Netflix’s ‘Abbott Elementary’ Replacement Officially Arrives in 48 Hours

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Kennedi Reece as Hazel, Jordan Aaron Hall as Amir, Maleah Joi Moon as Deborah, Cornell Young IV as Shaquille, Alijah Kai as Rashida, Chibuikem Uche as Kojo in 'A Different World.' Image via Netflix

Published Sep 22, 2026, 10:00 PM EDT

Makuochi Echebiri is a News Writer for Collider.  He has been interested in creative writing from as far back as high school, and he would consume pretty much anything that’s film or TV. However, his truest love lies in the presence of historical epics and thrillers.

Lured by the brilliance of Middle Earth from an early age both in print and on screen, his palate has since expanded to other realms including Westeros, Kattegat among others. He also possesses a great appetite for the stories that emanate from the vastness of space. Even though he is no Avenger.

Obsessed with storytelling and having works of his own that have yet to make it to print, he is content to use that ability to communicate to as many as are reachable. In his spare time, he looks out for avenues where he can aid people aside from his plans to reign over this earthly realm. Yes…you heard that first here.

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As with nearly all aspects of human existence, we continually strive to get the next best thing, and the same can be said in entertainment. The struggle to create the next huge hit on television rages on between studios and streamers, as all jostle for positions. While Netflix has a presence across nearly every genre, Apple TV seems to have developed a specialty in sci-fi, while Prime Video can boasta couple of noteworthy entries in the fantasy and dystopian genres. However, sometimes, the best of television might not be found in the development of a new drama. Perhaps it can be found in looking back at an old classic and reinventing it for the modern age.

Sometimes, all it takes are everyday stories about everyday people going about their normal lives. In recent times, the Quinta Brunson-created sitcom, Abbott Elementary, which stars the likes of Tyler James Williams as Gregory Eddie, has become the standard for such shows. Little by little, the sitcom is gradually establishing itself as one of the most popular network shows of its day, whilst perhaps on its way to becoming a cult classic. While one might argue that Abbott Elementary has some ways yet to go before attaining such status, A Different World, a sequel series to the original Cosby Show, which ran on NBC from 1987 to 1993, certainly does.

In its place, A Different World has several similarities with Abbott Elementary, and after Netflix greenlit a sequel series in November 2025, fans of the original have something to look forward to. Now, after nearly a year following the announcement of the series, Netflix's take on A Different World is about to hit screens. Per Deadline, in what is certainly a symbolic move, the new Netflix series will premiere on September 24, 2026, thirty-nine years to the day that the original A Different World premiered in 1987. Leading the new generation of the show will be the daughter of Hillman College fan-favorite couple, Whitley Gilbert (Jasmine Guy) and Dwayne Wayne (Kadeem Hardison), Deborah Wayne, who will be played by Maleah Joi Moon.

Collider Exclusive · 8 Questions · 2 Minutes Which Netflix Character Would Be Your Best Friend? Dustin · Emily · Wednesday · Gi-hun

Some friends drag you out of the house. Some sit with you on the worst night of your life. Netflix has written both, plus the one who tells you the truth you have been avoiding all week. Answer eight quick questions about how you actually do friendship, and find out which of them was always going to end up in your corner.

🧢Dustin(Stranger Things)

🗼Emily(Emily in Paris)

🕷️Wednesday(Wednesday)

🟢Gi-hun(Squid Game)

FIND YOUR BEST FRIEND →

01

How do you usually end up making a new friend? The origin story says a lot about the friendship that follows it.

AWe got loud about the same obsession and never stopped. BThey invited me somewhere before we had properly met. CWe bonded over disliking exactly the same thing. DThey noticed I was struggling and stayed with me.

NEXT QUESTION →

02

What is a perfect Saturday with your best friend? Friendship is mostly built out of very ordinary hours.

AA ridiculous plan neither of us should attempt. BSomewhere new, photographed heavily, ending very late. CSomewhere quiet, few people, zero small talk. DSomething simple, and a conversation that actually matters.

NEXT QUESTION →

03

You call them at two in the morning. What happens? This is the real test of a friendship, and everybody knows it.

AThey are already putting their shoes on. BThey answer instantly and turn it into a plan. CThey answer and say something unflattering and true. DThey listen for an hour and never check the time.

NEXT QUESTION →

04

What do you want from them when you are clearly wrong? The best friendships are the ones that survive being corrected.

ASupport first. We can review the mistake later. BA relentlessly positive reframe of the entire disaster. CThe blunt version. Do not soften it for me. DPatience, and no judgment about how I got here.

NEXT QUESTION →

05

What do your friends actually value about you? The friend you attract says something about the friend you are.

AI am all in, always, about everything. BI can turn almost any situation into a good time. CI say the thing nobody else in the room will. DI look after whoever is having the worst day.

