Netflix is inviting a whole new generation to Hillman College, as the streamer officially orders the A Different World continuation to series. The single-camera comedy will have 10 half-hour episodes.
Felicia Pride (Grey’s Anatomy, Bel-Air) will serve as showrunner and executive producer. Debbie Allen, who produced, directed, and acted in the OG series, will direct three episodes of the continuation, including the premiere.
As Deadline previously revealed exclusively, the show will center on Deborah Wayne (Maleah Joi Moon), the youngest daughter of Hillman College’s finest, Dwayne Wayne (played by Kadeem Hardison in the original series) and Whitney Gilbert (Jasmine Guy), as she enters her freshman year at their HBCU alma mater and finds the shadow of her parents difficult to escape. She sets out to build her own legacy – while having the time of her life – alongside a whole new generation of Hillman’s best and brightest.
The cast also includes Alijah Kai as Rashida, Chibuikem Uche as Kojo, Cornell Young IV as Shaquille, Jordan Aaron Hall as Amir, and Kennedi Reece as Hazel.
“It is such an honor to be a part of bringing back this iconic show, one that I grew up on and which had a profound impact on my life,” Pride shared. “I am so proud of the work we’re doing to reimagine A Different World for beloved fans and new generations alike.”
Writers from the original series, Reggie Rock Bythewood and Gina Prince-Bythewood, return as executive producers alongside Mandy Summers and Tom Werner.
“A Different World changed everything for us,” said the Bythewoods in a joint statement. “It was where we got our start as writers and where we found each other. This show has always been a part of our love story. To return to Hillman now and help reimagine this world for a new generation feels like a continuation of that legacy – one rooted in love, purpose, and possibility.”
A Different World followed Denise Huxtable (Lisa Bonet) and her new classmates at Hillman College, a fictional historically Black college. Though Bonet exited after one season, the show continued with the leading cast of Jasmine Guy, Kadeem Hardison, Dawnn Lewis, Darryl M. Bell, Sinbad, Charnele Brown, Cree Summer and Glynn Turman.
The retooled second season continued to follow the students’ lives, with the love story between Guy’s Whitley Gilbert and Hardison’s Dwayne Wayne at the center. Dwayne, famous for his glasses that flipped up, finally put a ring on it in the Season 5 episode “Save the Best For Last.” Though Whitley was adamant she didn’t want children, she discovers she’s pregnant in “When One Door Closes,” the penultimate episode of the series, and everyone is elated. However, things get somber when Dwayne reveals he’s accepted a job in Japan, where he and his wife will raise their family — in a different world.
The popular The Cosby Show spinoff ran for six seasons on NBC.
Although no returning cast from the original series have been announced, we previously noted that conversations had been ongoing with key members.
A report this morning from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reveals production will begin on February 5 and will run until April 27.
