Degrassi: The Next Generation (Season 7)

The seventh season of Degrassi: The Next Generation depicted school during the spring of 2007. The season premiered on January 14, 2008, and ended on June 23, 2008 in Canada, while the US run began on October 5, 2007, and concluded on August 25, 2008. Principal photography took place from April 23 to December 7, 2007. The slogan for this season is, "Look Who Goes There Now."

Season 7 takes place during the second semester of the school year that began in Season 6, and continues to depict the lives of a group of high school and university students. Topics this season deal with some of the challenges and issues young adults face, such as school violence, rape, cancer, drug use, prostitution, sexual misconduct, racism, parenthood, relationships, and HIV.

Main Cast
The following 20 actors received star billing:

Graduates (Class of 2006)

 * Lauren Collins as Paige Michalchuk, an intern for a fashion company
 * Stacey Farber as Ellie Nash, a Toronto University freshman and a journalist at The Core
 * Adamo Ruggiero as Marco Del Rossi, a lonely gay college student and Ellie's best friend

Seniors (Class of 2007)

 * Sarah Barrable-Tishauer as Liberty Van Zandt, an overachiever whose boyfriend died the previous season.
 * Mazin Elsadig as Damian Hayes, a former Lakehurst Secondary School student.
 * Aubrey Graham as Jimmy Brooks, a crippled teen who's a gifted drawer.
 * Shane Kippel as Spinner Mason, a troubled teen and underachiever battling testicular cancer.
 * Miriam McDonald as Emma Nelson, a former activist who's given it up to be a normal teenager, but is still outspoken about what she believes in.
 * Cassie Steele as Manny Santos, an aspiring actress.

Juniors (Class of 2008)

 * Dalmar Abuzeid as Danny Van Zandt, a class clown
 * Paula Brancati as Jane Vaughn, a tough tomboy (New)
 * Marc Donato as Derek Haig, a class clown
 * Shenae Grimes as Darcy Edwards, a religious and unstable rape victim
 * Shenae Grimes as Darcy Edwards, a religious and unstable rape victim
 * Jamie Johnston as Peter Stone, a troublemaker who is becoming a better person

Sophomores (Class of 2011)

 * Charlotte Arnold as Holly J. Sinclair, a mean and acid-tongued queen bee (New)
 * Nina Dobrev as Mia Jones, a busy teenage mother

Adults

 * Stefan Brogren as Archie Simpson, a Media Immersions teacher
 * Melissa DiMarco as Daphne Hatzilakos, Peter's mom and Degrassi's principal
 * Mike Lobel as Jay Hogart, a dropout mechanic
 * Amanda Stepto as Christine Nelson, Snake's wife and Emma's mom

Students

 * Raymond Ablack as Sav Bhandari, a cheery badminton player and Anya's boyfriend (Grade 10) (New)
 * Steve Belford as Jesse Stefanovic, the editor at The Core and Ellie's boyfriend
 * Jake Goldsbie as Toby Isaacs, a nerdy outcast (Grade 12)
 * Melissa McIntyre as Ashley Kerwin, Jimmy's supportive girlfriend (Grade 12)
 * Marc Minardi as Lucas Valieri, a bully and Mia's daughter's father (Grade 12)
 * Samantha Munro as Anya MacPherson, Sav's dyslexic girlfriend and Holly J.'s sidekick (Grade 10) (New)
 * Dwain Murphy as Eric, a journalist at The Core and Marco's boyfriend
 * Scott Paterson as Johnny DiMarco, a bully (Grade 11)
 * Scott Paterson as Johnny DiMarco, a bully (Grade 11)
 * Nathaniel Stephenson as Griffin Pierce-Taylor, an HIV-diagnosed roommate of Paige, Marco and Ellie (New)
 * Terra Vnesa as Trina, Jimmy's physically-disabled girlfriend who is a student at Toronto University (New)
 * Larissa Vouloukos as Isabella Jones, Mia's daughter
 * Natty Zavitz as Bruce the Moose, Johnny's partner in crime (Grade 11) (New)

