By Lukas Shayo
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Decades after A Different World ended, the Cosby Show spinoff is gearing up for a sequel, and it finally has a cast. The original A Different World show ran from 1987 to 1993 and followed Lisa Bonet's Denise Huxtable and Marisa Tomei's Maggie Lauten as they attended an HBCU (Historically Black College or University). After the second season, however, Bonet and Tomei both left the show due to Bonet's pregnancy. Tragically, several A Different World cast members have died since the show's conclusion, including Lou Myers (Vernon Gaines), Diahann Carroll (Marion Gilbert), and Rosalind Cash (Dean Hughes).
According to a report by Variety, Netflix is already planning an updated cast for its sequel show. While there is no word about what will happen to the late actors' characters, the pilot has cast six series regulars already. Chibuikem Uche will be playing Kojo, Maleah Joi Moon will be Deborah, Cornell Young will be Shaquille, Jordan Aaron Hall will be Amir, Alijah Kai Higgins will be Haggins, and Kennedi McClure will be filling out the regular cast members as Hazel.
What This Means For A Different World's Sequel
The Cast Is Finally Coming Together
When A Different World ended in 1993 after just six years on TV, a follow-up show was an unlikely prospect. The show was extremely topical, focusing on issues that included racism, the AIDS epidemic, and classism. Its setting was the '80s and '90s, and it took advantage by addressing everything that its viewers were facing at the time. A follow-up in 2025 is surprising, especially as a sequel would be expected to take a similar route. It was announced in 2024, and the casting is the first major news about its production.
This is a relatively unknown cast compared to the original show.
The show could potentially be divisive, given its roots in The Cosby Show. After all, Cosby has become extremely controversial, given that he is facing several sexual assault allegations. The controversy has grown so extreme that Cosby was banned from the Oscars and has been cast out by other prominent Hollywood organizations. A Different World's sequel will appear in a world that has been entirely turned against Cosby's entire legacy within the industry, and so the show will need to succeed without tying directly to that history, and the all-new cast could help those efforts.
Our Take On A Different World's Sequel Cast
This Is A Relatively Unknown Cast
While the show will likely face some criticism, A Different World's sequel cast is already fairly interesting. Aside from Maleah Joi Moon, who starred in Hell's Kitchen and brought home the Tony Award for Best Actress for her efforts, this is a relatively unknown cast compared to the original show. Most actors will be hoping to take advantage of this as a breakthrough role, so they should all give their all for everything to the performances. This is an excellent opportunity for everyone involved in A Different World, and they are undoubtedly hoping for its success, just as Netflix is.
Source: Variety
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A Different World
TV-PG
ComedyFamily
6.0/10
- Release Date
- 1987 - 1993-00-00
- Network
- NBC
- Directors
- Henry Chan, Glynn Turman, Kadeem Hardison, David Blackwell, Kim Friedman, Michael Peters, Peter Werner, Christopher Hibler, Jasmine Guy, Jay Sandrich, John Whitesell, Matthew Diamond
- Writers
- Yvette Lee Bowser, Thad Mumford, Reggie Rock Bythewood, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Judi Ann Mason, Adriana Trigiani, Scott S. Gorden, Jeffrey Duteil, Orlando Jones, Bill Cosby, Matt Williams, Steven Peterman, Karen Kennedy, Joe Gannon, Gary Dontzig, Carmen Finestra, Susan Fales-Hill
Cast
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Don Barnes
Guy
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Jasmine Guy
Whitley Gilbert
A Different World, a spin-off from The Cosby Show, premiered in 1987. Initially following Denise Huxtable at Hillman College, the series later focuses on Whitley Gilbert and Dwayne Wayne as it explores life at a historically black college in Virginia, including depictions of fraternities and sororities.
