Netflix released the entire first season of That ’90s Show today, and the sequel series stars returning That ’70s Show actors Debra Jo Rupp (Kitty Forman) and Kurtwood Smith (Red Forman), and features appearances by Topher Grace (Eric Forman), Laura Prepon (Donna Pinciotti), Ashton Kutcher (Michael Kelso), Mila Kunis (Jackie Burkhart), Wilmer Valderrama (Fez), Tommy Chong (Leo), and Don Stark (Bob Pinciotti) as well as one surprise. While many of the returning cast members don’t have a lot of screen time, it’s still fun to see where the characters have ended up all these years later.
Videos by ComicBook.com
While most of the original show’s characters return for That ’90s Show, there are a few folks whose fates are left unknown. Unsurprisingly, the show does not address Hyde at all. The character was played by Danny Masterson in the original series, but the actor was not asked to return due to the sexual assault allegations made against him.
Another character who isn’t seen in the new show is Laurie Forman, Eric’s sister. Laurie was played by Lisa Robin Kelly in 50 episodes of That ’70s Show throughout the first five seasons. She was replaced by Christina Moore during the sixth season, but the character was not seen again in the final two seasons. However, the show did make the occasional joke about her absence. Sadly, Kelly passed away in 2013. Laurie is never mentioned by name in That ’90s Show, but there is one mention of the Formans having two kids.
Finally, there is now mention of Randy, the character played by Josh Meyers in the final season of That ’70s Show. Meyers joined the series after Grace left, but he wasn’t a big hit among fans. Here’s what happened to the characters that are addressed in the show… Warning: Spoilers Ahead!
Red and Kitty
Red and Kitty are easily two of the greatest sitcom parents in the history of television, and keeping them as series regulars in That ’90s Show was a smart move by the show’s creators. In the final season of That ’70s Show, the gang was still hanging around the Forman’s basement despite the fact that Eric had left for Africa. Towards the end of the series, Red and Kitty decide to move to Florida and open a bait shop with Bob, but change their minds at the last minute and stay in Point Place.
15 years later, the couple is retired and their house isn’t the booming teenage hangout it once was, much to Kitty’s dismay and Red’s delight. However, when Eric and Donna’s daughter, Leia (Callie Haverda), decides to stay with them for the summer, 1995 starts to feel a little like the 1970s again. Throughout the season, they revert back to their former roles of looking out for the kids. Thankfully, they’re still hot for each other all these years later.
Donna and Eric
Donna and Eric were on and off again throughout the entirety of That ’70s Show, and it seemed they had broken up for good after he left for Africa in the final season. However, Grace returned for the series finale and the couple shared a kiss, leaving fans hopeful for their future. Now, they’re married and living in Chicago. Donna is an author and Eric is a professor… of Star Wars studies! Unsurprisingly, they named their daughter Leia who is now 14.
Eric and Donna bring Leia to her grandparent’s house in the first episode for a short visit. Eric and Leia are supposed to go to space camp together, but Leia makes friends in Point Place and decides to stay for the summer. The father and daughter butt heads over the decision and Eric gets a taste of what it’s like being a parent to a teen, which really thrills his dad. Eventually, the two make up and Eric heads to space camp alone. While Grace doesn’t return for any more episodes, Prepon is seen a couple more times. Donna shows up halfway through the season when she mistakenly thinks Leia is going to have sex, and she pops up again in the finale to pick Leia up. In the episode, Donna also shares a fun little moment with Fez which marks the only time he shares the screen with one of his childhood friends.
Fez
Aside from Rupp and Smith, Valderrama is the That ’70s Show alum with the most screen time in That ’90s Show. It’s revealed that he and Jackie broke up, and he now owns a chain of salons called Chez Fez. Fez starts dating the Forman’s neighbor, Sherri Runck (Andrea Anders), who lives in the Pinciotti’s old house. While the two end up breaking up in the show’s third episode, they get back together in the finale, which features the return of Fez’s old rival, Fenton (Jim Rash). While Fez is mostly doing his own thing, he does hilariously end up in the “circle” with the show’s new set of teens in the finale, and is caught by Donna.
Jackie and Kelso
Throughout That ’70s Show, Jackie dated Kelso and Hyde, but the show ended with her and Fez getting together. In That ’90s Show, it’s revealed that Jackie left him for Kelso and now the duo is married with a son, Jay (Mace Coronel). Jay is a ladies’ man who takes after his father (he genuinely looks like Kutcher), but he’s also much smarter (a straight-A student like his mom). He ultimately treats girls much better than his dad ever did and strikes up a romance with Leia.
As for Kelso and Jackie, the couple are only seen briefly in the show’s first episode when they stop by the Forman’s to pick up Jay. Kelso is the same as ever, giving goofy advice to his son and flirting with Kitty. He tries to make conversation with the Formans until Jackie comes in yelling for them to leave. Before they go, they reveal that they’re having their “second remarriage,” which implies that they never stopped breaking up and getting back together. “This one’s gonna stick, right?” Kelso says to Jackie before she smacks his butt.
Leo
Tommy Chong’s Leo also returns for That ’90s Show. The lovable stoner first appears when Leia goes on a quest to find the perfect movie to impress her friends during movie night. She settles on Clerks, but learns that the only copy has been rented out for weeks. She steals the renter’s address and shows up with Kitty to get the movie. Turns out, it’s Leo who has been holding on to the Kevin Smith classic.
Leo hasn’t changed a bit, and is just as forgetful and confused as ever, but does eventually hand over the tape. Leo is also seen in the show’s penultimate episode when Leia and Jay run into him in the woods. The couple gets lost and Leo gives them directions only for them to realize he’s lost, too.
Bob
Donna’s dad shows up in the sixth episode of That ’90s Show to celebrate his granddaughter Leia’s 15th birthday. Bob still lives in Florida and is as loud and goofy as ever, which annoys Red just like it did throughout the original show’s run. Red and Bob compete to see who can get Leia the better present, and Bob goes with a karaoke machine that leads to him singing “I’ll Make Love To You” by Boyz II Men. Ultimately, Red wins the birthday by giving Leia the old Vista Cruiser.
How do you feel about where everyone ended up in That ’90s Show? Tell us in the comments!
