Netflix’s New Teen Drama Is Aimed Straight at the ‘Euphoria’ Hole

Published Sep 19, 2026, 11:11 AM EDT

Amanda M. Castro is a Network TV writer at Collider and a New York–based journalist whose work has appeared in Newsweek, where she is an Associate Editor, and The U.S. Sun, where she previously served as a Senior Consumer Reporter.

She specializes in network television coverage, delivering sharp, thoughtful analysis of long-running procedural hits and ambitious new dramas across broadcast TV. At Collider, Amanda explores character arcs, storytelling trends, and the cultural impact of network series that keep audiences tuning in week after week.

Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Amanda is bilingual and holds a degree in Communication, Film, and Media Studies from the University of New Haven.

A particular television series format seems to vanish as each generation outgrows it: the "teen ensemble" show, which follows a mix of talented teenagers whose lives take the most ridiculous turns. Euphoria takes that established approach and adds a more sinister twist. Now, Netflix is going in the opposite direction with Hollywood Arts, a new series that returns to one of Nickelodeon’s most recognizable fictional schools while handing the spotlight to an entirely new class of students.

The Victorious spinoff premieres October 15, 2026, with Daniella Monet back as Trina Vega. This time, however, Trina isn’t trying to make it through another disastrous year as a student; instead, she’s back at Hollywood Arts as a substitute teacher, despite being spectacularly unqualified. While Trina initially sees the position as a way to revive her stalled acting career, she gradually discovers that helping young performers find their voices might be the most useful thing she’s ever done.

What Is 'Hollywood Arts' About?

Image via Netflix

Created by former Victorious writer-producer Jake Farrow and Samantha Martin, Hollywood Arts picks up more than a decade after the original series and returns to the same elite Los Angeles performing arts school. The difference is that Tori Vega (Victoria Justice) and her friends are no longer the center of the story, as the next generation takes over.

Trina’s return connects the show to Victorious, but the new students are meant to stand on their own. Emmy (Alyssa Miles) is a tech producer with a secret desire to perform, Pepper (Emmy Liu-Wang) is goofy, fiercely loyal, and more perceptive than she initially appears, Qwest (Peyton Jackson) is a gifted musician hiding behind a fake basketball scholarship, while Jen Z (Erika Swayze) is a wealthy, sharp-tongued student whose privileged life hasn’t exactly translated into parental attention. Oscar (Martin Kamm), meanwhile, is Emmy’s brother and struggles with the fact that his sister’s star is rising faster than his own.

Netflix’s Hollywood Arts Is More Than a Victorious Reboot

Image via Netflix

If the premise sounds familiar, that’s because it is supposed to, because Hollywood Arts knows viewers will remember Victorious, from the bizarre school projects to the musical performances to The Slap, the fictional social network that turned practically every student into a walking oversharer.

Still, the new series has updated that world rather than preserving it under glass. The Slap has become The Dap, a vertical, TikTok-inspired platform where students post performances, interact with followers, and occasionally reveal how they’re actually feeling. The pear-shaped phones are gone, too. The school still looks familiar, but the series isn’t pretending the last 13 years didn’t happen.

The same goes for the humor. Farrow has described the new show as less mean-spirited than its predecessor, while the creative team has emphasized making the series feel current rather than like adults attempting to imitate teenagers. Music remains central, with original songs, covers, and licensed tracks woven throughout the season. Netflix and Paramount have also given the series a substantial music budget, making Hollywood Arts feel like a genuine performing-arts show rather than a sitcom that occasionally remembers its characters can sing.

As for Monet, she was largely the comic relief on Victorious, defined by her enormous confidence, questionable acting ability, and determination to become famous despite virtually every piece of evidence suggesting she should reconsider. Hollywood Arts gets to ask a more interesting question: What happens when Trina finally grows up? She’s still ambitious, blunt, and convinced she deserves more attention than she’s getting, but she has also spent years living in the shadow of her younger sister, Tori. Now she has a chance to turn the qualities that once made her a punchline into something useful.

Why 'Hollywood Arts Could Fill the 'Euphoria' Void

Image via Netflix

Nobody should mistake Hollywood Arts for a replacement for Euphoria. HBO’s drama is darker, more adult and far more interested in addiction, trauma, sex and the psychological extremes of adolescence. Netflix’s new series is a performing-arts sitcom built around comedy, music and a much brighter version of teenage chaos, but the shows occupy a similar piece of the television ecosystem: both are interested in young people trying to figure out who they are while surrounded by friends, rivals, crushes, expectations and the pressure to become somebody.

The series arrives at a time when audiences who grew up on Victorious, iCarly, Hannah Montana, and Big Time Rush are old enough to want something nostalgic without simply watching reruns. At the same time, a younger audience can walk into Hollywood Arts without needing to know every detail of Tori’s story.

The show’s creators have also left the door open for familiar faces. Yvette Nicole Brown returns as Principal Helen Dubois, Eric Lange is back as Erwin Sikowitz, and Matt Bennett reprises his role as Robbie Shapiro. Other original cast members could potentially appear, with Justice, Avan Jogia, Elizabeth Gillies, and others having previously expressed varying degrees of openness to returning.

The idea of watching Trina — once the person most likely to derail a Hollywood Arts performance — become the person standing in front of the classroom, trying to make sure the next generation gets its moment, might be the most attention-grabbing. After all, if Euphoria made teen television synonymous with existential dread, Hollywood Arts is betting there’s still an audience for a different kind of teenage disaster, one involving bad auditions, complicated friendships, questionable decisions, and a suspicious amount of singing.

Victorious