THE CARROLL NEWS: The CW plans spin-off of ‘90210’ The CW plans spin-off of ‘90210’ ================================================================================ Meredith Snow on 30 April, 2008 03:36:00 After an eight-year vacation, it is possible that classes will once again be in session for the students of West Beverly High School. According to reports, Rob Thomas, the creator of “Veronica Mars,” is in the process of writing a spin-off of “Beverly Hills 90210” for the CW. After a ten-season run where a cast of rich young characters battled everything from drug and gambling addictions to eating disorders, the FOX series ended in 2000. The show launched the careers of eight young actors including stars Jason Priestley, Luke Perry, and Jennie Garth. Variety.com reported last month that the family the spin-off will be focused around would be similar to the Walsh family. In the original show, Jim (James Eckhouse) and Cindy (Carol Potter) Walsh moved their teenaged twins, Brandon (Priestley) and Brenda (Shannen Doherty) to Beverly Hills from Minneapolis, Minn. The still untitled spin-off will be centered on the Mills family. When Tabitha Mills’s drinking problem gets too out of control in California, her son Harry moves his family from the Midwest back to his hometown. On the west coast, he takes the position of school principal at his alma mater, West Beverly High School. Harry and his wife, Celia, have two teenagers: Annie and adopted son Dixon. Producers are hoping to make the cast of the spin-off show more diverse than the original cast. Along with new character Navid Shirazi, who is Middle Eastern, Dixon will not be played by a white male. According to Access Hollywood, Dustin Milligan, who played Henry on the CW’s “Runaway,” is the only actor signed on to do the show. “There is a plan for bringing back one of the cast members,” Thomas told Access Hollywood. Former cast members have had mixed feelings when asked whether they would consider stepping back into the lives of their characters. Tiffani Thiessen, who played bad girl Valerie Malone for six seasons, told People she was not interested in returning to her old zip code. “I wish them all the best, but it’s not something I will be a part of,” she said. When it comes to playing the virginal Donna Martin again, Tori Spelling added that she would “love to somehow be a part of it,” even though she has not yet been contacted by the show’s producers. Spelling, daughter of the late “90210” executive producer Aaron Spelling, told People that her dad “always wanted to do a new version of ‘90210,’ so I’m sure he will be beaming from above!” Rumors concerning the spin-off have been running rampant across the Internet. ABC News reported that Thomas hopes blonde bombshell Kelly Taylor (Jennie Garth) will return to the classroom of WBHS as a fashion design teacher. He might just get his wish now that Garth has left the CBS comedy pilot of “My Best Friend’s Girl.” According to a report by E! Online, Andrea Zuckerman’s (Gabrielle Carteris) daughter Hannah Zuckerman-Vasquez, will appear briefly in the pilot as the host of the school’s news show, “Blaze.” A timetable to begin casting and production has yet to be announced.