‘A Different World’ sequel is in the early stages at Netflix. Imagine Dwayne Wayne and Whitley Gilbert Wayne are old enough to have their youngest daughter attend Hillman College. The fictional HBCU setting of the iconic sitcom premiered in 1987, ran for six seasons, and starred the popular couple played by Kadeem Hardison and Jasmine Guy.

The new project would center on the youngest daughter of Whitley and Dwayne, now a student at Hillman.

Netflix has reportedly not commented on the project yet.

The developing sequel has writer Felicia Pride at the helm (Grey’s Anatomy, Queen Sugar). Several notable members from the original show’s creative team include Debbie Allen as producer and director, Tom Werner (whose Carsey-Werner produced A Different World), and writers Reggie Rock Bythewood and Gina Prince-Bythewood will also serve as executive producers on the project, along with Pride and Many Summers. 

A Different World was a spinoff of The Cosby Show, following Denise Huxtable (Lisa Bonet) to college at Hillman. Bill Cosby (who is not involved in the sequel) is credited as the show’s creator; Allen came aboard in the second season as part of a revamping that saw Bonet depart (she returned as a guest star in season three) and the focus shift to a broader ensemble that included Guy, Hardison, Dawnn Lewis, Darryl M. Bell, Cree Summer, Charnele Brown, Glynn Turman, Sinbad and Lou Myers. –THR

The ‘A Different World’ cast recently reunited for the 2024 HBCU College Tour to “ignite change, raise awareness, enrollment and scholarship funds” for HBCUs nationwide by “leveraging the star power and cultural impact of A Different World,” where a new generation can choose HBCUs as their academic homes. With stops at Howard University and Tuskegee University, to name a few, the stars of the 90s are just as popular today and with a whole new, younger audience to appreciate their cultural impact then and now.

What kind of parents of a college-age child do you think Dwayne and Whitley would be if the sequel to ‘A Different World’ streams on Netflix? What original castmembers would you like to see return? Join the conversation on Instagram @bsm_mag.

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