Drake Reflects on ‘Degrassi’ Days in New Documentary, Premiering at TIFF

Drake is looking back on his high school years in a new Degrassi documentary.

Premiering on Saturday, September 13 at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), Degrassi: Whatever It Takes centres on the beloved Canadian teen drama series and features interviews with many of the former cast members, including Aubrey "Drake" Graham.

In a new trailer for the film, Drake is front and centre, as it opens with a clip of the actor-turned-rapper discussing his time playing the character Jimmy Brooks. "Man, what a wild journey that started,” he admits.

“I didn’t have a great time in high school, I just didn’t really fit in,” he recalls in the clip. “One day, my mom called me and told me, ‘You got the role.’ And I just grabbed my bag and left.”

From 2001 to 2008, Drake appeared in 145 episodes as Jimmy, the wheelchair-bound teenager. It’s a role that allowed Drake to launch his fruitful music career. Of course, he eventually left the show to become one of the world's biggest rappers.

“Degrassi changed the landscape of television with real, unvarnished storytelling and did it unapologetically from a teenage perspective. I was inspired by how fearless the series was in tackling issues that others wouldn’t touch,” shares the documentary’s director, Lisa Rideout.

In addition to Drake, the doc includes interviews with creator Linda Schuyler, executive producer Stephen Stohn, superfan filmmaker Kevin Smith, and the cast of the Degrassi world, including Stefan Brogren, Shenae Grimes-Beech, Jake Epstein, Shane Kippel, Miriam McDonald, Melinda Shankar, Amanda Stepto, Jordan Todosey and more.

Tickets are available here.