Why U2 Never Appeared On ABC's TGIF After Being Advertised
Back in the '90s, U2 pulled out of a surprise promo appearance for ABC's TGIF lineup. Their excuse? Let's just say it's not what you'd expect.
In the late 80s and 90s, ABC aired a Friday night lineup called TGIF, featuring popular sitcoms such as Boy Meets World and Step by Step. In 1997, rock icon U2 was set to appear on the show, but they ultimately canceled at the last minute. The man behind TGIF, ABC's on-air promo writer-producer Jim Janicek, revealed to Entertainment Weekly that the network initially planned to shoot live promos capturing U2's launch of their PopMart Tour in Las Vegas.
To anchor this crossover event, ABC enlisted Boy Meets World star Danielle Fishel, and all control rooms were prepared to broadcast U2 across the nation. However, the band's decision to pull out due to stage fright left the crew in a predicament. Janicek recalled that they were in the green room with Winona Ryder when U2's Bono and Edge informed them about their withdrawal, causing the network and crew to panic.
Despite the network's heavy promotion of the appearance, Janicek and Fishel had to come up with a plan B. During an interview with The Flaming Nose, Janicek shared that they had to film an entire TGIF LIVE episode from the U2 POP Tour concert stadium without the band. Fishel delivered her live segments while the audience watched U2 perform in the background.
The quick pivot worked, and the episode turned out fine, although Janicek couldn't help but jest that he was "supposed to be on our show!"
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