Lawson didn’t have a final say as a young actress, something that she struggled with as it was happening

NEED TO KNOW

• Bianca Lawson made it to the final round of auditions for A Bronx Tale
• Lawson was then cast as Megan Jones in Saved by the Bell: The New Class
• Lawson portrayed the character for the first two of the show’s seven seasons, from 1993 to 1994

Bianca Lawson‘s early start in the industry came with a little bit of heartbreak.

The actress appeared on Behind the Scenes Beauty with Derick Monroe, where she talked about getting her first role in Saved by the Bell: The New Class. While she was excited for her career to get underway, the news came just days after Lawson learned her career wouldn’t be going in the direction she thought it would.

“You know, it was interesting. I was heartbroken because I’d gotten an agent in New York when I was a pre-teen. I think my first audition in New York was for A Bronx Tale, and I got all the way to the end with [Robert] De Niro and Chazz Palminteri. And I was like, ‘Oh my god,’ ” Lawson began, noting her time flitting about New York City as she went to auditions was her “dream.”

While she was ready to relocate to the Big Apple, her mom, Denise Gordy, made her pump the brakes. Lawson reasoned that she could live with her dad, Richard Lawson. “My mom was like, ‘You’re not moving to New York.’ And so I was devastated,” she said. “I was like, ‘You don’t understand. I’ve like built this amazing career here and I can stay with my dad.’ And she’s like, ‘Well, what happens when he travels?’ ”

Gordy made it clear to her daughter that she didn’t want her living in a “model apartment,” and while Lawson produced schooling options in the area, she said, “She was not having it.”

Back in Los Angeles, Lawson went Christmas shopping with her mom, during which they met a man who would later become her manager. About a week later, he got her the audition for Saved by the Bell: The New Class.

“So it happened really fast, and I was so devastated because I was like, ‘Oh, but I’m going on auditions in New York, and I have this great agent there.’ And then I came back and was Christmas shopping and got a manager,” she explained.

When it came to actually working on the Saved by the Bell spinoff, Lawson shared, “I was just excited to be in the mix of doing anything. I don’t actually remember, but I got it. And I remember I did watch the original and then they put us on the cover of a Rice Krispies box and all these things. I was just super hyped.”

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On Nov. 4, at Glamour’s Women of the Year event at The Plaza Hotel, the 46-year-old actress opened up about the role her family has played throughout her career, which was especially meaningful as she navigated a career as a child actor.

“My aunt Glen, she was someone I really looked up to,” Lawson said. “She passed away when I was 12, but she was one of those magical people who always made me feel looked after, always made me feel protected. She remembered everything, every little moment that was important to me — she remembered so far into the future.”

“I think when you have that, it makes you go out into the world with so much confidence because you know that you have someone who loves you so much and is always waiting for you,” she added.

“My mother was with me all the time, and it’s really special to have parents who genuinely have your best interest at heart, especially when they’re protecting you,” she continued. “That kind of support has shaped who I am, both on and off the screen.”

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