A Different WorldIt is still considered one the greatest Black sitcoms of 1990s. This is fitting considering its impact on pop culture. The weekly reminder that young adulthood can still be enjoyable and emotional was provided by watching a group friends navigate Hillman College co-ed living. It inspired millions of students to go to college. Unfortunately, it did not work out. A Different World cast didn’t know about the show’s influence during the series’ original run, according to Kadeem Hardison. Hardison explained to his co-stars why they didn’t know the sitcom would be so famous.
The tradition of the K.C. K.C.Dad will always be Dwayne Wayne, the geeky engineer student. His fashion was enough to make an impact on mainstream culture. While viewers loved the character and the show, Hardison didn’t necessarily hear about its influence during the NBC sitcom’s heyday. The actor shared his thoughts with Bakari Sellers PodcastCast members were informed more about ratings than viewer reactions.
It is obvious that there was no contact with fans or anyone who enjoyed the show. We had to rely on the ratings, which were always kinda mythical. ‘Oh, you have a 21-point something or a 32-point that translates to blah, blah, blah.’ But we didn’t directly feel that.
The network was more concerned with numbers than it was about viewer feedback. But that was expected given a show’s ratings can be the difference between a season renewal and a cancellation, especially in the pre-streaming era. Compared to the current state of television, the 1980s and 1990s shows didn’t get a real-time reaction from fans through social media. The comedy was a success, but the A Different World cast didn’t feel its impact in real-time. Hardison said that working on the series made them totally unaware of its iconic status. He stated:
I don’t think any of us really knew that what we were doing was going to be that important or that iconic.
The cast did see small glimpses of the college comedy’s impact during its heyday. Hardison said that seeing Black coed college life translated into higher enrollment, especially for HBCUs. Multiple institutions experienced enrollment amongst Black students as the numbers doubled (or tripled) over the sitcom’s run.
Other hints about the sitcom’s mark were more direct as the actor recalled grandparents and parents telling him that Dwayne inspired their college-bound kid to become an engineer. Sometimes, the student was keen to enroll at an HBCU and Hillman, even though it was a fake school.
A Different WorldIt was a spinoff the highly successful The Cosby Show, and initially a vehicle for second-oldest daughter Denise Huxtable (played by Lisa Bonet) as she attended her parents Cliff and Claire’s alma mater Hillman College. After the first season, Bonet quit the show, which led to a shift in the story between Dwayne Gilbert and Whitley Gilbert. The series ended in 1993.
During its six-season run, the NBC comedy went through multiple cast changes and departures, which could’ve included The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air alum Alfonso Ribeiro. The series served as Jada Pinkett Smith’s acting breakthrough before breaking into movies.
All the drama and hijinks of A Different WorldSubscribing HBO Max will allow you to view all six seasons. After you finish bingeing the classic show, you can look over CinemaBlend’s 2022 TV schedule to see what comedies will premiere this year.