Guest Stars

 * Natasha Bedingfield as Herself -- "We Built This City"
 * Deanna Casaluce as Alex Nunez, a lesbian who's out to change her life -- "Standing In The Dark (2)" & "Love Is A Battlefield"
 * Daniel Clark as Sean Cameron, Emma's ex-boyfriend and a soldier that will be shipped off to Afghanistan -- "Everything She Wants"
 * Shirley Douglas as Professor Dunwoody - "Bust a Move (2)"
 * Jake Epstein as Craig Manning, a former Degrassi student turned famous musician -- "Bust a Move (2)"
 * Craig Kielburger as Himself -- "Ladies' Night "Degrassi Season 7.jpg
 * Jajube Mandiela as Chantay Black, a cheerleader -- "Love is a Battlefield" & "Ladies' Night" (Grade 10)
 * Stacie Mistysyn as Caitlin Ryan, a Degrassi alumna, famous reporter and Ellie's mentor -- "Jessie's Girl"
 * Aislinn Paul as Clare Edwards, Darcy's little sister - Standing in the Dark (1) and Standing In The Dark (2) (Grade 8)

Opening Sequence
The opening sequence begins by fading in from white on a birds eye view of the front of the school. A bus is seen toward the bottom driving off screen to the right. This then shrinks and goes off the screen. We then see each character posing for the camera while clips of them from past seasons play behind them with a blue tint in boxes with gold outlines. We first see Emma standing and smiling at the camera. The camera zooms in on her and she looks to her left and then back at the camera. Three clips play behind her including a clip from Mother and Child Reunion (reading the email from Jordan), Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (preparing for the 80s' dance with Manny), and Tell it to My Heart (spotting Peter at a party). The name Miriam McDonald appears glowing on the lower right of the screen in gold letters. Her name wipes off to the right. We then see Manny pop up from below the screen and flips her hair and smiles. We see three clips of her in the background including clips from Wannabe (showing off a Spirit Squad routine), White Wedding (listening to the announcement of Snake and Spike's wedding), and Venus ("I'm going to be an actress, an Academy Award-winning actress, and you can sell this for a million dollars, because I'm gonna be famous!"). The name Cassie Steele appears glowing on the lower right of the screen in gold letters. It then wipes off to the right. Next we see Jimmy who's sitting in his wheelchair looking at the camera. We see four clips of him from past seasons from Karma Chameleon ("don't talk to me, you slut"), High Fidelity (looking at Ashley after a kiss) and Time Stands Still (screaming and collapsing as he's shot by Rick). The name Aubrey Graham appears glowing on the lower right of the screen in gold letters. It wipes off to the right. We see Spinner next who has his head bowed down. He looks up at the camera, smiles, and waves his left arm before walking off to the right. We see three clips of him from past seasons including clips from Message in a Bottle (during Jimmy's party), Anywhere I Lay My Head (during the car wash), and Time Stands Still (crying at the sight of Jimmy in the hospital). The name Shane Kippel appears glowing gold letters on the lower left of the screen. It wipes off to the right.

We then see Ellie who puts both her hands behind her back. She looks at the camera and smiles. We see four clips of her from past seasons including clips from Anywhere I Lay My Head ("your drinking made me cut myself!"), Take My Breath Away (calling Marco at the bus stop) and Weddings, Parties, Anything (drumming with Downtown Sasquatch). The name Stacey Farber appears on the lower left of the screen glowing in gold letters. It wipes off to the right. We then see Paige with her back to the camera. She turns around and looks into the camera and smiles. We see three clips of her from past seasons including clips from Family Politics ("new year, new look, new Paige!"), Ghost in the Machine (crashing into Dean's car), and The Lexicon of Love (realizing she loves Alex). The name Lauren Collins appears on the lower right of the screen glowing in gold letters. It then wipes off to the right. Then we see Holly J and Mia smiling at the camera. Isabella comes running up and grabs Mia's hand and runs off screen with her on the right. Holly J looks at this and looks back at the camera with a disgusted look. We see three clips play behind them, including one of Holly J from Standing in the Dark (arguing with Darcy) and one of Holly J and Mia from It's Tricky (at their locker), and Mia from Can't Hardly Wait (bringing Isabella into the Dot). The name Charlotte Arnold appears on the lower left of the screen glowing under Holly J. in gold letters. The name Nina Dobrev appears on the upper right below Mia glowing in gold letters. They both wipe off to the right. Next we see Darcy who walks closer to the camera, smiling. We see three clips of her from past seasons including clips from High Fidelity (confronting Spinner about his sexuality), Anywhere I Lay My Head (getting sprayed by Spinner) and Redemption Song (tearing up as she makes out with Spinner). The name Shenae Grimes appears glowing in gold letters on the lower right of the screen. It then wipes off to the right.

