seasons of Saved By the Bell. When the show’s first cast of teens graduated, he stuck around for seven more seasons of Saved By the Bell: The New Class. (Yes, strangely, there are many more episodes of Saved By the Bell: The New Class than the original Saved By the Bell.)

He also appeared in the Saved By the Bell TV movies Hawaiian Style and Wedding in Las Vegas, and he popped up for a guest appearance on Saved By the Bell: The College Years as well.

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In 2015, Haskins also participated in the Saved By the Bell reunion on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

Born in Tennessee in 1950, Haskins’ career also included roles on TV series like The Dukes of Hazzard, Magnum P.I., and 7th Heaven, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

Sadly, Haskins is not the first Saved By the Bell cast member we’ve lost. Dustin Diamond, who played Screech on the series, died in 2021 after a battle with small-cell carcinoma.