‘Family Matters’ Star Jo Marie Payton Says Jaleel White Tried to ‘Fight’ Her

“Family Matters” alum Jo Marie Payton is alleging that former co-star Jaleel White tried to “physically fight” her on set.

In an interview with “Entertainment Tonight” published on Tuesday, Payton — who played Harriette Winslow on the iconic ABC/CBS show — detailed an alleged incident during a Season 9 episode called “Original Gangsta Dawg.”

Payton alleges that White — who played both Steve Urkel and Steve’s cousin OGD — tried to get physical with her supposedly in an attempt to play OGD, a rough-and-tumble character.

“There was one time he actually wanted to physically fight me,” the 71-year-old alleged.

“[There was a scene where] I said, ‘We can’t do that. Standards and practices will not let that pass. It’s not gonna happen.’ He wanted to do it anyway... He was so mad, he started kicking and screaming and stuff,” she continued.

“He said something about, ‘She must want to melee.’ I said, ‘What’s a melee?’ He said, ‘A fight.’ I turned around — if he wanna fight, I would. [Darius McCrary, who played Edward “Eddie” Winslow] grabbed me. I was gonna whip his behind.”

Despite the drama, Payton says White was “just a kid” at the time and doesn’t give him “all the credit” for how she alleges he behaved.

“I give some of those adults credit too,” she said. “Letting him run wild and do whatever he wanted to do, thinking he can say what he wants to say, you know, and hurt people’s feelings and all that.”

Running from September 22, 1989, to May 9, 1997, “Family Matters” revolved around the Winslows, a middle-class Black family living in Chicago, Illinois.

Though the nerdy character of neighbor Steve Urkel was originally only supposed to appear one time, he became the show’s breakout character and eventually joined the main cast.

During a recent interview with TV One’s “Unscripted,” White spoke out about his tumultuous time on the show.

“I didn’t see how I was stepping on anybody’s toes, I [wasn't] taking anybody’s shine. It’s very important that I say this: I was not very well welcomed to the cast at all, okay?” he claimed. “And I don’t need to rehash that with the adults over and over again. They know what it is.”

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