Degrassi is a Canadian teen drama franchise created by Linda Schuyler and Kit Hood in 1979. The franchise spans five main series: The Kids of Degrassi Street , Degrassi Junior High , Degrassi High , Degrassi: The Next Generation , and Degrassi: Next Class , as well as several made-for-television movies, web miniseries and novelizations. Beginning as a series of short films about children who live on or near De Grassi Street in Toronto, Ontario, starting with Degrassi Junior High, the franchise began to focus on an ensemble cast of students attending various schools with the Degrassi name as they confront various issues and challenges. Also starting from Degrassi Junior High, the franchise became a cultural phenomenon in Canada and a cult hit in the United States, garnering critical acclaim for its realistic portrayal of adolescence. [1] [2]
Throughout the years, the franchise (save Next Class) has seen numerous releases to VHS and DVD. In the United States, Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High were initially distributed in the late 1980s by mail order from Direct Cinema Ltd. for educational use. [3] Large VHS box sets of Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High were released in 1999 and 2000 by WGBH Boston Home Video, followed by DVD releases in 2005 and 2007, respectively. Degrassi: The Next Generation was distributed on home video in Canada by Alliance Home Entertainment, and in the United States by FUNimation Entertainment and later Echo Bridge Entertainment, with all but it's thirteenth and fourteenth seasons released to DVD.
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Main entries
Television movies
Other series
Characters Novelizations Creative personnel
Related
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Release | Ep # | Release date |
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"Ida Makes A Movie"/"Cookie Goes To Hospital"/"Irene Moves In" | 3 | 2000 [4] |
"Lisa Makes The Headlines"/"Noel Buys A Suit" | 2 | 2000 [5] |
"Ryan Runs For Help"/"Martin Hears The Music" | 2 | 2000 [6] |
"Billy Breaks The Chain"/"Catherine Finds Her Balance" | 2 | 2000 [7] |
"Sophie Minds The Store"/"Casey Draws The Line" | 2 | 2000 [8] |
"Rachel Runs For Office"/"Griff Makes A Date" | 2 | 2000 [9] |
"Connie Makes The Catch"/"Karen Keeps Her Word" | 2 | 2000 [10] |
"Pete Takes A Chance"/"Chuck Makes A Choice" | 2 | 2000 [11] |
"Martin Meets The Pirates"/"Connie Goes To Court" | 2 | 2000 [12] |
"Lisa Gets Her Picture"/"Griff Gets A Hand" | 2 | 2000 [13] |
Season | Set details | DVD release dates | Special features | ||
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Region 1 | Region 2 | Region 4 | |||
The Kids Of Degrassi Street: The Complete Series |
| July 31, 2007 [14] | March 12, 2008 [15] | N/A |
Release | Ep # | Release date |
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Degrassi Junior High: Term 2 | 13 | 1988 [16] |
Degrassi Junior High: Term 3 | 16 | 1988 [17] |
Release | Ep # | Release date |
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"Kiss Me Steph"/"The Big Dance" | 2 | 1999 [18] |
"The Experiment"/"The Cover-Up" | 2 | 1999 [19] |
"The Great Race"/"Rumor Has It" | 2 | 1999 [20] |
"The Best Laid Plans"/"Nothing To Fear" | 2 | 2000 [21] |
"What A Night!"/"Smokescreen" | 2 | 2000 [22] |
"It's Late"/"Parent's Night" | 2 | 2000 [23] |
"Revolution/"Eggbert" | 2 | 2000 [24] |
"A Helping Hand"/"Great Expectations" | 2 | 2000 [25] |
"Dinner And A Show"/"Stage Fright" | 2 | 2000 [26] |
"Fight!"/"Bottled Up" | 2 | 2000 [27] |
"Sealed With A Kiss"/"Dog Days" | 2 | 2000 [28] |
"Censored"/"Trust Me" | 2 | 2000 [29] |
"He's Back"/"Pass Tense" | 2 | 2000 [30] |
"Can't Live With 'Em, Parts 1 & 2" | 2 | 2000 [31] |
"A Big Girl Now"/"Seasons Greetings" | 2 | 2000 [32] |
"Loves Me, Loves Me Not"/"He Ain't Heavy" | 2 | 2000 [33] |
