ABC/Craig Sjodin School is back in session for "The Goldbergs" spinoff, "Schooled."
The Goldberg‘s spinoff Schooled has been somewhat of a work in progress. Last year, ABC aired an episode in The Goldberg‘s timeslot called “The Goldbergs: 1990-Something,” which turned out to be the spin-off pilot the network already passed on. While potential was there, the Tim Meadows/Bryan Callen-led pitch felt flat and half-cooked with nothing tangible tethering it to its predecessor.
Tonight, school is back in session with AJ Michalka joining the cast for a 13-episode first season. The series has been retooled to include the Goldbergs actress Michalka, while Nia Long, who played Principal Glascott’s sister in the original pilot, has been removed (Long is now a series regular on NCIS: L.A.). Schooled will follow the teachers of William Penn Academy led by Meadows’ Principal Glascott, Callen’s Coach Mellor and Michalka’s Lainey Lewis (Barry Goldberg’s girlfriend) who, despite their idiosyncrasies and bizarre personal lives, build relationships and become mentors to their students.
Here are all the cast spoilers you need to know ahead of tonight’s 8:30/7:30c premiere.
William Penn Academy’s newest music teacher definitely marches to the beat of her own drum. #Schooled premieres TOMORROW at 8:30|7:30c on ABC! t.co/3bSp9rL4KX
Who is in the Schooled Cast?
AJ Michalka as Lainey Lewis
On The Goldbergs, Lainey was best friend to Erica Goldberg (Hayley Orrantia) and girlfriend to Barry (Troy Gentile). She was a recurring character in Seasons 1 and 2 before being promoted to series regular for Seasons 3 and 4. Though Barry and Lainey broke up at the end of the fourth season, the two later became engaged after she dropped out of college. IMDB doesn’t list Gentile for any Schooled episodes as of yet. Is Barry out of the picture? We’ll likely find out the answer to that tonight.
ABC’s description for the first episode tells us, “It’s 1990-something, and since Lainey still hasn’t achieved rock ‘n’ roll greatness, she returns to William Penn Academy as the new music teacher. Lainey has a hard time adjusting to being an authority figure, but she realizes she might not be so bad at it when she discovers a kindred spirit in Principal Glascott’s niece, Felicia.”
Michalka can also be seen in movies like Super 8 and The Lovely Bones.
Tim Meadows as Principal Glascott
Jonathan “Andre” Glascott was a teacher and guidance counselor at William Penn who also delivered pizza and gave guitar lessons for extra money. He now serves as the school’s principal, who will probably be psyched that he no longer has to deal with Beverly Goldberg anymore (…or will he?).
Meadows starred on Saturday Night Live from 1991-2000, and can also be seen in Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, The Ladies Man, and Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping.
Bryan Callen as Coach Mellor
Rick Mellor is the high school’s no-nonsense gym teacher and coach who’s also had multiple run-ins with smother Beverly Goldberg. Mellor will continue being an unlikely (and mostly unfit) mentor to the students at William Penn. Callen has also appeared on How I Met Your Mother, 7th Heaven, and the movie The Hangover.
Brett Dier as C.B.
Jane the Virgin‘s Brett Dier plays the young, enthusiastic super-teacher Charlie Brown (or “C.B.” for short—prepare yourself for the onslaught of Peanuts jokes). Besides Jane, he is best known for playing Luke Matheson on Pretty Little Liars and its offshoot, Ravenswood.
Rachel Crow as Felicia Winston
Crow, a former X-Factor contestant, stars as Felicia, Principal Glascott’s niece who forms a special bond with Lainey.
The Goldbergs, now in its sixth season, will air throughout the rest of the 2018-2019 TV season. It’s unclear if it will return next year, though The Hollywood Reporter says it’s possible.
Series Creator and Executive Producer Adam Goldberg (the real-life Adam Goldberg) knows how the series will likely end.
“The last episode is Adam’s [Sean Giambrone] high school graduation, which marks the end of his childhood,” Goldberg told THR in a 2017 interview. “I’d love to go beyond season six, but it will always be set in the ’80s. We have yet to run out of any videos of mine, and there’s just so much from that decade I love. And I don’t want to set it in the ’90s because I hope that one day that will be the spinoff of some sort.”