This is a clip of actor Neil Hope (Derek "Wheels" Wheeler) talking with co-star Stefan Brogren on CTV's W5 show titled "The Degrassi Story." The episode aired September 17, 2005.
Yes, look at Paul Peterson from The Donna Reed Show, he saw how cruel the Industry can be towards Kids so he created a Support Group called "A Minor Consideration" where Child Stars Of The Past counsel the "Current" Crop on how to handle Fame. When New Kids On The Block were in their Prime, alot of Past Teen Idols who were where they were in the not too distant past gave them words of caution. From staying on top of their business, learning to do things like cooking and Laundry something that Jon Knight only learned to do after New Kids broke up. I wish Paul could have talked to him, it could have made a world of difference, did you know that he even lived in Detroit, MI for a hot minute and worked for Motown Records.
This is so heartbreaking knowing he passed two years later. And thinking that maybe if the show had gone on it could’ve saved his life. He was an amazing actor and sounds like he was a wonderful person. Rest In Peace Neil. 😢❤️
So sad to hear about his death and when they showed the clips of 'everybody wants something' and he sang along it brought tears to my eyes. He had a tough life and in particular his childhood was tragic. Alcohol wrecks so many lives on the sly. May he rest in peace.
I really looked like Neil Hope when I was a teenager (hair, glasses, nose, etc)... Oddly enough, we both went bald young... Its so strange to look at him in this interview because in 2005 we pretty much still looked the same even into adulthood. Still thinking about you in 2019 bud.
I've watched all the episodes and I would say he was the best to watch. He portrayed emotions well and the writers knew this. He had some of the best scenes and episodes.
So glad i found this little interview! I also wish there was another season after school's out. It made me sad how Wheels Snake and Joey's frienship ended 😑
I started watching this show in middle school in the United States. I never knew that the show was being filmed in Canada. I just felt close to the characters and the storylines were relatable, and the characters felt more like my classmates/friends than the ones I really had in real life. I love this show. It will forever be a part of my childhood. Rest in Peace Neil 🙏
You can hear it in his voice that he wasn't healthy. It sounded weak, tired and weathered and he was really thin. Poor guy was living in shelters and died not long after this interview, at the age of 35, which is VERY young.
What I would like to know is if the cast knew about his problems and his home life, did they try to get him help with AA or something like that... or did they just ignore it????
know what is weird? I'll be turning 35! feeling old but know what? still young. also most of the original degrassi tng cast all us millennials are in our 30s now! yikes! i still feel the same as 21 at times though lol
@miap What people in his life are you referring to exactly? Do you go around checking on the physical and mental health of your old coworkers and neighbours and then do whatever is necessary and pay whatever costs are required to get them the help they need? If you are not doing those things; why not? “SoMeBOdY SHoULD HaVe DoNe SOmEtHiNG!!!!” lol!
I always thought it would've been cool if they had brought Wheels back as a recurring character on TNG like they did Snake, Joey, Spike, and Caitlin. It would've been great to see Wheels interact with the kids on TNG.
amazing that you found this little gem........Neil looked quite the same back then as when he played Wheels......except for the lack of hair ha ha ha ( just like Joey "Pat Mastroianni" Jeremiah ) just a pity that he passed away two years after this interview.......and even got totally forgotten for about five more years.
I just found out he died. I was watching Degrassi and wondering what happened to some of my favorites. Neil seemed like a super likeable guy. Handsome too. ❤
I just finished "Degrassi Junior High"/"Degrassi High" two days ago. And I felt like they did the character Wheels so dirty! He was like the only one that had a really bad ending, besides Lucy. I also saw another interview where the guy who played Joey Jeremiah didn't have a positive experience with Zit Remedy/playing that one song over & over again either. Also RIP Neil
Flash forward to now, . you know what's painful is is knowing the fact that Neil died the way he did in a rooming house... alone in Hamilton Ontario, Only seconded by the fact that his family and their grief process process forgot about the fan base and we found out over a year later ,..after Neal's passing. Painful situation all the way around ,and yes Neil we do miss you, Rest in peace.
Rest In Peace Neil hope (Wheels) I do miss him whenever I watch the older degrassi always will be apart of degrassi family and yes he really played wheels amazingly very talented.
Neil Hope was one of the originals from "Kids Of Degrassi Street". No wonder he said he worked 10 years. The DJH/DH series were about 6 years. KODS was about 4 years.