"The Whole Truth"/"Star-Crossed" | 2 | 2000 [34] |
"Food For Thought"/"Twenty Bucks" | 2 | 2000 [35] |
"Taking Off, Parts 1 & 2" | 2 | 2000 [36] |
"Pa-Arty!"/"Bye Bye Junior High" | 2 | 2000 [37] |
21 Video Set | 42 | March 7, 2000 [38] [39] [40] |
Season | Set details | DVD release dates | Special features | ||
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Region 1 | Region 2 | Region 4 | |||
Degrassi Junior High: Season One | February 1, 2005 [42] | April 30, 2007 [43] [44] | 2005-2006 [45] | Region 1:
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Degrassi Junior High: Season Two | June 7, 2005 [47] [48] | 2005 [49] | Region 1:
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Degrassi Junior High: Season Three | September 27, 2005 [51] [52] | 2005 [53] | Region 1:
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The Complete Collection/Series |
| October 25, 2005 [54] October 11, 2016 [55] | Special features from individual sets | ||
The Complete Degrassi High (Degrassi High & Degrassi Junior High) |
| November 2, 2016 [56] |
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In 2019, Encore+, the YouTube channel of Canada Media Fund, made the entirety of Degrassi Junior High available free to view, in both English and French. [57]
Release | Ep # | Release date |
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Degrassi High: Term 4 | 13 | 1990 [58] |
Degrassi High: Term 5 | 16 | 1990 [59] |
Season | Set details | DVD release dates | Special features | ||
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Region 1 | Region 2 | Region 4 | |||
Degrassi High: The Complete Series |
| October 9, 2007 [60]
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Degrassi High Collection |
| March 12, 2008 [62] | N/A |
Release | Distributor | Release date |
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School's Out: The Degrassi High Graduation Special | WGBH Boston Home Video (United States) | 1992 [63] |
Degrassi High: School's Out | ABC Video/Roadshow Entertainment (Australia) [64] | 1993 [65] |
Degrassi High: School's Out | WGBH Boston Home Video (United States) | March 7, 2000 [66] |
Release | Distributor | Release date |
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Degrassi High: School's Out | Force Entertainment (Australia) | July 10, 2006 [67] [68] |
Complete Season DVD Release | ||||||
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Release | Ep # | Release dates | Special Features | |||
Region 1 | Region 2 | Region 4 | ||||
Canada | United States | |||||
Season One | 15 | October 5, 2004 [69] | September 28, 2004 [70] | — | May 3, 2007 (ABC DVD) September 8, 2010 (Umbrella Entertainment) [71] | Degrassi Karaoke, Degrassi Photo Album, Character Descriptions, Cast Biographies, Deleted Scenes, Oops and Bloopers, Original Television Promos, and Audition Tapes. |
Season Two | 22 | June 21, 2005 [72] | — | September 8, 2010 | 130+ Deleted/Extended Scenes and Bloopers, Cast Audition Tapes, Season 2 Second Call Back Tapes, "Poor Thing" Karaoke, Interactive Fan Quiz, Degrassi Yearbook, Snake and Spike's Wedding Album, Student and Adult Profiles, and Cast Biographies.
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Season Three | 22 | March 28, 2006 [73] | — | April 13, 2011 | Audio Commentaries ("Accidents Will Happen" and "Pride"), Deleted Scenes, "Rock and Roll High School" Karaoke, Season 3 Interactive Quiz, CTV Degrassi Promo, Degrassi Yearbook, and Character and Cast Biographies. | |
Season Four | 23 | October 24, 2006 | November 28, 2006 | — | April 13, 2011 | Audio Commentaries ("Time Stands Still" and "Secret"), Deleted Scenes, Blooper Reel, Original Cast Auditions, Season 4 Interactive Quiz, Character and Cast Biographies, Jay and Silent Bob Flipbook, Degrassi Yearbook, and PAX Gun Violence Prevention Public Service Announcements.
