When Degrassi returns for its 10 season (on CTV in Canada and TeenNick in the U.S.), viewers will meet a student named Adam. He’ll be played by Jordan Todosey, a female actress best known for Life with Derek. Yep, Adam is transgender.
casting
90210 Is Going Gay? So What: Degrassi Is Going Trans
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alan brickman
Degrassi has always been progressive…..a good show!!!
rf
degrassi already has a gay storyline going on this year (i tivoed the episode where the boys meet and kiss but am not a fan of soap opera-y shows)–its amazing and quite good to see that programming for 12 year olds (my guestimate of who mostly watches the show) is more forward thinking on lgbt issues than most network tv.
Hilarious
While their new gay character doesn’t get enough screen time I’ve always liked how progressive the show is.
It’s ahead of the pack for both teen and adult shows the majority of the time.
Ash
Marco, their first main gay character, was awesome and he was easily one of the best characters on the show. Then they had Paige and Alex have a lesbian relationship, which was a little disappointing but it was still pretty nice while it lasted.
The new gay guy, Riley, is okay, I mostly like him, but I’m not a fan of his love interest. And now they are introducing a trans character! You know, despite the fact that I don’t like the new cast, I might actually check out Adam’s first episode online.
Dawson
@rf: Actually, your guesstimate would be completely off because their average viewer is in college, and I’m sure plenty of older people count is a guilty pleasure as well.
If you aren’t a fan of “soap opery shows” what the hell do you watch? Hell, even comedies are mostly story driven now.
Dawson
Also, Degrassi was entertaining the idea of gays in the teen market way before most shows even touched the topic in the adult market.
http://www.gaelick.com/2009/12/gay-teens-on-your-telly/5668/
Considering that Degrassi was originally designed as a teaching tool for high school kids and still sort of remains mostly wholesome it is a very unique series to begin dialogue.
Jeffree
Great show. The Canadian TV system has not been afraid to address issues of LGB now T highschoolers: these are main storylines, not just two episode arcs.
Yeah, it’s a little wholesome, but they’ve had this show going for 9 years and it’s got a huge fan base here in the US of H.S./college aged viewers — and our parents.
Marc
What many Americans dont realize is that Degrassi is actually almost 30 years old. It is the newest version of a show called the Kids of degraasi street. It was always progressive for its time.