Mark-Paul Gosselaar Reveals Why Onscreen Romance Is ‘Never a Good Thing’ for His Marriage

Mark-Paul Gosselaar has revealed why filming romantic scenes can be tricky for his marriage to Catriona McGinn.

The Saved by the Bell alum, 52, admitted in an interview with Us Weekly published Thursday, October 29, that he isn’t particularly eager to pursue romantic storylines in his projects, like the 2016 baseball drama Pitch, which saw fans rooting for a romance between his character, Mike Lawson, and Ginny Baker, played by Kylie Bunbury.

The actor wasn’t nearly as enthusiastic about the idea. “No, no, no. Then I gotta go home and explain that to my wife,” he joked to the outlet.

“It’s never a good thing. Anytime there’s any sort of moment of intimacy, I always have to forewarn my wife that this is coming up,” he added.

Gosselaar added that McGinn, whom he married in 2012, needs “earmuffs, an eye mask and the whole thing” whenever he shares a love scene with a costar.

The actor has faced similar reactions from viewers during his time on NBC’s Found, in which he played the villainous Sir opposite Shanola Hampton, who portrayed Gabi Mosely.

Despite Sir having kidnapped Gabi when she was a teenager, some fans became invested in the possibility of a romance between them.

Gosselaar admitted he enjoyed working with Hampton and was surprised by how much viewers embraced their complicated onscreen relationship.

“I thought we had a great chemistry,” he said, adding that Sir was originally expected to die so Gabi could move forward with her life, but the audience’s interest in their relationship seemed to influence discussions about the character’s future.

“Now, as we started filming and all you sickos started loving the fact that we were going to be a couple, they wanted to see us extend that,” he recalled.

Although Found ended in 2025, Gosselaar has continued working on several projects, including a return to Will Trent and the upcoming comedy series Bulges, per IMDB.

Gosselaar shares son Dekker, 13, and daughter Lachlyn, 11, with McGinn, while he is also father to son Michael, 22, and daughter Ava, 20, from his previous marriage.