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Season Five | 19 | July 3, 2007 [74] | — | — | Deleted Scenes, Blooper Reel, Original Cast Auditions, Interview with Cassie Steele, Character and Cast Biographies, Degrassi Yearbook, Simple Plan Music Video and Interview, and Trailers. | |
Season Six | 19 | May 27, 2008 | — | — | Deleted Scenes, Bloopers, Original Auditions, Character and Cast Biographies, Degrassi Yearbook, and Trailers. | |
Season Seven | 24 | May 26, 2009 [75] | March 17, 2009 | — | — | Bloopers, Deleted Scenes, Photo Gallery, Webisodes, and "On The Set". |
Season Eight | 23 | September 1, 2009 | — | — | "Degrassi Goes Hollywood" The Movie, Bloopers, Deleted Scenes, Podcasts, Webisodes, "On The Set" Webisodes, and "My Window" Music Video. | |
Season Nine | 23 | July 20, 2010 [76] | — | — | "Degrassi Takes Manhattan" The Movie, Bloopers, Deleted Scenes, Webisodes and Minis, and Music Videos. | |
Season Ten | 44 | October 18, 2011 | September 13, 2011 | — | — | Episode Commentaries ("My Body Is A Cage" and "Umbrella"), Music Videos, Bloopers, and Webisodes. |
Season Eleven | 45 | December 3, 2013 [77] | — | — | Meet the New Kids, The Gallery Shoot, Set Tour, Parking Lot Tour, From Rehearsal to Shooting, Goodbyes, Behind the Scenes, Deleted Scenes, Bloopers, and Webisodes. | |
Season Twelve | 40 | October 29, 2013 [78] | — | — | Back to Degrassi, New Kids on the Block, Shooting the Opening Sequence, 300th Episode Celebration, A Day with the Ice Hounds, Goodbye Uniforms, Inside Fiona's Birthday Brawl, Say Cheese: Photoshoot with Demetrius, Vanessa and Justice, The Making of Romeo & Jules, Bloopers, The Inside Look and The Table Read - Bitter Sweet Symphony, Graduation Day, Prom Night, The One and Only - Dylan Everett, Eli's Short Film - LIFE, Eli's Short Film - NYU Portfolio, Video Yearbook, and Episode Commentary. | |
Season Thirteen | 40 | — | — | — | — | To Be Announced |
Season Fourteen | 28 | — | — | — | — | To Be Announced |
As of 2 January 2024, there have been no future Degrassi home media releases beyond the twelfth season of Next Generation. In 2015, Stephen Stohn stated on Twitter that they had delivered the elements for the season 13 DVD release, but the distributor changed. [79]
Degrassi Junior High is a Canadian television series created by Kit Hood and Linda Schuyler. The second series in the Degrassi franchise and the first to be set in a universe that has spanned multiple decades, it aired on the CBC from 18 January 1987 to 27 February 1989, and on PBS in the United States starting from September 1987. A non-union show, it was primarily produced by Playing With Time with involvement from WGBH. Although not generally acknowledged by the mainstream, it has been frequently referred to as a pioneer of the teen drama genre that prefigured later and better-known series such as Beverly Hills, 90210 and Dawson's Creek.
Degrassi: The Next Generation is a Canadian teen drama television series created by Yan Moore and Linda Schuyler. It is the fourth series in the Degrassi franchise and a revival of Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High. It premiered on CTV on October 14, 2001, and concluded on August 2, 2015, on MTV Canada. The series centers around a new ensemble cast of students at the fictional Degrassi Community School who face challenges such as sex, teen pregnancy, bullying, date rape, drug abuse, body image, homosexuality, domestic violence, gang violence, self-injury, suicide, abortion, mental disorders and many other issues. Various characters from the previous two series also returned as adults in recurring or guest roles.
Degrassi is a Canadian teen drama television franchise created by Kit Hood and Linda Schuyler. Spanning five main series from 1979 to 2017, it follows the lives of youths in Toronto. With the exception of the first series, the franchise takes place in the same fictional timeline, with the titular school as the central setting. Outside of television, the franchise comprises companion novels, graphic novels, documentaries, soundtracks, and non-fiction works.
The Kids of Degrassi Street is a Canadian children's television series created by Kit Hood and Linda Schuyler. The first entry in the Degrassi franchise and the only one to focus on children instead of teenagers, it follows the lives of a group of children living on De Grassi Street in Toronto. It was produced by Hood and Schuyler's independent company Playing With Time. The series originated as a collection of annual standalone short films that started with Ida Makes a Movie, a live-action adaptation of the Kay Chorao book which premiered on the CBC on December 8, 1979. It became a full series in 1982 when the CBC ordered five more episodes.
Degrassi High is a Canadian television series created by Linda Schuyler and Kit Hood. The third entry in the Degrassi teen drama franchise and the direct continuation of Degrassi Junior High, it aired on the CBC for two seasons from November 6, 1989 to February 28, 1991 and on PBS in the United States starting from January 13, 1990. Like its predecessor, it was a non-union show produced by Playing With Time with involvement from WGBH.
Degrassi Talks is a Canadian non-fiction documentary television miniseries and part of the Degrassi franchise created by Linda Schuyler and Kit Hood. Running six episodes from February 29 to March 30, 1992, it featured actors from Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High taking the role of journalists and conducting interviews with other teenagers and young adults across Canada on various topics addressed by the series such as abuse, substance addiction, homophobia, and teenage pregnancy. It combined candid and man-on-the-street interviews as well as relevant archive footage from the television series and on-screen statistics. Each episode was hosted by an actor whose character had some relation to the focused subject.
Ida Makes a Movie is a 1979 Canadian after school special short film produced by Kit Hood and Linda Schuyler for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, who aired the film on December 8, 1979. The story was adapted from the 1974 children's picture book Ida Makes a Movie, which was written by Kay Chorao. Schuyler, a former media teacher at Earl Grey Senior Public School, was introduced to the book via the school's librarian, and purchased the film rights from Chorao for $200.
Linda Schuyler is a Canadian television producer. She is best known for being the co-creator and producer of the Degrassi franchise, which has spanned five series over four decades. She is a co-founder of Playing With Time, Inc., and Epitome Pictures, the production companies involved with the franchise over its 40-year-long history respectively.
