Derek Wheeler

Derek Wheeler
Degrassi character
Publicity photograph of Derek "Wheels" Wheeler in an episode of the third season of Degrassi Junior High.
First appearance	Degrassi Junior High: January 18, 1987 (episode 1.01: "Kiss Me Steph")
Last appearance	Degrassi: The Next Generation: October 29, 2003 (episode 3.07: "Should I Stay Or Should I Go?")
Portrayed by	Neil Hope
In-universe information
Nickname	Wheels
Grades	Grade 8 (DJH seasons 1 & 2) Grade 9 (DJH season 3) Grade 10 (DH season 1) Grade 11 (DH season 2)
Occupation	Auto Mechanic
Family	Mike Nelson (biological father) Unnamed biological mother Helen Wheeler (adoptive mother) John Wheeler (adoptive father) Unnamed maternal grandmother Unnamed maternal grandfather

Derek Wheeler is a fictional character from the Degrassi teen drama franchise. He was portrayed by Neil Hope. He appears throughout Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High, with two cameo appearances in Degrassi: The Next Generation. His role throughout the former two series primarily concerns his friendship with Joey Jeremiah (Pat Mastroianni) and Archie "Snake" Simpson (Stefan Brogren), and later the death of his adoptive parents in a traffic collision with a drunk driver. Throughout the series, he plays with Joey and Snake in a band called The Zit Remedy, who are always seen performing one song.

In the aftermath of his parents' death, Wheels' behavior undergoes a significant decline, causing tension between himself and his grandparents, who eventually evict him from their house. Joey lets Wheels stay at his house, until too kicking him out when he discovers Wheels had been stealing money from his mother. In the television movie School's Out, Wheels begins to drink heavily, and ends up killing a two-year-old boy and blinding the school valedictorian Lucy Fernandez in a car accident. This causes a disgusted Snake, who already is angry at Joey for another reason, to sever ties with him, effectively ending the three's friendship. In Next Generation, he briefly appears at the ten-year school reunion to apologize to Lucy, and then again in the third season, where he reconciles with the ailing Snake. An eponymous novel was released in 1992 which explored the character in greater detail.

Upon the news of actor Neil Hope's death, which occurred in 2007 but was not publicized until 2012, critics wrote of Wheels as a tragic figure of the series, and noted the correlation between his character's troubled life, as well as his own.