List of Girl Meets World characters
Girl Meets World is an American coming of age television sitcom. The series made its debut on Disney Channel on June 27, 2014.
The series is a sequel to the sitcom Boy Meets World, which aired on ABC in its TGIF block from 1993 to 2000. The original series centered on Cory Matthews, including his growing relationship with Topanga Lawrence and their eventual marriage. Ben Savage and Danielle Fishel, who portrayed Cory and Topanga, reprise their roles in Girl Meets World, which centers on the life of the couple's daughter, Riley Matthews. Her father has become a middle school teacher while her mother is a lawyer who gains part ownership of an old world bakery in "Girl Meets Popular". Other members of the Boy Meets World cast have either recurring roles or cameo appearances.
Main characters
Riley Matthews
Riley Matthews (Rowan Blanchard) is the daughter of Cory and Topanga Matthews. At the start of the series, she is 12 years old and in seventh grade. She is the center of many lessons in her father's class. She is just finding herself. She and her best friend, Maya Hart, explore middle school together while making new friends along the way. Riley is very much like her father. She also has a crush on Lucas; they go on their first date in "Girl Meets First Date".
Cory Matthews
Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) is Riley and Auggie's father and Topanga's husband. He has taken a job as a history teacher at John Quincy Adams Middle School, whose class consists of his daughter and many of her friends. In addition to being Riley's father, he often acts as a father figure to Maya. Cory's personality and traits are similar to those of his daughter.
Maya Hart
Maya Hart (Sabrina Carpenter) is Riley's best friend. She is wild and rebellious, showing it in her actions, such as protesting homework and almost lighting the class' homework on fire. She has a troubled past, but is social and street smart. She is tomboyish and thinks she knows everything about the world.
Lucas Friar
Lucas Friar (Peyton Meyer) is another one of Riley's friends and also her love interest. He is originally from Austin, Texas. Lucas has good manners and common sense. He considers Farkle to be his best friend. Maya stereotypes him as a cowboy; it is revealed that he is from a family of cowboys in "Girl Meets 1961". In "Girl Meets the Secret of Life", it is revealed that he was expelled from his former school in Austin after the blame for Zay's actions.
Auggie Matthews
Auggie Matthews (August Maturo) is Riley's young brother and Cory and Topanga's son. When he grows up, he wants to be like his father. He believes himself to be Riley's twin as shown in the pilot.
Topanga Matthews
Topanga Matthews (Danielle Fishel) is Riley and Auggie's mother and Cory's wife. Topanga is Cory's high school girlfriend and they have been friends since they were babies. Topanga has become a successful lawyer and is a loving and protective mother as shown in "Girl Meets Sneak Attack". She later inherits Svorski's from the late Mrs. Svorski, later changing the bakery's name to Topanga's.
Farkle Minkus
Farkle Minkus (Corey Fogelmanis) is close friends with Riley and Maya, but is also infatuated with them. In "Girl Meets Sneak Attack", it is shown that he cares for the two and will do anything for them to be happy. He is smart, a big flirt, and eccentric. He is shown to be the teacher's pet in many episodes. He is the son of Cory and Topanga's former classmates, Stuart Minkus, with whom he shares many similarities, and Jennifer Bassett Minkus. Farkle cares a lot about his education and always keeps his grades up in class.
Recurring characters
Katy Hart
Katy Hart (Cheryl Texiera) is Maya's mom. For Career Day at school, Katy reveals to Maya's class that she has aspirations of becoming an actress; however, she works as a waitress. Katy frequently fails to show up to any event of importance to Maya, believing herself to be a hindrance to her daughter's future. Her relationship with Maya is reminiscent to that of Shawn and Chet Hunter from Boy Meets World. Their relationship improves throughout the series and she runs "Topanga's" bakery for Topanga.
Ava Morgenstern
Ava Morgenstern (Ava Kolker) is Auggie's six-year-old and manipulative girlfriend. She convinces Auggie to do whatever she asks because she is older. However, Ava is ultimately oblivious to how this affects Auggie. Ava's personality appears to be a product of her mom's way of raising her. Topanga makes it clear that she does not like Ava.
Isadora Smackle
Isadora Smackle (Cecilia Balagot) is Farkle's arch-rival who also seems to have a crush on him. In "Girl Meets I Am Farkle", it is revealed that she was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome when she was five years old.
Evelyn Rand
Evelyn Rand (Jackée Harry) meets Riley and Maya on the subway in the pilot. They later call her Crazy Hat because of the obscure hats they see her wearing at the subway station. She is revealed to be a successful businesswoman.
Ms. Kossal
Gabriella Kossal (Aisha Kabia) is the art teacher at John Quincy Adams Middle School who is impressed with Maya's art.