School's Out is a Canadian drama television film based on the Degrassi teen drama franchise created by Linda Schuyler and Kit Hood in 1979. It was directed by Hood and written by Yan Moore, based on a story by Moore, Schuyler and Hood. It aired on CBC Television on January 5, 1992, and served as a finale to the series Degrassi High and its predecessor Degrassi Junior High, which are collectively known as the Degrassi Classic era of the franchise.
Christopher Hood, known professionally as Kit Hood, was a Canadian director, editor, writer, and producer who is best known for being the co-creator of the Degrassi television franchise. He was the co-creator and a major creative force of the first three series of the franchise, The Kids of Degrassi Street (1979–86), Degrassi Junior High (1987–89), and Degrassi High (1989-91). As a director, Hood won a Gemini Award in 1987 for the Degrassi Junior High episode "It's Late".
Epitome Pictures Inc. was a Canadian film and television production company based in Toronto, Ontario. Founded by Linda Schuyler and Stephen Stohn in 1992, the company is best known for producing Degrassi: The Next Generation and Degrassi: Next Class, the fourth and fifth respective entries of the Degrassi teen drama franchise, of which was co-created by Schuyler. Other television series produced by Epitome include Liberty Street,Riverdale, and The L.A. Complex. In 2016, Epitome was absorbed into DHX Media and the Epitome name and branding ceased.
Degrassi is a Canadian teen drama television franchise created by Linda Schuyler and Kit Hood. From 1979 to 2017, there have been five main series.
The tenth season of Degrassi premiered in Canada on July 19, 2010, concluded on April 22, 2011, and consists of 44 episodes. Degrassi is a Canadian serial teen drama television series. Previously known as Degrassi: The Next Generation, the suffix "the Next Generation" was dropped this season, due to the original next generation of students having all been written out. With the start of the tenth season, the series survived longer than the nine-year gap between Degrassi High's telemovie School's Out, and Degrassi’s premiere episode "Mother and Child Reunion".
"It's Late" is the 11th episode of the first season of Canadian teen drama television series Degrassi Junior High. It originally aired on the CBC in Canada on April 5, 1987. After a careless night with Shane at a classmate's party, Spike fears she is pregnant. Meanwhile, Arthur gives continuously bad romantic advice to his friend Yick.
"A New Start" is the two-part premiere episode of the Canadian teen drama series Degrassi High. It aired on CBC in its hour-long form on 6 November 1989, and on PBS in the United States on 13 January 1990. The episode was written by Yan Moore and directed by Kit Hood. It is the first of three episodes of Degrassi that depict abortion, followed by 2003's "Accidents Will Happen" from Degrassi: The Next Generation and 2017's "#IRegretNothing" from Degrassi: Next Class.
The first season of Degrassi Junior High, a Canadian teen drama television series, aired in Canada from January 18, 1987, to May 3, 1987, consisting of thirteen episodes. The series follows the lives of a group of seventh and eighth grade school children attending the titular school as they face various issues and challenges such as child abuse, homophobia, teenage pregnancy, and body image. Filming for the season began on 8–10 July 1986 in Etobicoke, Ontario and wrapped in the winter of 1986.
The second season of Degrassi Junior High, a Canadian teen drama television series, aired in Canada from January 4, 1988, to April 18, 1988, consisting of thirteen episodes. The series follows the lives of a group of seventh and eighth grade school children attending the titular school as they face various issues and challenges such as child abuse, homophobia, teenage pregnancy, and body image.
"Bye-Bye, Junior High" is the sixteenth episode of the third and final season of Canadian teen drama television series Degrassi Junior High. It originally aired on CBC Television in Canada on February 27, 1989. It was written by Yan Moore and directed by Kit Hood. The episode takes place at the end of the school year as graduation approaches; despite the fallout from the death of his parents at the beginning of the season, Derek "Wheels" Wheeler manages to pass, but Christine "Spike" Nelson, who is raising her daughter Emma, must make up for poor grades over the holidays, something which she does not react well to. At the graduation dance, a fault in the boiler room causes a fire to spread throughout the school, razing it to the ground.
Playing With Time, Inc. was a Canadian independent film and television production company based in Toronto, Ontario. Founded by Linda Schuyler and Kit Hood in 1976, it is best known for being the original production company for the Degrassi television franchise, producing The Kids of Degrassi Street (1979–86), Degrassi Junior High (1987–89), and Degrassi High (1989–91). It also produced educational short films throughout its existence. The company's work was known for its unconventional filmmaking practices, including casting ordinary people in lieu of experienced trained actors. Schuyler founded Epitome Pictures in 1992, leaving Hood in sole control of the company. By 1998, it was dormant.