Degrassi Co-Creator Linda Schuyler has revealed some very interesting information about the Degrassi reboot. She recently did an interview with Jocelyn Claybourne AKA Degrassi Kid and Jocelyn’s Patreon supporters, and some of her comments are fascinating. You can watch the full interview at Patreon.com/degrassikid. But here are some of the highlights I found most interesting:
+Linda confirmed that the merger between WarnerMedia (which owns HBO Max) and Discovery was the main reason behind the cancellation of the HBO Max Degrassi reboot. “One of the broadcast executives [at HBO Max] had also been our broadcast executive at TeenNick, so I was so pleased about that,” she explained (side note: she’s likely referring to Tom Ascheim who oversaw The N back in the day and then because the President of Warner Bros. Kids & YA Division). However, once the merger happened, Linda says that “the first thing that the executives from Discovery did was to cancel the Children’s and Youth Department.” So this is really the main reason why the reboot didn’t move forward.
+Linda revealed that WildBrain has hired a new writer for Degrassi who is currently working on a pitch! She says that the writer is “very good” and “a name you will recognize.” WildBrain is “committed to getting the reboot happening” and they are planning to shop this pitch to networks in the near future.
+While Linda will not be producing the Degrassi reboot, she did confirm that she has been asked by WildBrain to be a Consultant! This is very exciting, because it means she will still have some involvement in the show, even if it’s in a smaller capacity.
+The Hollywood strike is also complicating things at the moment. “Even though this is a Canadian show, we need to get an American partner in on it. And there is just nothing happening in the States right now. So no broadcasters are doing deals,” said Linda.
All of this is very interesting! I’m curious who this writer is. Linda said it’s someone we will know. Does that mean the person worked on Degrassi previously? Or is it someone who has built a name for themselves in another capacity? Either way, I can’t wait to find out what he has planned!