A couple days ago Ben Savage and Danielle Fishel were confirmed to return as Boy Meets World lifelong sweethearts Cory and Topanga in Disney's followup series Girl Meets World. Shortly thereafter, Fishel released a personal (and pretty heartfelt) statement that touched on a handful of topics - including, how BMW fans should anticipate that GMW will be its own thing, as opposed to "BMW brought back to life but in current day."

In other words, that means (among other things) a number of BMW fan-favorite characters won't be coming back for anything beyond the occasional episode-by-episode appearance - assuming they return at all. Rider Strong (who played Cory's BFF Shawn Hunter on BMW) has likewise come out and made it known that no, he won't be a regular on GMW, contrary to the wishes expressed by many a fan.

... Of course, that doesn't completely rule out the possibility of an episode or two on GMW where viewers get to catch up with Rider's (former?) bad boy with a heart of gold and find out what's happened to him over the past thirteen years; not to mention, find out whether or not he and Angela Moore (Trina McGee) ever got back together after the latter spent a year living in Europe with her father.

Here is the statement from Rider, from his official site:

Boy Meets World was a defining aspect of my life, and I cherish those seven years. It was never just a job - on a personal level, many of my best memories and friendships were formed because of it.

So I am extremely happy for Ben and Danielle to be able to continue the story. At this point, I have no official involvement in Girl Meets World. There might be a chance to see some of the BMW cast in a guest spot, and I think it would be nice to find out where our characters have been all these years. But Girl Meets World will be, and I think it should be, it’s own show. It will be about Cory and Topanga, their daughter, and a new set of characters.

It’s the next generation.

And I, for one, can’t wait to see it evolve.

As both Rider and Fishel have pointed out now, Girl Meets World looks to foremost be a standalone sitcom about the lives of Cory and Topanga's adolescent daughter, son, and their friends. The show ultimately has to thrive on its own terms, rather than constantly attempt to shoehorn in beloved BMW characters (like, say, Stuart Minkus) in a contrived effort to keep viewers' interest with 'fan service.'

Still, it doesn't require a stretch of the imagination to envision a visit from "Uncle" Shawn taking place at some point in GMW; not to mention, wacky Uncle Eric (Will Friedle) checking in every so often to see how his favorite nephew and niche niece are doing. That's to say: don't count out either Rider or other side cast members from BMW being involved somewhere down the line with GMW just yet.

Screen Rant will keep you posted on Girl Meets World as the story develops.

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Source: Rider Strong