Adam Scott's Boy Meets World Role, Explained

Before his Emmy Award nomination for "Severance" (the mind-bending second season of which is currently underway on Apple TV+) playing a man who literally splits his working and personal lives, or starring on the beloved sitcom "Parks & Recreation," Adam Scott was one of several guest stars on "Boy Meets World" who went on to make it big. The ABC sitcom was part of the popular T.G.I.F. Friday night programming from 1993-2000 before re-running on the Disney Channel and ABC Family. "Boy Meets World" follows a neurotic 11-year-old through his school years as he navigates becoming a better person with the help of his wise teacher Mr. Feeny, a romantic relationship with his one true love Topanga, and social class differences with his best buddy Shawn. 

"Boy Meets World" was one of Adam Scott's first acting jobs, and even though his role as the high school bully Griff Hawkins was brief, he still left an impression on "Boy Meets World" fans.

Adam Scott's first introduction to the "Boy Meets World" universe wasn't as the charismatic bully Griff, but in a role simply called "Senior." In season 2, episode 8, "Band on the Run," Cory is whining to Shawn at their favorite eatery Chubbies about not having a date for the upcoming dance. When a random guy, the senior, asks Cory to watch his guitar, girls immediately flock to him. Cory and Shawn have an epiphany that being a band member is the key to getting girls. Senior eventually takes his guitar back, but the girls believe Cory is his roadie. Despite not knowing how to play any instruments, Cory and Shawn form their own rock and roll group.

When Adam Scott appeared on the 55th episode of "Pod Meets World," the "Boy Meets World" rewatch podcast hosted by stars Danielle Fishel, Will Friedle, and Rider Strong, they praised him for landing an extra role with a line so early in his career. Even though this was no easy feat for an up-and-coming actor, Adam Scott recalls that he still had to re-audition for the eventual role of Griff Hawkins. He also mentions being nervous on the day of shooting and amazed by the craftsmanship of the multi-camera sets.

Before there was Griff Hawkins, there was Harley Keiner — the biggest bully at John Adams High School. During the fourth episode of season 3, "He Said, She Said," where Griff faces off with Harley, he mockingly calls him "Brando," referring to Harley's over-the-top Brooklyn accent and leather-jacket-wearing, tough-guy attitude. Harley isn't your typical 1990s teen — he's a 1950s relic who beats up kids for their lunch money and wears retro bowling shirts. 

Harley Keiner is only in seven season 2 episodes before briefly returning for "He Said, She Said" in season 3. On the 63rd episode of "Pod Meets World," Danny McNulty shares the intense story of the stressful table read that led to his abrupt firing from "Boy Meets World": 

"I just felt this meltdown at the table, and I remember Blake [Sennott, who played Harley's lackey] helped me. I dropped the script on the floor, and he was so nice he picked it up for me. He's like, 'Give him a minute. Just give him a minute.' I remember just winding down. I couldn't do anything. I couldn't move, I couldn't talk."

He was then hospitalized at Edgemont Hospital, where he received a bipolar disorder diagnosis. The character of Harley was inexplicably replaced with actor Kenny Johnston for the season 2 episode "Wrong Side of the Tracks," before officially being written out as attending reform school in the third season. 

Griff Hawkins was written to replace Harley as the newest school antagonist, but he didn't last long since the show started to focus more on Cory and Topanga's relationship. Griff Hawkins' arrival at the school also gave Harley's former lackeys, Frankie and Joey, a renewed sense of purpose until their epiphany that they don't actually need a leader.

Griff is a completely different type of bully than Harley's lug-headed greaser. Adam Scott projects a more confident coolness — he's smarter, smoother, and easily able to charm others (particularly women) with that deep voice. We watch him cause Mr. Feeney's secretary to swoon and bring a massage therapist into class to work out his knots. His flirtatiousness even extends to the TV star Yasmine Bleeth from "Baywatch"; they kiss in the episode "The Thrilla' in Phila'" and allude to having a past romantic relationship. 

Griff convinces everyone to do his bidding, like getting Frankie and Joey to deliver him lobsters for lunch, finding someone to take his notes during class, or having someone pretend to be him during a meeting with Mr. Feeny. He's not a brute like Harley, but someone who manipulates people with his mind rather than pounding his fists. Harley even comments on this idea, saying, "Where's the rest of him?" since Griff is much skinnier.

Danny McNulty got the chance to reprise his role as Harley on "Girl Meets World," the short-lived sequel series on Disney Channel about Cory and Topanga's daughter Riley growing up in New York City. Now a history teacher at John Quincy Adams Middle School, Cory Matthews helps Harley get his janitor job. Adam Scott never appeared as Griff since he was only on the original series for a few episodes and by the time "Girl Meets World" rolled around, he was a bonafide Hollywood star.

But "Girl Meets World" does give Griff Hawkins a shout-out when Cory announces that Maya — Riley's version of Shawn, a hip friend from a broken home — has won "The Griff Hawkins Totally Cool Award." This reference is meant to be fun, but it also begs the question: Why is there a school award that's based on popularity and superficial traits rather than academic or extracurricular achievements? One of the reasons "Girl Meets World" was cancelled was its comparatively poor quality of writing, which was over-reliant on corny, out-of-touch humor and nostalgia bait, and this is a good example.

Despite only temporarily being on "Boy Meets World," Adam Scott admits on "Pod Meets World" that some memories from filming that have been nagging at him for 29 years — particularly one from the final shoot of season 2:

"Blake and Ethan high-five and hug, they come up to me, high-five and are just cheering ... Then Blake and Ethan go up to you, Rider, and give you a high-five and hug you and after they do that I'm like, 'Hey, congratulations, buddy,' and I give you a high-five and I go in and hug you ... And as I do that, you push me off and you give me this look, like, 'Wait a second, who the f*** are you?' and then you run away."

All the podcast hosts, including Rider Strong himself, were shocked to hear this — especially because Rider is apparently a hugger. Yet, throughout "Pod Meets World," the hosts recall Rider being particularly moody on set, whether due to teenage breakups or wanting to expand beyond sitcom work. Maybe Rider was dealing with something like that, which made him react that way?

Adam Scott also confesses that he once read on a message board that Danielle Fishel told her classmates that she did not like him, which Fishel wholeheartedly refutes. There were no hard feelings, though, because Adam Scott was more excited reading about himself on the internet for the first time. "Boy Meets World" was an important stepping stone in Adam Scott's career, but it's a shame his experiences were tinged by those off-camera aspects and that Griff Hawkins — such an effortlessly cool character — wasn't featured more on the show.