Relax, relate, release. According to Variety, Netflix is developing a sequel series for the seminal sitcom A Different World. Details are scarce, but Variety says the project focuses on Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) and Whitney’s (Jasmine Guy) daughter. On the project’s ground floor is writer and executive producer Felicia Pride, whose impressive list of work includes Grey’s Anatomy and Queen Sugar. Debbie Allen, Mandy Summers, Tom Werner, Gina Prince-Bythewood, and Reggie Bythewood join the effort as executive producers. Netflix will neither confirm nor deny the project’s status.
A Different World ran for six seasons from 1987 to 1993 and revolved around a group of students at a historically Black university. The show focuses on their struggles and up-and-coming youths in a world trying to keep pace with their radical ideas and worldview. The show is a spinoff of The Cosby Show, with Lisa Bonet’s Denise Huxtable leading the cast. Kadeem Hardison, Jasmine Guy, Darryl M. Bell, Charnele Brown, and Cree Summer lead the cast alongside Bonet, with Glynn Turman, Dawnn Lewis, Lou Myers, Sinbad, and Jada Pinkett Smith.
When the series entered its fifth season, its focus shifted as Whitney and Dwayne got engaged. In the penultimate episode, Whitney discovers she’s pregnant, setting the stage for Netflix’s A Different World sequel series. The new project returns to the halls of Hillman, where the couple’s daughter goes to school. Bill Cosby’s involvement in the sequel series remains uncertain. He might not have anything to do with it. Netflix needs to tread lightly, given his convictions for sexual assault.
Variety says Netflix’s A Different World sequel series could arrive in the vein of the streamer’s That ’90s Show reboot but with a more dramatic twist like Peacock’s Bel-Air. It’s an intriguing combination, especially considering the difference in comedy between the two shows.
I remember watching A Different World back in the day. My sister loved Whitney, while I was partial to Dwayne and Denise. We were also Sinbad fans, with his stand-up comedy special, “Brain Damage.” playing on repeat in our home. What do you think about Netflix developing a sequel series to A Different World? Let us know in the comments below.