Mrs. Svorski
Mrs. Svorski (Cloris Leachman) is an elderly woman who runs Svorski's, a local bakery, and who befriends Auggie. She dies off-screen in "Girl Meets Gravity", and her restaurant is given to Topanga. In "Girl Meets the Bay Window", it was revealed in a flashback that Mrs. Svorski once babysat Riley at the time when Topanga was giving birth to Auggie.
Dewey
Dewey (Cooper J. Freedman) is a friend of Auggie who pronounces his name "Doy" much to the annoyance of Topanga. He does not like his name and cries each time somebody corrects his pronunciation.
Zay Babineaux
Zay Babineaux (Amir Mitchell-Townes) is Lucas' old friend from Texas who later moves to New York and enrolls in Cory's history class, becoming the unofficial fifth member of the group.
Charlie Gardner
Charlie Gardner (Tanner Buchanan) is an eighth grader at John Quincy Adams Middle School who admires Riley.
Harper Burgess
Harper Burgess (Tania Gunadi) is the English teacher at John Quincy Adams Middle School who replaces Mr. Garbowski.
Pappy Joe
Pappy Joe (M.C. Gainey) is Lucas' grandfather who lives in Texas.
Mr. Norton
Mr. Norton (Jeff Doucette) is the science teacher at John Quincy Adams Middle School.
Boy Meets World alumni
The following characters from Boy Meets World make appearances in the series in the form of recurring roles, guest appearances, or cameo appearances. They are listed in order of appearance.
Mr. Feeny
George Feeny (William Daniels) is Cory's omnipresent mentor who is now in his 80s. Feeny makes a cameo appearance in the pilot episode, his only appearance in the first season. Mr. Feeny was Cory, Shawn, and Topanga's teacher in junior high, their principal in high school, and their professor in college. Throughout these years, Feeny was the Matthews' next-door neighbor and a close friend to the Matthews family as well as Shawn Hunter. In "Girl Meets Gravity", Cory calls Feeny to check up on him after the death of Mrs. Svorski. In "Girl Meets Pluto", Cory, Shawn, and Topanga, along with Riley and Maya, return to Philadelphia to dig up a time capsule from Feeny's backyard where they are caught by Feeny.
Minkus
Stuart Minkus (Lee Norris) is Cory, Shawn, and Topanga's former classmate, appearing as a main cast member in the first season of Boy Meets World, and as a guest star in an episode of the fifth season. Although Cory and Shawn often bullied Minkus, the boys also looked to him for advice on girls and life, and Stuart was good friends with Topanga, later becoming a fierce rival, which carries over to this series. Stuart is Farkle's father, as seen in "Girl Meets Maya's Mother". He appears at Farkle's Career Day at school, whereupon he instantly renews his rivalry with both Cory and Topanga, and is proud to mention his position as the CEO of Minkus International. In "Girl Meets I Am Farkle", it is revealed that Stuart is married to Jennifer Bassett.
Harley Keiner
Harley Keiner (Danny McNulty) is Cory's good friend and former high school bully. In Boy Meets World, Harley was much older than the rest of the students due to being held back. He now works as the janitor at John Quincy Adams Middle School, as seen in "Girl Meets the Forgotten". He mentions in "Girl Meets Flaws" that Cory helped him get the job. Reminiscent of the original series, Harley likes to address Cory by the nickname Johnny Baboon. Harley is regretful for his past behavior and looks to steer kids from going down the wrong path. However, it is mildly implied that Harley's aggressive side isn't entirely gone as he mentions that without music, he's prone to do things.
Alan Matthews
Alan Matthews (William Russ) is Cory's father, Topanga's father-in-law, and Riley and Auggie's grandfather. Alan has a close relationship with his son and owns a wilderness store which he originally ran with his eldest son Eric in Boy Meets World.
Amy Matthews
Amy Matthews (Betsy Randle) is Cory's mother, Topanga's mother-in-law, and Riley and Auggie's grandmother. Amy has a close relationship with her children, especially Morgan, who is her only daughter. She often would disagree with Cory and Topanga as a couple when they made important decisions even though she is fond of them.
Joshua Matthews
Joshua Matthews (Uriah Shelton) is Cory's teenage brother and Riley and Auggie's uncle. He was born premature and underweight and almost died just hours after his birth. Joshua was the only member of the Matthews family to never have a prominent role and he was originally portrayed by creator Michael Jacobs's son, Daniel Jacobs, in Boy Meets World. Joshua is now 17 years old and still lives in Philadelphia with Cory's parents. Maya has a major crush on him.
Shawn Hunter
Shawn Hunter (Rider Strong) is Cory's best friend since childhood, Topanga's close childhood friend, and uncle figure to Riley and Auggie. Since the end of Boy Meets World, Shawn has traveled around as a writer and a photographer. He also forms a friendship with Maya. Cory and Shawn have a close relationship with each other that, as shown in Boy Meets World, is at times even stronger than the relationship between Cory and Topanga.
