Sabrina The Teenage Witch Star Spills Shocking Secrets from Controversial Photoshoot

Summary

Melissa Joan Hart reveals how she was nearly fired from Sabrina the Teenage Witch due to a racy photoshoot in 1999.

Hart's lawyer delivered the news of a lawsuit and termination due to her breach of contract with Archie Comics. However, she courageously retaliated and persisted on the show.

Despite enduring such a trial, Hart's portrayal of Sabrina remains etched in memory as one of her most notable accomplishments. Furthermore, her career has flourished with subsequent sitcoms and television appearances.

Melissa Joan Hart revealed that she came close to losing her role in Sabrina the Teenage Witch after a provocative photoshoot she participated in back in 1999. In the popular sitcom, Hart played the main character, Sabrina Spellman, a young witch navigating her magical abilities with guidance from her aunts. The show, based on the Archie Comics series, is known for its humor and the inclusion of Salem, the talking cat. Spanning from 1996 to 2003, Sabrina the Teenage Witch concluded its run after seven seasons.

During an episode of the Pod Meets World podcast, Hart shared the story of almost being fired from the series in 1999. Following a stressful day, the then 23-year-old actress received news from her lawyer that she was being sued and let go from Sabrina the Teenage Witch. Allegedly, her involvement in a photoshoot for Maxim magazine violated her contract with Archie Comics as the magazine used "Sabrina" to promote the shoot on its cover.

Melissa Joan Hart's Career After Sabrina Explained

Fortunately, Hart managed to resolve the situation by confronting Maxim, who had used her character's name without her consent. This allowed Hart to portray Sabrina until the show's conclusion in 2003. While Hart isn't fully committed to the idea of a Sabrina the Teenage Witch revival, her role in the sitcom remains one of her most memorable to date.

Following this, Hart went on to star in the sitcom Melissa & Joey, alongside Joey Lawrence, who is best known for his role in the '90s sitcom Blossom. The show aired from 2010 to 2015, after which Hart began making guest appearances and starring in various television movies. In 2021, she participated in Celebrity Wheel of Fortune and triumphantly won $1 million for the charity Youth Villages.

Hart narrowly escaped being fired from her role as Sabrina, but she managed to avoid breaching her contract by doing the photoshoot for Maxim. The show's significant cultural impact undeniably played a part in the development of The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, which featured Kiernan Shipka in the lead role in 2018. It is likely that without Hart's presence, Sabrina the Teenage Witch would not have been as enduringly noteworthy as it is regarded today.