Back to Beverly Hills with New 90210 Cast and Creators
By Jordan Riefe

Who knew that one of the most popular shows of the '90s would see new life a decade later. Following the formula of Degrassi: The Next Generation, Beverly Hills 90210 is returning to the airwaves with a new cast of young teens in similar fashion to when Aaron Spelling made household names out of Luke Perry, Jason Priestly, Shannen Doherty, Jennie Garth, Tiffani Amber Thiesen, Brian Austin Green, Ian Ziering, and his daughter Tori Spelling. Debuting September 2 on The CW with a cast that includes former Full House star Lori Loughlin and 90210 newcomers Jessica Stroup, Ryan Eggold, AnnaLynne McCord, Shenae Grimes, Tristan Wilds, Dustin Milligan and Mike Steger, plus original 90210 actors Jessica Walter, Shannen Doherty, and Tori Spelling, the new series looks to capture the same teen magic as the original did in 1990.

Late last month The Deadbolt was on hand when a portion of the new cast and creators Jeff Judah, Gabe Sachs, and Rob Estes of Melrose Place fame gathered in the TCA event Beverly Hills to fill the press in on all things new and old, and what fans can expect from the new 90210.

Co-Creator Jeff Judah on getting the rights from the Spelling estate:

"Wow, right off the bat. I really have no idea. CW had approached us about doing this, and I think someone had approached them and thought it was a great idea to bring it back."

Judah on whether this was meant to be a completely original invention or an homage to the original show:

"It is a complete original invention. There will be, though, somewhat of an homage to the original show. Essentially what you're seeing in front of us is the show, just maybe since we just finished shooting the pilot about a day ago. To set it up a little bit for everybody, it's about a family moving from Kansas back to Beverly Hills. Rob Estes character actually grew up in Beverly Hills. He was the next-door neighbor to one of our previous characters. They moved back and it's how they handle this new world. We'll be using people from the previous show in the new one, and they will organically work with our characters."

Shenae Grimes on her familiarity with the original 90210 and how it resonated with her as a kid:

"I was the one major fan of the cast. I was one when the show came out, but my mom raised me on it, basically. I am very shell shocked every time I meet one of the old cast members and see the old high school and stuff like that. It's been quite a trip. Just the things that they touched on. I mean, the drama was something that you hadn't really seen on television before and the issues were real. You felt like that you could finally relate to people that you were seeing on TV. It was serious issues and it showed the serious consequences and it wasn't such a glamorous package put together for everyone's eyes. Yeah, my mom thought it was, I guess, educational in a way and so did I. It was our little bonding."

Tristan Wilds on moving from The Wire to 90210?

"I kind of knew I was going to get this one. I can say it's been a transition nevertheless, but it's been an easier transition than what I thought it would be. The characters Dixon and Michael are somewhat alike. They both grew up in bad environments and they both had to grow up by themselves very quickly. From Dixon, moving from group home to group home and Michael living with a drug addict mother and raising his little brother, it's similar to an extent that, you know, they both had to teach themselves how to grow, how to live by themselves, you know. It's been a transition, but it's been quite easy."

Lori Loughlin on her character, Debbie:

"You know, I think even though I can see why you would refer to it as a soap opera, she's still a character based in reality. She is also moving to Beverly Hills for the first time, so it's an adjustment for her because she's never lived outside of Kansas. I think that she's a contemporary mom. She's got a career. She's grounded. She has a good relationship with her husband. I think it's all based in - she's based in reality."

Jeff Judah on distinguishing the show and ensuring it stands out from the crowd:

"It's difficult. There are a lot of shows like this. The original show, I think one of the reasons people loved it so much was it was really one of the first ones to focus on teens and the young group could sort of see their lives. One way we're doing it is we're just trying to tell the best stories we can. We're trying to ground it. We grew up sort of in the Apatow family. It's not just -- it's grounded with real character stories and emotional stories and whether these kids drive Mazeratis or whatever mansions they live in, we want people in Iowa watching going, that's how I feel when my dad gets mad at me, that's how I feel when someone doesn't like me. We're trying to just really tell truthful, emotional stories, but also, you know, keep it pretty funny, too."

AnnaLynne McCord on whether she was ready to get back into another character that seems to be the troublemaker or if she preferred the role of sweet girl:

"Oh, God, yes. I'm so excited. I did have some reservations initially, but in film, I want to do the bad-ass girl, like action, so it's a good role for me. Nip/Tuck, obviously 90210 is more the PG version of my role on Nip/Tuck. I'm still the bitch. I mean, who gets paid to be a bitch to people? It's an awesome job."

