50 Fun Facts About Degrassi

Who created the Degrassi franchise?

Schuyler was an ex-schoolteacher and Hood an editor; their company was called Playing With Time.

The franchise began with which 1979 short film, adapted from a Kay Chorao book?

Its success on the CBC led to The Kids of Degrassi Street.

The school takes its name from a real street in which city?

A supporter named Mackey offered his home at 98 De Grassi Street as an early filming location.

The Kids of Degrassi Street was the only entry in the franchise to focus on whom?

Several of its young actors, including Stacie Mistysyn and Neil Hope, returned in Junior High as different characters.

On which network did Degrassi Junior High premiere on January 18, 1987?

It is regarded as the first modern television teen drama.

Which Etobicoke building stood in for Degrassi Junior High?

It was known as Daisy Avenue Public School at the time; a memorial bench there honours the show.

What was the name of the garage band formed by Joey, Snake and their bass-playing friend Derek?

Joey played keyboards, Snake guitar and Wheels bass, and they had exactly one song.

Which Degrassi Junior High episode, about Spike discovering she is pregnant, won an International Emmy?

Spike's daughter Emma became the central character of The Next Generation.

How does Degrassi Junior High end?

A faulty boiler starts the fire during the graduation dance.

By August 1988, Degrassi Junior High had become what?

Its BBC1 debut that year drew a reported six million viewers.

How many Gemini Awards did Degrassi Junior High win?

That included Best Children's Series in 1987 and four wins in 1988.

Which Carlaw Avenue institution was picked as Degrassi High for resembling a high school?

The same building on Carlaw Avenue, now the Story Arts Centre, had earlier been used for auditions.

What did PBS cut from the Degrassi High premiere 'A New Start' for American viewers?

The creators felt the edit compromised the two-parter's integrity.

On what date did the TV-movie finale School's Out air on CBC?

It drew 2.3 million viewers, double what Degrassi High usually got.

In School's Out, whose drunk-driving crash kills a two-year-old and blinds valedictorian Lucy?

He is charged with criminal negligence causing death; the film ends at Simon and Alexa's wedding.

School's Out is claimed to contain the first use of which word in Canadian television history?

Stefan Brogren said it first, then Stacie Mistysyn.

How many viewers did School's Out draw in Canada?

Reviews were mixed, but the audience was double Degrassi High's average.

Which CBC show hosted the 1999 Degrassi Junior High cast reunion that helped revive the franchise?

By December 1999 producers were developing a new series built around Emma.

On which network did Degrassi: The Next Generation premiere on October 14, 2001?

It ended on MTV Canada on August 2, 2015 after 14 seasons.

How many episodes of Degrassi: The Next Generation were made?

That is more than all the earlier Degrassi series combined.

The Next Generation centred on Emma Nelson, the daughter of which original character?

Miriam McDonald played Emma; her mother's pregnancy at 14 had been Junior High's Emmy-winning storyline.

What is the title of The Next Generation's theme song?

Jim McGrath wrote the music; Jody Colero and executive producer Stephen Stohn wrote the lyrics.

Which future rap superstar played Jimmy Brooks?

Aubrey Graham was born in Toronto in 1986 and often turned up late to set after nights in the studio.

In 'Time Stands Still', what humiliation drives Rick Murray to bring a gun to school?

Spinner, Jay and Alex pull the prank while Rick celebrates winning a quiz competition.

Who wrestles Rick for the gun in 'Time Stands Still', during which struggle Rick is fatally shot?

Rick had just shot Jimmy in the back and pointed the gun at Emma.

Which bullying expert who had worked with Columbine families did the producers consult for the shooting episode?

Director Stefan Scaini won a Directors Guild of Canada award for part two.

Which American filmmaker guest-starred as himself with Jason Mewes in the last three episodes of season four?

The plot had them shooting a movie called Jay and Silent Bob Go Canadian, Eh! at the school.

Which Next Generation episode did The N refuse to air for two years because it dealt with abortion?

It centred on Manny Santos, played by Cassie Steele.

Which season-ten episode about a transgender student won a Peabody Award?

Jordan Todosey played Adam Torres, the only transgender regular on scripted TV in 2011.

What production change came with season ten in July 2010?

The 'Next Generation' tag was dropped from the title with only one original cast member left.

By season ten, which original character remained, having been promoted to principal?

Stefan Brogren has played him since Junior High and stayed principal through Next Class.

How many Gemini Awards had The Next Generation won before they became the Canadian Screen Awards?

Junior High had collected eight in its own day.

Which Next Generation actress, who played Mia Jones, went on to lead The Vampire Diaries?

Shenae Grimes, who played Darcy, went to 90210.

On which streaming service did Degrassi: Next Class air internationally from 2016?

It premiered on Family Channel in Canada on January 4, 2016 and hit Netflix three weeks later.

Degrassi: Next Class was originally intended to be what?

It was retooled as a reboot aimed at Generation Z and ran 40 episodes.

Which streaming service's planned Degrassi revival was scrapped in 2022 amid the Warner Bros. merger?

Rights holder WildBrain says it still intends to make a new series.

Which 2018 Drake music video reunited the cast of The Next Generation?

He had left the show after season eight to focus on music, signing with Young Money in June 2009.

In December 2023 the Degrassi franchise was inducted into what?

A documentary about the franchise premiered at the 2025 edition of Canada's biggest film festival.

How did co-creator Kit Hood die in January 2020?

He was 76 and living in Nova Scotia.

How many viewers did Degrassi Junior High draw for its 1988 UK premiere on BBC1?

Controversial first-season episodes were later shifted to a late slot on BBC2.

Who was the first to audition for Degrassi Junior High, later winning the role of Joey Jeremiah?

Playing With Time ran a repertory company of fifty children, so even a lead could fade into the background of episodes that weren't about them.

Which entertainment lawyer became Linda Schuyler's producing partner and husband?

His 2018 memoir recalls advising her to buy the out-of-print book rights herself rather than pay lawyers to complicate it.

Schuyler and Stohn founded which company in 1992 to produce every later Degrassi series?

Its early output included the 1994 TV movie X-Rated and the CBC series Liberty Street, which starred Pat Mastroianni.

What is the title of Linda Schuyler's 2022 memoir?

Whatever It Takes was already taken: it's the title of Stephen Stohn's 2018 memoir, and of the three-part 2025 documentary series.

When season ten left CTV in 2010, which Canadian network picked up Degrassi?

TeenNick's circus-themed promo set to V V Brown's 'Shark in the Water' was credited with lifting the new network's ratings.

The unmade mid-2000s Next Generation movie would have centred on Jimmy Brooks doing what?

The script by Aaron Martin and Tassie Cameron was awaiting a Paramount green light in 2005; elements were later folded into a TV episode.

The Next Generation reused the set of which 1997 Epitome soap opera on Bartley Drive?

The Toronto set at 220 Bartley Drive became the Degrassi Community School that fans knew for the next 14 seasons.

Librarian Bruce Mackey offered his home at what address as the location for the first film?

Mackey had fetched Schuyler the book Ida Makes a Movie without realising it was a children's story, and nearly threw it out.

In prime time, CBC slotted Degrassi Junior High between Kate & Allie and which other sitcom?

Schuyler resisted the Monday 8:30 move, agreeing only on condition the show would return to Sundays rather than be cancelled if it flopped. Viewership rose 40%.

Which federal health minister personally put $350,000 into the 1992 documentary Degrassi Talks?

Six cast members interviewed teenagers in 26 cities for the series, each assigned an issue their character had lived through on screen.