“A Different World” Sequel Pilot on Netflix Features Six Leading Actors

The pilot for Netflix’s sequel to “A Different World” now includes six new cast members.

Cast

In addition to Maleah Joi Moon as Deborah, Cornell Young as Shaquille, Jordan Aaron Hall as Amir, Alijah Kai Haggins as Rashida, and Kennedi McClure as Hazel, Chibuikem Uche has been cast as Kojo.

First reported to be in development in August 2024, the pilot for the sequel to “A Different World” was revealed in March. According to reports at the time, the new series would follow the daughter of Whitley and Dwayne, two original series protagonists, and would return to Hillman College, a fictional historically Black university.

New Project Led by Felicia Pride With Iconic Producers On Board

Felicia Pride is the project’s writer, showrunner, and executive producer. Executive producers include Gina Prince-Bythewood, Reggie Bythewood, Debbie Allen, Mandy Summers, and Tom Werner. Allen also produced and directed the majority of the original’s 144 episodes, while Werner produced the original program through The Carsey-Werner Company. She would also oversee the new pilot, according to sources.

Details of the ‘A Different World’ sequel series pilot

“The plan is [to] shoot the pilot at the beginning of the summer to get a better sense of the show’s tone and of the chemistry among the ensemble cast…an individual with knowledge of the situation says that Netflix does not plan to engage in a traditional pilot season like the broadcast networks, in which shows are competing for a limited number of slots.”

What will the sequel series be about?

“A Different World,” which started out as a spinoff of “The Cosby Show,” followed Lisa Bonet’s character Denise Huxtable as she went to Hillman. Following the first season, however, Bonet left the show, and the characters portrayed by Jasmine Guy, Kadeem Hardison, Dawnn Lewis, Glynn Turman, Cory Tyler, Lou Myers, Darryl M. Bell, Cree Summer, and Charnele Brown took center stage.

For the majority of its existence, Netflix has avoided a conventional pilot process; in 2023, it announced its first pilot order. For their shows, the streamer has instead concentrated on script-to-series deals or straight-to-series orders. Although Netflix had previously stated that it would never run advertisements on the service, in November 2022 it started to offer an ad-supported plan.