WARNING! This article contains SPOILERS for That ’90s Show season 1!Netflix’s That ‘90s Show continues one of That ‘70s Show’s most notable running gags by failing to solve Fez’s biggest mystery, though the spinoff revives it with a twist. In 1995, Donna and Eric’s teenage daughter Leia gets to know the new generation of Point Place teens as she stays with Red and Kitty for the summer, which includes coming into contact with Eric and Donna’s old friends Jackie, Kelso, and Fez. With the majority of That ‘70s Show’s original cast returning, That ‘90s Show breathes new life into their beloved journeys while revealing that not too much has changed over the past 15 years in Point Place.
While many of the burning questions about That ’70s Show‘s characters are finally answered, the sequel series still leaves plenty of franchise-long mysteries unsolved. One such mystery that has yet to be solved involves the origins of That ‘90s Show’s returning character Fez (Wilmer Valderrama). Fez now owns a hair salon and is dating Gwen and Nate’s mom, Sherri, which leads the character to unexpectedly return to the lives of Red and Kitty Forman. As Sherri and Kitty reminisce about Fez, That ‘90s Show season 1 reuses a clever trick to keep the mystery of his background alive.
That ’90s Show Copies ’70s Show’s Fez Name Trick
Throughout That ‘70s Show, two major details about Fez’s background were never divulged: His real name and his home country. Fez’s name is actually short for “foreign exchange student,” though none of the characters remembered his name or the country he lived in before America. In That ‘70s Show season 4’s flashback episode, Fez finally told the characters his real name, but the ringing of school bells drowned out his speech. That ‘90s Show repeats this trick when Sherri asks where Fez is from, as the whistle of a tea kettle covers up Kitty’s answer.
Rather than finally answering the questions regarding Fez’s background, That ‘90s Show keeping the mystery alive is a more fun way to maintain the spirit of the original series. Additionally, it doesn’t seem that the series actually has behind-the-scenes answers for Fez’s real name or country. Wilmer Valderrama’s accent isn’t based on anywhere in particular, with the series being so vague in its descriptions of his home country that it could actually be fictional. Additionally, when Fez’s name is drowned out in That ‘70s Show, Valderrama is really mouthing the names of his costars, so reading his lips won’t solve that mystery.
How That ’90s Show Adds A Twist To Fez’s Background Through Kitty
That ‘90s Show’s continuation of the running gag related to Fez’s mysterious background also comes with a twist. That ‘70s Show never involved a scene in which one of the characters could actually name Fez’s homeland, yet Kitty Forman does in That ‘90s Show. Not only does Kitty remember the name of Fez’s home country, but she gives additional information by saying she hears “it’s just lovely there.” As vague as this is, That ‘90s Show’s twist finally reveals that someone else knows where Fez is originally from, though the audience likely never will.
