Has Netflix given ‘A Different World’ reboot a full season order?
Is “A Different World” coming back?
Signs point to yes.
A local union sent posted a jobs notice this week regarding a series from Netflix identified as “Untitled HBCU S1.”
Netflix, which usually shoots an entire first season of any new series, opted to take the more traditional broadcast route this past summer and created a single pilot episode in Atlanta for a reboot of “A Different World.”
Production for this series is set to begin Feb. 5 next year and run through April 27, according to the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 479, which represents most union crew members in Georgia.
The original “A Different World,” a spinoff of “The Cosby Show,” was set in a fictional historically Black college and ran on NBC from 1987 to 1993 to huge ratings. The show remains a beloved touchstone for Generation Xers, and cast reunions draw big audiences.
According to Deadline, this sequel comes from Atlanta-based writer/executive producer Felicia Pride and executive producers Debbie Allen, Mandy Summers, Tom Werner, Gina Prince-Bythewood and Reggie Bythewood. Allen, Werner, Prince-Bythewood and Bythewood all worked on the original series.
Netflix, which did not respond to a query regarding the IATSE posting, has not released details of the series and whether any actors from the original version will be in it.
This series will use Cinespace Studios in Atlanta as its home base, according to the IATSE posting. Cinespace purchased the studio located next to Lakewood Amphitheatre from EUE Screen Gems in 2023. It was previously home to “Stranger Things,” which begins airing its final season later this month, for nearly a decade.
Earlier this year, Netflix has used the same studio for an upcoming Bert Kreischer series “Free Bert” and a rom-com starring Millie Bobby Brown “Just Picture It.”
About the Author
Rodney Ho writes about entertainment for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution including TV, radio, film, comedy and all things in between. A native New Yorker, he has covered education at The Virginian-Pilot, small business for The Wall Street Journal and a host of beats at the AJC over 20-plus years. He loves tennis, pop culture & seeing live events.
