Maitland Ward Claims ‘Boy Meets World’ Producers Tried To Pit Her Against Danielle Fishel

Ward, who joined the series for its final two seasons, was told Fishel would “hate” her because she was “new” and “sexy.”

Maitland Ward has only fond memories of working on “Boy Meets World,” but says producers initially warned her that her time on the show would be less than pleasant.

Ward joined the ABC coming-of-age series for its final two seasons in the role of Rachel McGuire. Speaking to E! News in an interview Saturday, the actor said some members of the show’s production team, including series creator Michael Jacobs, tried to instill a rivalry between her and co-star Danielle Fishel, who played Topanga Lawrence.

“A lot of people said Danielle would hate me because I was the girl coming in,” Ward said. “But she didn’t. She was very nice to me when I came in. It’s weird that people would like, set that up.”

As to why Fishel might dislike her, Ward said she was repeatedly told: “Oh yeah, she’s gonna hate you because you’re the new girl and you’re tall and like, the sexy girl or whatever.”

“Boy Meets World,” which aired from 1993 to 2000, followed chronicled the life of Cory Matthews (played by Ben Savage) as he transitioned from his pre-teen years through college. Over the course of the series, Cory develops romantic feelings for Fishel’s character, Topanga. Ward’s character, Rachel, popped up during Cory’s college years as Topanga’s roommate.