On September 21, Netflix celebrated A Different World at the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College. The event served as the kick-off to the Morehouse College Human Rights Film Festival. The event opened with a performance by the Morehouse “House of Funk” marching band, dance team “Mahogany N Motion”, and members of the Divine Nine fraternities and sororities (Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc., Iota Phi Theta, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.). Performances were followed by a screening of the first two episodes.
Cast in attendance included Maleah Joi Moon (Deborah Wayne), Alijah Kai (Rashida Duvall), Cornell Cornell Young IV(Shaquille Johnson), Jordan Aaron Hall (Amir Rodale), Kennedi Reece (Hazel Henry), Chibuikem Uche (Kojo Achebe), Jasmine Guy (Whitley Gilbert), Darryl M. Bell (Ron Johnson) and Cree Summer (Freddie Brooks) in addition to Creator/Showrunner/Executive Producer Felicia Pride, Executive Producer/Director(101) Debbie Allen, and Executive Producers Tom Werner, Reggie Rock Bythewood, Gina Prince-Bythewood and Mandy Summers. Additional attendees included Mayor Andre Dickens, Summer Walker, Tichina Arnold (Darlene Duvall), Taylor Polidore Williams, Devon Franklin, Lex P, and Drea Nicole. Following the screening, attendees enjoyed a reception at White Oak to celebrate the series.
Jasmine Guy and Debbie Allen
Mayor Andre Dickens
Jasmine Guy
Cree Summer
Darryl M. Bell
Maleah Joi Moon
Cornell Young IV
Alijah Kai and Tichina Arnold (Mom & Daughter)
Kennedi Reece
Jordan Hall
Felicia Pride
Chibuikem Uche
Kennedi Reece, Maleah Joi Moon and Alijah Kai
Kennedi Reece, Alijah Kai, Chibuikem Uche, Cree Summer, Maleah Joi Moon, Darryl M. Bell, Cornell Young IV and Jordan Aaron Hall
A Different World returns to Hillman College with a new class stepping onto campus — and beloved faces coming home. At the center is Deborah Wayne (Maleah Joi Moon), Whitley and Dwayne’s lovingly sheltered youngest daughter, a free spirit with a flair for the spotlight and a big heart who’s still figuring out her own path at Hillman.
Along the way, she’s joined by a new generation that reflects the breadth of Black life on campus: Rashida Duvall (Alijah Kai), a first‑gen criminal justice major; Shaquille Johnson (Cornell Young IV), a five‑star athlete choosing legacy; Amir Rodale (Jordan Aaron Hall), a sharp psych major better at fixing everyone else’s problems than facing his own; Hazel Henry (Kennedi Reece), a church‑raised small‑town girl defining her own values; and Kojo Achebe (Chibuikem Uche), a Ghanaian‑Nigerian fashion entrepreneur finding the courage to follow his vision. Legacy favorites also return, including Whitley Gilbert (Jasmine Guy), Dwayne Wayne (Kadeem Hardison), Freddie Brooks (Cree Summer), and Ron Johnson (Darryl M. Bell).
Set against the rituals, humor, and nuances of an HBCU, A Different World is a hopeful dramedy, full of heart and unapologetically centered on the richness and complexity of the Black experience.
The series is from creator, showrunner, writer, and executive producer Felicia Pride, executive producer and director Debbie Allen, and executive producers Tom Werner, Reggie Rock Bythewood, Gina Prince-Bythewood, and Mandy Summers.
(Photos by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for Netflix)