Eric Matthews
Eric Matthews (Will Friedle) is Cory and Josh's older brother and Riley and Auggie's uncle. Like in the original series, Eric is a goofball and lovable, but is quite dimwitted sometimes. Now a full-grown adult, he appears to have matured a little, but is still considered to be the fun uncle in the Matthews family. As evidenced in the original series, Eric has good people skills. Since leaving Philadelphia, Eric has gone on to become the Mayor of St. Upid Town, New York, a fictional community near the borders of New York State and the Canadian Province of Quebec, after all those who would have supported his mayoral opponent died in a landslide, according to Eric. To blend in with the locals, he wears a hermit costume, an homage to his faux alter ego, Plays with Squirrels, that was seen in the Boy Meets World's "Seven the Hard Way". A running gag is that he tends to mispronounce Maya's name. He eventually is elected senator and is faced with a decision involving his friend, Jack Hunter.
Angela Moore
Angela Moore (Trina McGee) is Shawn Hunter's former high school girlfriend. Her father has since died and she has been married to a soldier for four years and is looking to potentially become a mother. Angela makes an appearance in "Girl Meets Hurricane", where she not only reveals to Shawn the tragic news that her father Sgt. Moore (Julius Carry) died in a fishing accident, but she has also gotten married to a man in the service. Her reason for meeting up with Shawn is to get some advice and counseling about her fears of becoming a mother because she is worried that she may end up like her own mother. Shawn encourages Angela to start a family with her husband and experience the joy of being a parent. After this, Angela encourages Shawn to pursue a relationship with Katy and leaves to go back home.
Chet Hunter
Chet Hunter (Blake Clark) is Shawn's late father who died of a heart attack in the sixth season of Boy Meets World. During his lifetime, he was in and out of his children's lives. Since his passing, he occasionally returns to Shawn as a spirit guide.
TJ Murphy
Thomas Jonathan Murphy (J.B. Gaynor) was an orphan who Eric met while he was playing Santa at the mall one Christmas. After Eric gave Tommy a toy for Christmas, Tommy became convinced that Eric was really Santa and asked Eric for parents for Christmas. Eric, touched by the boy's request, decided to volunteer as Tommy's big brother. The two spent a great deal of time together, leading Eric to consider adopting him, but he later changed his mind so Tommy could go live with a family who could provide better support for him. Many years later, he resurfaces in "Girl Meets Mr. Squirrels Goes to Washington" as a political activist and founder of a website called Thorn in Your Side that reports on political scandals. He volunteers to help when Eric is nominated to run for senator of New York, though the others are unaware of his identity. Later at a debate against Eric's opponent, Senator Jefferson Davis Graham, Tommy reveals his identity and speaks of Eric's compassion and how Eric had sacrificed himself for Tommy's future. Eric joyfully reunites with Tommy who expresses his desire to continue working with Eric's campaign.
Mr. Turner
Jonathan Turner (Anthony Tyler Quinn) was an English teacher who taught Cory, Shawn, and Topanga in high school. He was a laid back teacher who wore a leather jacket and rode a motorcycle. At one point, he became a father figure to Shawn and admits to loving him like a son. After his motorcycle accident, Jonathan fell in love with his nurse and married her. Mr. Turner returns in "Girl Meets the New Teacher", where he is now the superintendent who personally hired Cory Matthews to teach history at John Quincy Adams Middle School. He is called in to oversee the class of Harper Burgess to see if she is worth keeping around after Principal Yancy threatened to fire her and Cory. Riley sees him as an uncle figure as he has formed an even closer affinity with the Matthews family than before, visiting their home often. Although thankful for him being a good educator, Topanga holds a grudge against Turner because he gave her an A- in high school.
Jack Hunter
Jack Hunter (Matthew Lawrence) is Shawn's paternal half-brother and was Eric's best friend in college. Jack competed with Eric for the affection of Rachel McGuire. He and Rachel joined the Peace Corps at the end of Boy Meets World, but Jack eventually left while Rachel stayed behind. The two have since lost touch, while Eric and Rachel still talk often. When he appears in "Girl Meets Semi-Formal", Jack now works for a corporation that is not environmentally friendly and has been assigned to persuade Senator Eric Matthews to allow his company to build a pipeline somewhere. Eric takes it upon himself to try and show Jack a simpler time to change his ways, taking him to the semi-formal dance where he meets Riley.
Jennifer Bassett Minkus
Jennifer Bassett Minkus (Kristanna Loken) was once Shawn Hunter's girlfriend back in high school. However, she was an extremely arrogant and vindictive person who tried to keep Cory and Shawn apart. She makes her return in "Girl Meets I Am Farkle" where she is now married to Stuart Minkus and Farkle's mother. It is shown that Jennifer is a changed woman proving herself to be a sweet, caring mother of Farkle and wife of Stuart. She supports her son while waiting to find out if he is diagnosed with Asperger syndrome.
References
General: The episodes of Girl Meets World that have aired are the source of most of the information in this article.