The Golden Girls doesn’t seem like a provocative show at first glance.

The sitcom was, however, groundbreaking. All living together, the cast of middle-aged women was certainly a fresh idea. For years, fans assumed Rue McClanahan, Bea Arthur, Betty White, and Estelle Getty, the actors who played Blanche Devereaux, Dorothy Zbornak, Rose Nylund, and Sophia Petrillo, respectively, were friends outside of work. That wasn’t the case. While several cast members were friendly, Bea Arthur had issues with one of her co-stars. She took issue with Betty White. In a new book, a writer for the series revealed that Arthur thought Betty White was “two-faced.”

A ‘The Golden Girls’ writer said Bea Arthur thought Betty White was ‘two-faced’
Bea Arthur and Betty White’s on-set feud has been discussed regularly in the years since the groundbreaking sitcom went off the air. Stan Zimmerman, a writer who worked on the series, recently addressed the feud. More specifically, he opened up about Arthur’s feelings about White in his memoir.

Bea Arthur as Dorothy Zbornak, Rue McClanahan as Blanche Devereaux, Estelle Getty as Sophia Petrillo and Betty White as Rose Nylund in a promotional photo for ‘The Golden Girls’
The cast of ‘The Golden Girls’ | Herb Ball

Zimmerman noted that Arthur’s feelings about White came down to her on-set and off-screen personas. Zimmerman, who penned the book The Girls: From Golden to Gilmore, said Arthur didn’t like White’s way of working. She also didn’t like that White was nothing like the naive character she played, Rose Nylund. The writer said he learned Arthur thought White was “two-faced” from one of the show’s producers. The revelation wasn’t made until many years after they wrapped the show’s final season.

The feud never affected their work

If Arthur did, in fact, feel that White was “two-faced,” it didn’t affect their working relationship. While stories of their lackluster connection off-set have swirled around Hollywood for years, Zimmerman insisted he didn’t see it back then. According to People, the writer said that he didn’t know there was even a problem between the pair until a producer clued him in during a more recent podcast appearance.

Betty White as Rose Nylund, Rue McClanahan as Blanche Devereaux, Bea Arthur as Dorothy Zbornak in an episode of ‘The Golden Girls’

Joel Thurm, a casting agent who worked with the actors, confirms Zimmerman’s recollection in his own memoir, Sex, Drugs & Pilot Season. Thum argues that White and Arthur were not friends and had issues with each other’s personalities, but it never affected the series. Those unaware of the goings-on between the former costars wouldn’t have known they weren’t buddies when the cameras stopped rolling.

Neither actor ever spoke on their alleged feud. The series ended in 1992; both actors have since died. Arthur died in 2009 from lung cancer. She was 86. White died in December 2021, just a few weeks shy of her 100th birthday.