Actually, KODS ran for 7 years, from 1979 to 1986. I don't think he was there in the first episode, but probably was as of 1982, so year, a good decade with the "Degrassi" franchise.
One of the best characters actor on old Degrassi high drama show i was surprised to hear he passed away at age 35 . Way to young seemed like a good soul didn't know Neil Young. But enjoy watching the 1988 89 90 91 episodes with Neil playing the character Derek/ wheels wheeler de Grassi jr high not a bad actor 4 the cheapest budget show Canadian film media. Not United States of America lol rip
It would be very nice if Oprah or A&E did a documentary about his life. I do agree with you GlamRoomGirl, especially since Neil would have been 50 years old this year.
My tribute to the legend...I grew up watching the re-runs in the late 90s, early 2000's and remember thinking when I got to high school I would be cool like Joey but sadly my life almost sort of mirrored the tragedy of wheels so I think a lot about the character now that I am graduated college, in university and have a good job and am settled in my life but hard to forget the tragic background bad times don't last if you work hard! RIP..
By some accounts, Neil wasn't the easiest guy to be around towards the end of the show and shortly after it wrapped up. The rest of the cast were apparently fine and Neil would join them at parties but problems would arise. It sounded like enough negative situations happened to where it got to the point that Neil wasn't really invited around to future gatherings and Neil's tether to Degrassi was ultimately severed. As we now know, things went downhill from there. It would have been wonderful if they had tried to give Neil a bit more of a chance on TNG other than a couple of cameos. What an absolute shame for both him and us. He'd definitely still be here if he could have been brought back into the Degrassi fold. It's totally understandable that anyone would want to escape from their adolescent stereotype, but this interview shows that he was clearly ready to make amends. Hell, I wouldn't want to be pigeonholed as Wheels either, but he was ready to do it again. Sadly, he got a bit too big for his britches and didn't treat people properly when he was younger. Many of us have made similar mistakes. It would have been nice of the producers to be a bit more forgiving. It would have also lined their pocketbooks more heavily if Wheels was brought back as a main character.
His cameo (the first of only two) in the reunion show (first and second episode of the next generation) was actually omitted/cut entirely when aired in the US. It was only shown in Canada.
I used to watch Degrassi when I grew up and I had no idea that Neils life ended so tragically. He was only 35 when he died, he was an alchoholic and worst of all.. no one knew that he had died alone, not his family,no one from the degrassi cast, no one knew until 5 years after his death. He looks so healthy here, 2 years later hes dead. Its really sad to see that the social heritage continues in generations. Not everyone are lucky to have a stabile home with suitable parents. Life is so unfair.
He was also a diabetic, required 4 insulin doses a day, and he didn't manage it, combined with the alcoholism When he has found dead, there were unused insulin vials strewn around the room.
The last time I saw Neil was probably 2002. He did lead a tough life after Degrassi. It's nice to see this video of him smiling and laughing, the way I would like to remember him. THe last time I saw him he wasnt very happy. RIP Neil.................to the good memories!
I can relate to Neil. My father was an alcoholic. He would get off the streetcar and go directly to the legion hall to drink. He would then come home and go directly to bed. He would sometimes yell at us and one time punched a hole in a wall. He was very hard on my brother who as he grew up would become an alcoholic himself. As for me I turned away from alcohol as I saw what it did to my father. Fortunately for my brother he cleaned himself up. It's true how a parent can influence their children. The only memories of my father is him being an alcoholic.
His voice is harsh, sounds like he's been hitting the bottle for some time two years before his death here. Pretty tragic - he leaves a legacy that's still going strong as a Degrassi universe founder.
Talented actor. Really like the scenes with Wheels, as they were relateable and showed a lot of emotion. In the series when he becomes a pathological liar is my favorite, as it was accurately delivered.
the kids on the degrassi series were WAY better actors than the adults on that show. the adults must have been just pulled onto the set to have short parts as parents and not real actors. rip wheels i'll miss ur mullet and nuthuggers.
Too bad Joey wasn’t there. He looks like he was happy to see Stefan. I read after this his life went downhill and he ended up passing away two years later
Our angel in heaven would be turning 50 years old this year. It would be nice if the cast did a tribute to him. I tried messaging Pat twice, but never got a reply.
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