21 Jump Street

21 Jump Street was a show in the late 80’s that spawned a bunch of teen idols. It was about young undercover cops who could pass as teens. These cops would go undercover at schools and other places teens hang out and bust drug deals, sexual predators, and other dastardly crimes.

The show starred Johnny Depp, Holly Robinson, Peter DeLuise, Dustin Nguyen, Richard Grieco, and Michael Bendetti.

Johnny Depp was always the first choice to play Officer Tom Hanson, but Depp turned down the role. He didn’t want to do television. Jeff Yagher was then cast to play Tom Hanson but the powers that be did not love his performance. They then wanted Josh Brolin but decided to try Depp one more time. Depp accepted the role and the scenes that Jeff Yagher had already shot were reshot. This is similar to the Michael J. Fox/Eric Stoltz/Marty McFly role in Back To The Future.

Trivia

• The show mainly filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia.
• There was a hilarious 21 Jump Street movie made featuring Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum. You should watch it if you haven’t.
• 21 Jump Street was the first drama on the Fox network. Fox began on 10/9/86 and 21 Jump Street started on 4/12/87.
• It was originally called Jump Street Chapel which was named for the church that served as the cops’ headquarters. They changed the name so that people wouldn’t think it was a religious show.
• The series produced a spin off called Booker which starred Richard Grieco.  That show only lasted a year.
• It was the first Fox show to beat the other big networks (CBS, ABC, NBC).
• Johnny Depp earned $45,000 per episode which isn’t much compared to what he makes now, but is a ton more than I make.
• Johnny Depp is a musician turned actor. He was actually the guitar player in Rock City Angels when he landed the Jump Street gig. That group went on to sign a $6.2 million dollar contract with Geffen records.
• Holly Robinson (Judy Hoffs) is the only cast member to stay with the show throughout its entire run.
• Holly Robinson sang the theme song.
• Richard Grieco released an album in Germany.
• A very young Brad Pitt and Johnny Depp appear in a scene together. If that were done today, it would cost the studio several million dollars.

Guest Stars

• Brad Pitt
• Jason Priestley (Beverly Hills, 90210)
• Shannen Doherty (Beverly Hills, 90210)
• Christine Elise (Beverly Hills, 90210)
• Scott Grimes
• Billy Warlock
• Josh Brolin
• Mindy Cohn (Natalie from The Facts of Life)
• Christina Applegate
• Rob Estes
• Vince Vaughn
• Lisa Dean Ryan
• Jada Pinkett Smith

 

I don’t remember ever watching 21 Jump Street nor was I a big fan of Johnny Depp. The show sounds like something I would enjoy so not sure why I didn’t get into it. I was in college at the time this ran, so maybe that has something to do with it. Did you watch it? Were you a fan?

I hope you enjoyed learning a bit about 21 Jump Street. Thanks for reading.