NEXT QUESTION →

06

You have a falling out. How does it go? How a friendship repairs itself matters more than how it breaks.

ALoudly, briefly, then back to normal by Tuesday. BThey apologise first, enthusiastically, with a gift. CCold silence, then one dry joke that fixes everything. DWe talk until we both understand what actually happened.

NEXT QUESTION →

07

What do you actually need a best friend for? Everybody is missing something. The right friend fills that gap.

ATo make my life bigger than it would be alone. BTo push me out of the house and into my own life. CTo catch me when I start lying to myself. DTo be the person who never gave up on me.

NEXT QUESTION →

08

Ten years from now, what keeps the two of you close? Eight questions in, this is the one that decides who you get.

AWe would still drop everything for each other, instantly. BWe still make plans, and we still actually go. CWe still cut through each other's nonsense in one sentence. DThey stood by me once when it cost them something.

REVEAL MY BEST FRIEND →

The Group Chat Has Spoken Your Best Friend Is…

Four Netflix characters, four completely different ways of showing up for somebody. This is the one who fits how you actually do friendship, and what having them in your life would be like.

Dustin Henderson

You do not do friendship at half volume, and neither does he. What you want is somebody who says yes to the plan before you have finished describing the plan.

  • Dustin is the friend the entire show runs on: loyal past the point of sense, enthusiastic about everything, and incapable of leaving anybody behind.
  • You have the same instinct. Your friendships are loud, specific and slightly ridiculous, and they last for decades because of it.
  • He is also the one person who would take your strangest interest completely seriously, which is far rarer than it sounds.
  • You would have a group chat. It would never once be quiet.

Emily Cooper

You are the friend who makes things happen, and so is she. Together you would be mildly exhausting to everyone around you and completely delighted with yourselves.

  • Emily treats an ordinary Tuesday as something that could be turned into an occasion, which is either the best or the worst quality in a friend depending on your energy levels.
  • You share her refusal to sit still. Neither of you has ever accepted a night in when something was happening somewhere else.
  • She is far more loyal than people give her credit for. She defends her friends loudly, publicly, and occasionally before checking the facts.
  • She would post the photo without asking. You would forgive her, because it is a very good photo.

Wednesday Addams

You have no patience for pleasant lies, and she has no ability to tell them. What looks like coldness from the outside is the most reliable friendship on this list.

  • Wednesday never says a kind thing she does not mean, which makes the rare ones count for an enormous amount.
  • You would rather be told the truth than be made comfortable. She is constitutionally incapable of offering you anything else.
  • Underneath all of it she is ferociously protective. She simply refuses to make a performance out of caring.
  • Do not expect a birthday message. Do expect her to ruin anyone who wrongs you.

Seong Gi-hun

You look after whoever is having the worst day. So does he. It is the least strategic way to move through the world and the best possible quality in a friend.

  • Gi-hun is not the strongest player in Squid Game, or the cleverest. He is the one who keeps choosing to protect somebody else, over and over, at genuine cost to himself.
  • You have the same instinct. You notice who is struggling and you stay with them, long after anybody would blame you for leaving.
  • He is a flawed friend, and that is part of why it lands. He lets people down, then comes back and tries again, which is more than most manage.
  • He would give you his last chance and never once mention that he had done it.

↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ

Netflix's 'A Different World' Will Fuse the Old and New Together

When the first season of A Different World premieres, the single-camera comedy will run for 10 half-hour episodes. The show will launch with a slew of new faces and stars to fall in love with. Besides Tony Award winner Moon, a brand-new class of students are set to enjoy the college experience, including Chibuikem Uche, Cornell Young, Jordan Aaron Hall, Alijah Kai Higgins, and Kennedi McClure. To help bridge the gap between generations, the upcoming show will also feature in recurring and guest roles, a slew of original stars throughout the season, including Jada Pinkett Smith, Dawnn Lewis, Glynn Turman, Ajai Sanders, Karen Malina White, Charnele Brown, and Jenifer Lewis. Original show director, producer, and star, Debbie Allen, will return as an executive producer while directing multiple episodes, including the premiere of the new show. Also, original series writers Reggie Rock Bythewood and Gina Prince-Bythewood are on board as executive producers.

A Different World will premiere on Netflix on September 24. Stay tuned to Collider for updates.

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Release Date September 24, 2026

Network Netflix

Directors Tiffany Johnson, Angela Barnes, Nefertite Nguvu, Bille Woodruff, Debbie Allen

Cast

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Cree Summer

    Freddie Brooks

  • instar49738677.jpg

    Jasmine Guy

    Whitley Gilbert

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    Kadeem Hardison

    Dwayne Wayne

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Cornell Young IV

    Shaquille

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