We then see Jay who's looking at the camera. He then takes his hat off and throws it at the camera. We see three clips of him from past seasons including Redemption Song (playing beach volleyball) and Secret (leading Emma into the ravine van and later rebuffing her advances). The name Mike Lobel appears glowing on the lower right of the screen. It then wipes off to the right. We then see Damian, who steps to the left of the screen revealing Jane standing behind him. They both smile at the camera. We see three clips of them from past seasons including two clips of Damian from Rock This Town (kissing Manny) and If You Leave (during the Degrassi-Lakehurst cheerleading battle), and Jane from Death or Glory (chatting with Spinner). The name Mazin Elsadig appears on the upper left of the screen glowing in gold letters below Damian. The name Paula Brancati appears on the lower right of the screen below Jane glowing in gold letters. They both wipe off to the right. Next we see Snake sneak up behind Spike. He grabs her and she laughs as he starts twirling her. We see three clips from past seasons of them. One of each from Our Lips Are Sealed (reaffirming their marriage in public) and one of them both from White Wedding (rushing to the wedding). The name Stefan Brogren appears on the upper left of the screen below Snake while the name Amanda Stepto appears on the lower right below Spike in gold letters. They both wipe off to the right. Next we see Derek and Danny fighting over the mascot head. They both look up and see the camera and smile. Three clips of them from past seasons are shown including a clip of Derek from Turned Out (arriving at the Dot for a double date with Emma, Manny and Craig), a clip of Danny from Mercy Street (pantsing J.T.), and a clip of them both from Crazy Little Thing Called Love (scuffling with Mr. Perino). The name Marc Donato appears glowing on the upper left of the screen below Derek in gold letters. The name Dalmar Abuzeid appears below Danny glowing on the lower right of the screen in gold letters. They both wipe off to the right.

Next we see Liberty with her back to the camera. She turns around and crosses her arms and smiles. We see three clips of her from past seasons play including clips from Basketball Diaries (screwing up the morning announcements) and Together Forever (holding her newborn baby). The name Sarah Barrable-Tishauer appears glowing on the lower right of the screen in gold letters. It then wipes off to the right. Then we see Peter who looks at the camera and grins. We see three clips of him including clips from Venus (preparing to film Manny), The Lexicon of Love (kissing Emma in the abandoned cinema), and Here Comes Your Man (walking to school dressed like Sean). The name Jamie Johnston appears glowing on the lower right of the screen in gold letters. It then wipes off to the right. Next we see Ms. H who has her arms folded. She unfolds them and smiles. We see three clips of her including a clip from Here Comes Your Man (taking Sean to his locker), I Against I (discussing the safe sex seminar) and Hot for Teacher (walking by). The name Melissa Dimarco appears glowing on the lower right of the screen in gold letters. It wipes off to the right. Then we see Marco with only a white background. He smiles at the camera and puts the hood from his sweatshirt on his head. The name Adamo Ruggiero appears glowing in gold letters on the right of the screen. It then wipes off to the right. He then turns around and walks away with his back to the camera. The name Degrassi appears in blue letters on the back of his sweatshirt. It pops out and fades into a group picture of the cast. The name The Next Generation fades in below it and glows in blue letters zooming out.

Trivia

 * This season marks the final appearances of Alex Nuñez, Caitlin Ryan, Ashley Kerwin, Sean Cameron and Damian Hayes.