Season 1 of Degrassi: Next Class is over…so now what? Besides repeatedly watching the series on Netflix, we now wait for Season 2’s arrival this summer.
Canadian Film Centre recently interviewed CFC alumna and Degrassi Showrunner Sarah Glinski, who dropped some hints about Season 2 while discussing the evolution of the series.
Though Hunter Hollingsworth ended Season 1 without shooting anyone, from that final moment between him and his brother we could tell his story is far from over…Glinski elaborates:
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We see that, ultimately, he brings a gun to school … so going into the next season, we really explore that character and what brought him to that and we talk about mental illness and I’m pretty excited about that because I think mental illness is a huge issue today and it’s really stigmatized and to make people feel okay with that, especially as a young boy, is really important.
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For Sarah Glinski’s full interview, click here.
Kary's Degrassi Blog 
I hope they go slow with Hunters diagnose. It seems his mental issues are borderline sociopath/borderline personality disorder. I do hope Frankie is there for her brother instead of running away from it and her own problems like she did in Season 1/15. This is why I can’t see jankie as a thing I feel Jonah is there to fill her void. Just like Myles did with drugs & booze. I want Myles & Frankie to step up and be with there brother and this will help all three to become stronger. As for mom she needs to drop the dad for Hunter, Myles and Frankie to recover the effects of their dads abuse an mom too. This is such a sad story that happens in real life.
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I disagree wholeheartedly. Borderline personality disorder is more like Miles.They don’t normally bring guns to school. They just get depressed often and do self-destructive things like Miles does. Hunter just seems like someone with deep-seated anger and resentment who needs therapy. The whole Hollingsworth family does.
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I’m pretty nervous about having Hunter’s storyline turn into one of mental illness. He does seem to have some issues around anger and resentment (as the person above stated), and drawing attention to him getting help for that would be really great. But him being diagnosed with some other mental condition or illness? That could be potentially dangerous, considering that the general public thinks there’s a link between mental illness and violence when, in reality, that’s usually not the case (a person with a mental illness is actually more likely to be the VICTIM of violence, not the perpetrator). I’ll be curious to see how they handle this.
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I agree, and it’s also problematic and contradicting to the white male privilege storyline. These shooters always tend to get the excuse of mental illness, when many are simply hateful, entitled, and angry. Not to mention, Hunter hadn’t displayed traits of a personality disorder up until this season. To me Hunter comes across as a non-disordered, neurotypical kid, albeit one who is still isolated and who doesn’t know how to communicate properly. I see his issues as fixable, and I think it’s important for people to realize that otherwise “normal” people are capable of committing atrocious acts under certain circumstances. Pent up rage is a dangerous thing. So is isolation.
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To me I think he was probably bullied all his life, like Rick was, and his escape is gaming because no one online will judge him. Much like when Becky and him were talking to each other online he was really connecting with her and you could tell he seeks comfort from someone who doesn’t already know him. I hope the writers don’t make this another “he had a mental illness” story because we’ve heard it too many times, sandy hook, aurora, etc. this stigma needs to stop, I have bpd and am in no way violent.
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The way BPD is portrayed in movies and television is often inaccurate and quite problematic. For instance, Glenn Close’s character in Fatal Attraction is labeled as BPD, but she doesn’t act like one at all. She acts like a psychopath. When I think BPD the only characters that MIGHT come to mind are Miles and maybe Fiona. And just because Hunter is “nerdy” doesn’t make it a good excuse for Degrassi to give him autism either. There are plenty of lonely, troubled kids without there being a single word for it.
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