Wednesday, February 04, 2026

'Hey Dude' Cast Reunites at the Ranch, 35 Years After Nickelodeon Show's Conclusion

The cast of the early Nickelodeon hit reunited at the very ranch where they filmed the show, which ended 35 years ago this summer

Kelly Brown, Christine Taylor, Joe Torres and David Lascher in 'Hey Dude'
Kelly Brown, Christine Taylor, Joe Torres and David Lascher in 'Hey Dude'. | Credit : Paramount+

Hey Dude, the gang is back together!

The cast of Hey Dude, the Nickelodeon Western comedy series that followed a group of teen ranch workers, reunited at the Tanque Verde Ranch in Tuscon, Arizona, where the series was filmed, for a special episode of the Hey Dude... The 90's Called! podcast.

The live reunion aired on Saturday, January 31, 2026, 35 years after the show came to a conclusion in August 1991. Hosts Christine Taylor and David Lascher had fun taking a trip down memory lane with their fellow cast and crew members — David Brisbin, Kelly Brown, Debra Kalman, Joe Torres, Geoffrey Coy, Jonathan Galkin, and Josh Tygiel.

During their chat, Brown, who played Brad, talked about revisiting what's left of the set, which still remains in the area.

'Hey Dude' cast reunion
'Hey Dude' cast reunion. | HeyDudeThe90sCalled/Instagram

"It felt like, well, 'This is what the last few seconds must be like when you leave the Earth,' because [I felt] everything," she began.


"I pulled through those gates and it was, all the memories, everything, was flooding. And I actually went yesterday, before all you guys, because I knew I was gonna be emotional," Brown admitted.

"I got the cries and the tears out and the choking up. I got it all out yesterday. It was emotional. It was very emotional. We spent a lot of time there... It was very intense."

'Hey Dude' cast and crew reunion
'Hey Dude' cast and crew reunion. | HeyDudeThe90sCalled/Instagram

"And also, a lot of it is just not there," Taylor, who played Melody, pointed out. "That's also very surreal. Like, our bunk house, Brad and Melody's bunk house, gone."

"Rubble," Brown agreed.

Hey Dude premiered on Nickelodeon in July 1989 and ran for five seasons until Aug. 1991. Casting for the series was done, in part, in the Tucson area. Tygiel, who played Buddy, was cast through local auditions, which is ironic because Buddy was new to ranch life in the show's action.

Each season took place over the summer and dealt with coming-of-age issues like friends and romance, while also spotlighting ranch life.

The reunion will be available in full for listeners who couldn't make the live stream as an episode of Hey Dude... The 90's Called!, which Taylor and Lascher have hosted since 2022, in the coming weeks.

From People:

Hey Dude Alum Joe Torres Explains Why His Favorite Episode Is One He Was 'Written Out of' After an Off-Set Accident

The cast of the early Nickelodeon hit shared laughs and memories as they reunited on the ranch where it all began, 35 years after the series' conclusion

NEED TO KNOW

  • Hey Dude premiered on Nickelodeon in July 1989 and ran for five seasons until Aug. 1991
  • Original cast members Christine Taylor, David Lascher, David Brisbin, Kelly Brown, Debra Kalman, Joe Torres, Geoffrey Coy, Jonathan Galkin and Josh Tygiel participated in a live reunion at the Tanque Verde Ranch in Tucson, Arizona, where the series was filmed
  • The cast members talked favorite episodes and best memories, which will be featured as an upcoming episode of Taylor and Lascher's podcast, Hey Dude... The 90's Called! 

The Hey Dude cast always had each other's backs!

When discussing favorite episodes of the series during their recent reunion at the Tanque Verde Ranch in Tucson, Arizona, where the series was filmed, Joe Torres, who played Danny Lightfoot, laughed with Christine Taylor as they remembered a storyline that was transferred from him to her after a mishap left him unable to be in the episode.

While the costars didn't specify which episode, Torres began by joking, "My favorite episode was the one that I got written out of."

Taylor called the moment a "great story," urging Torres to share the background of an off-set injury that led him to miss the episode.

"At that time, I was into really into mountain biking. I went on an ill-fated ride, a midnight ride up Sabino Canyon, and coming back down, I hit... they have a stone bridge and there's a turn, and I hit that bridge, went over and landed in the like a wash," he recalled.

"Luckily, there were other people riding with me, and they were able to get me up, get me out."

While Taylor remembered Torres having a dislocated shoulder, he clarified, "I broke my collarbone."

As for the episode scheduled for that time, Torres noted it was "an episode I was fairly prominent in," explaining, "So, she was me," referring to Taylor, adding, "That was my favorite."

Taylor admitted, "I don't remember it at all, but Joe remembers it [because] it made no sense that I was the one who was suddenly put into that episode. But I forgot about that injury, I really forgot about that."

David Lascher, who costarred on the show and is Taylor's cohost on Hey Dude... The 90's Called! podcast, joked, "Christine wanted that storyline really bad."

Leaning into the joke, Taylor laughed, adding, "I knew some local guys that may have messed with your brakes."

Torres laughed, noting, "I would not put it past..."

"Sweet Melody," Taylor finished the thought.

Hey Dude premiered on Nickelodeon in July 1989 and ran for five seasons until Aug. 1991. Each season took place over the summer and dealt with coming-of-age issues like friends and romance, while also spotlighting ranch life.

The reunion will be available in full for listeners who couldn't make the live stream as an episode of Hey Dude... The 90's Called! in the coming weeks.

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Original source: People.

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