Tristan Wilds on transitioning from Baltimore to West Beverly High:

"Well, I can say it's a lot sunnier. I can say that. You know, when I did my research in Baltimore, I went to the neighborhoods, the places that we were actually shooting, to find out how deep I could get inside my character, how much I could get inside of my character's mind. You know, just knowing where he comes from it helped me a lot with his character. Well, actually being in Baltimore kind of helped me with this character, too, because Dixon is coming from Kansas and moving to Beverly Hills, so he's brand-new to everything here. So just like I'm brand-new to everything that is - Everything just coming new to me, I feel the same way Dixon feels, sort of. So, I guess not surveying the city as much as I want to, it kind of helped a lot."

Co-Creator Gabe Sachs on whether an online version of 90210 will be racier:

"We're definitely going to have - I know Paramount and The CW both talked about having a real presence, which is phenomenal, and they have been thinking about it since the beginning. And we'll be very involved with that and very excited about it, so absolutely. There's going to be a consideration to what new information they can get on the website as well."

Lori Loughlin on working with Aaron Spelling:

"I think in working with Aaron - Because I was one of the producers on Summerland and helped develop that show, I got to work closely with Aaron, and it's bittersweet because it's the last show that he did. But I think what Aaron's approach was, people want to watch fantasy. There's some fantasy television that people tune in to for escapism and I think he really embraced in his television shows, shows that are based on reality, but also the glamour. When you go back to some of his original shows like Dynasty, I remember him saying to me - in one meeting we were talking about wardrobe and hair and makeup and he said, 'Call me crazy, but I think I've had a few successful shows based around wardrobe and hair and makeup.' It was Charlie's Angels.

"I just think there was this fantasy television that he embraced that I think viewers enjoyed watching. I think that this show differs in the fact that it is based on reality, like Jeff and Gabe were saying. They want to portray what teenagers are really going through in their lives. Now, of course, there is some fantasy to it for America to watch because it's the glitz and the glamour of L.A. that we don't often see in our everyday lives when we're living in the Midwest somewhere."

Judah and Sachs on what the roles will be for Jennie Garth, Shannen Doherty, and Tori Spelling:

SACHS: We definitely have surprises. There will be multiple episodes. We're figuring a lot of that out now.

JUDAH: But Jennie's character has been brought back into the show in an organic way, so when you see the pilot, you'll see how she's brought in. It fits naturally.

Gabe Sachs, Jeff Judah, and co-creator Rob Estes on why they decided to bring the show back now:

JUDAH: Well, I think - it's not a remake. It's a brand-new show based on an original show. I think a lot of people are interested in the rich, especially now. Gas is almost $5 a gallon. Prime -- subprime mortgages, everything going down -- there's something interesting in seeing these big worlds and also seeing these people in a different way and on an emotional level suffer the same way that every one of us do, struggling to sort of get through the day.

SACHS: And also at the international Upfronts, I had the opportunity to talk to a lot of international buyers who were so excited about -- they said, ‘We love the original. We love seeing Beverly Hills as a character and California and the beach.’ This is stuff they want to buy into and their viewers want to see, so that's like a big deal to us.

ESTES: It also feels like it has an under layer because the family - the Wilson family that's coming to Beverly Hills, $5 a gallon is killing us. I mean, we're working on a principal's salary. So we get to be inside the rich living like the majority of society and I just think it gives a good juxtaposition for people to see. And if you're making tons of money and both parents are working, your kids don't get what they need. They might get gifts and whatnot, but in terms of environment and nurture, they don't get what they need. So again, I think that's something that's very prevalent especially in American society. So it's just fun to look at because you get the rich, but you also get the heart.

Sachs and Judah on how the Peach Pit has changed:

SACHS: You know, The Peach Pit was very important to us and every interview we have, they go ‘Is there a Peach Pit?’ We realized all over the world people are asking about this Peach Pit, so Jeff and I were saying, ‘What's The Peach Pit today?’ The Peach Pit today, we think, would be like Urth Caffe, you know, for people that are in Los Angeles are kind of a cool...

JUDAH: A cool coffeehouse.

SACHS: And that's what we translate it to.

JUDAH: It's a cool coffeehouse now where a lot of kids hang out, but it's not going to be like the old show where it's like ‘Hey, it's Color Me Badd’ and they come in here. [laughs] ‘What are you guys doing here?’ It's more of like a cool coffeehouse, but there will be a music extension. There will be a Pit upstairs, which is actually a real music place.

-- Jordan Riefe
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