Danielle Fishel Reveals Her T-Shirt For WWE’s Survivor Series Was An A+ Boy Meets World Callback

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WWE Survivor Series 2025 took place in San Diego this weekend, and the event drew a huge crowd. It’s typical for wrestling fans to spot celebrities at these events, and this time was no exception. Actress Danielle Fishel, famous for playing Topanga on the show Boy Meets World, was in attendance and seemed really excited to be there. She was even wearing a special shirt referencing the show, which she later confirmed was a tribute to Boy Meets World.

Danielle Fishel recently honored the late wrestler Big Van Vader (also known as Vader) by wearing a T-shirt featuring his image at Survivor Series. Fans of the show Boy Meets World will recall that Vader – whose real name was Leon White – made a few appearances on the sitcom years ago. Fishel confirmed the tribute on Instagram after the event, and also gave a shout-out to another well-known wrestler who guest-starred on Boy Meets World.

I first became a wrestling fan in the 90s, and it’s all thanks to wrestlers like Vader and Mick Foley – and a boyfriend who took me to my first WrestleMania. Last night, nearly 30 years after discovering the sport, it was amazing to wear a Vader shirt at Survivor Series.

I always loved when professional wrestler Vader showed up on Boy Meets World! He played Frankie Stecchino Sr., and it was basically Vader playing a larger-than-life version of himself – a tough but secretly sweet dad. He really wanted his son, Frankie Jr. (a friend of Cory and Shawn’s), to ditch the poetry and become a wrestler instead. It was so fun! And Vader wasn’t the only wrestler who made an appearance – Mick Foley showed up later as his ‘Mankind’ character too. Ben Savage recently shared a great post about them both, and it reminded me of those hilarious episodes!

Danielle Fishel is a long-time fan of professional wrestling and has been fortunate enough to witness many important matches and moments throughout the years. She recently shared her thoughts on this, and highlighted several wrestling stars like Charlotte Flair and Liv Morgan. Many people in the wrestling world, including performers and media personalities, responded with positive feedback.

  • 🥹❤️🫶🏻 – Charlotte Flair
  • So happy you got to go!! And I agree there is nothing like watching your kids as they watch in awe at the wonder of WWE! – Trish Stratus
  • It was great meeting you this past weekend. It’s still a highlight for me! ‘One of us! one of us!’ 🙌🏽 – thewrestlingclassic
  • 🥶🥶🥶🥶 – chancelemarie_

I admire how much the former child star loves wrestling, and as someone who enjoyed her sitcom, I appreciate that she still celebrates it. She clearly has a lot of fondness for her character, Topanga, and the show Boy Meets World, even referencing Mr. Feeny during her time on Dancing with the Stars. Currently, she co-hosts the Pod Meets World podcast with her former co-stars Rider Strong and Will Friedle, where they share stories from the set and discuss each episode’s strengths and weaknesses.

Danielle Fishel clearly loves the show and has a lot of respect for Big Van Vader. It’s sad that Vader, who passed away from pneumonia in 2018 at 63, isn’t here to see how fondly he’s still remembered. Hopefully, his impact will live on with Fishel, his fans, and other wrestlers. I’ll always remember his funny moments from BMW.

If you’re interested in watching the episodes featuring Ben Savage (Vader) from Boy Meets World, you can subscribe to Disney+ and stream them.

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2025-12-01 21:38