Senior Year will be anything but typical for our fave Riverdale kids. Check out our interview with the cast from this year’s SDCC.
The Riverdale gang are more than your average small town, high school kids. And in the new season, as the group enters senior year, we know that we can expect some OOC mixed with the Homecoming dance, school play, pep rally fun that make up the typical high school experience. They’ll solve major mysteries and defy death, all while taking the SATs and making sure their college applications are in on time!
We got a chance to chat with creator Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, K.J. Apa (Archie Andrews, Madelaine Petsch (Cheryl Blossom), Lili Reinhart (Betty Cooper), Camila Mendes (Veronica Lodge), and Cole Sprouse (Jughead Jones) all about Season 4. Check out our interviews:
Riverdale creator and showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa (0:03 – 8:49) tells us that the biggest shift from this season to next season is that the gang are now seniors his high school. So high school experiences will be central, similar to season 1. Archie will be back on the football team, Cheryl will be back with the River Vixens, Betty will be back with the newspaper staff. This might be the last time they’ll be together as friends, so the writers are cognizant of that. This season will be more character based stories.
Speaking of the group, given the OMG flash-forward that we ended Season 3 with (i.e. Archie, Veronica, and Betty gathered around a fire in the woods, covered in blood, with Betty throwing Jughead’s beanie into the fire), Aguirre-Sacasa says we’ll be building to that all season long. So by the midpoint of Season 4, the mystery of what happened that night will be revealed.
Aguirre-Sacasa also teases that we can expect more flashback episodes where the kids play their parents (a definite fave episode of Season 3!).
In our interview with K.J. Apa (8:57 – 16:06), he also teases that the show will go back to season 1 as the Core Four embraces their senior year. Their relationships will be central.
As an actor, K.J. has enjoyed exploring the different dimensions of Archie’s character, though it can be exhausting. Especially when it comes to Archie’s penchant for sports, K.J. discusses the amount of gym time and training it takes. Mad Dog/Munroe Moore (played by Eli Goree) will be back and K.J. is excited for more development of their characters’ relationship. K.J. also teases that Archie will get closer to his mom in the aftermath of his dad’s passing. Speaking of Fred (RIP Luke Perry), when asked where Archie’s moral center and goodness comes from, K.J. attributes it wholly to Fred’s influence. And we’ll see some of this in the first episode of Season 4.
Madelaine Petsch (16:07 – 20:25) shares that she loves Cheryl’s versatility. Everyday is a challenge with playing Cheryl and Madelaine finds it enjoyable to play a character that’s so alive and interesting. But Madelaine wants her character to focus on her mental health and healing herself, especially with college on the horizon and the body in the basement. YIKES. Will Cheryl do those things? Madelaine isn’t so sure… but she thinks it’s important to portray these struggles on TV, given that fans themselves are experiencing forms of anxiety and depression.
For Lili Reinhart (20:40 – 25:21), she’s always excited to get a new script, given twists and turns. Lili feels lucky to play a character who struggles and has such high stakes in her life. It makes coming to work interesting, even into the fourth season.
With the introduction of Betty’s and Jughead’s brother (Charles), things do get a little awkward. With that said, Lili teases that Betty will be spending time with Charles in the FBI office, as he works to track down Edgar and get her mom back. She does think that Jughead at prep school creates physical distance between the two, but that they’ll try to stay emotionally connected.
Camila Mendes (25:34 – 31:58) has so much fun during the musical episode! She confirms that another musical is coming and for Camila, her dream musical to do on the show would be Sweeney Todd! In terms of a flashback episode, which has also been confirmed, Camila loves the idea of a period piece in the 1930s/1940s, which fits in well with the vibe of the show.
For the Veronica/Hiram battle, in Season 4, Camila shares that Hiram continues to try to make his daughter’s life difficult in retribution for Veronica putting him in jail. This will make it difficult for Ronnie to get into college. Finally, Camila teases the potential of a crossover with Katie Keene, though the series takes place five years ahead of Riverdale.
Cole Sprouse (32:15 – 38:32) begins by telling us how he is constantly surprised by the scripts. It’s what makes it fun as an actor, taking outlandish narratives and making them feel authentic. There’s no borders to the Riverdale world that the writers have built. Since they film in Vancouver, they don’t often get to see the fanaticism for the show in real time. So coming to SDCC is always validating.
Cole says that Season 4 Jughead is very much Season 1 Jughead again, focussed on writing and exploring the Gossip Girl type prep school that he now attends. He’s interested to see how Jughead and Charles will interact, though, as of now, Betty has more interactions with their brother.
Riverdale returns for Season 4 on Wednesday, October 9, at 8/7c on The CW.
