The ‘Riverdale’ cast dishes on all your favorite on-screen couples at Comic-Con
Reporting from San Diego — “Riverdale†may have just kicked off production for its third season last week, but the hit CW series still had some new footage to share at its debut Hall H presentation at San Diego Comic-Con on Sunday.
Fans who packed the 6,500-capacity room at the San Diego Convention Center were treated to a highlight reel that included some brand new footage from Season 3.
“I just watched that and I am shook up,†said “Riverdale†superfan Kelly Ripa, who was on hand to moderate the event.
Joining her onstage were cast members Luke Perry (Fred Andrews), Marisol Nichols (Hermione Lodge), Mark Consuelos (Hiram Lodge), Vanessa Morgan (Toni Topaz), Madelaine Petsch (Cheryl Blossom), KJ Apa (Archie Andrews), Camila Mendes (Veronica Lodge), Lili Reinhart (Betty Cooper), Cole Sprouse (Jughead Jones), Casey Cott (Kevin Keller), Ashleigh Murray (Josie McCoy), Mädchen Amick (Alice Cooper) and Skeet Ulrich (F.P. Jones), as well as “Riverdale†showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and fellow executive producers Sarah Schechter and Jon Goldwater.
FULL COVERAGE: San Diego Comic-Con 2018 »
Aguirre-Sacasa reassured a worried Ripa that viewers would actually see the high school students do actual “high school stuff†next season, like worry about colleges, jobs and friendships. While he teased that the first few episodes would focus on the show’s established characters assembled onstage, he did acknowledge that there are new characters on the way, including Jughead’s mother and sister (to be introduced in either Episode 8 or 9) and Edgar Evernever (leader of the Farm).
Also in store for Season 3? A flashback episode where the actors playing the kids will play their parents — an episode that has been on the crew’s wish list since Season 1.
Season 3 will also pick up right where the second season cliffhanger left off after Archie was arrested in the murder of Shadow Lake resident Cassidy.
“The first episode starts off with Archie being on trial for the murder of Cassidy,†said Apa.
But many fans, including Ripa, were there to learn about what’s next for the characters’ various romantic entanglements in Season 3.
Ripa, who admitted she “didn’t understand what a ‘ship’ was†when she first started watching the series, showed off how she is now very much fluent in the lingo of the fandom during the presentation.
She asked Morgan, who will be returning as a series regular for Season 3, whether she shipped “Choni†(the relationship between Cheryl and Toni).
“I ship the Choni harder than I ship anything else,†replied Morgan said.
Also on Team Choni, of course, is Petsch, who shared her thoughts on Cheryl’s journey so far. “She finally got to come out,†Petsch said when asked about the root of Cheryl’s transformation in the last two seasons.
“It was really huge for her,†she added, because of how her mother reacted to her coming out the first time. She explained how that pressure from her mother contributed to some of her Season 1 behavior.
“She was scared to come out,†added Petch. But “she’s living her truth now. That’s why she changed so much.â€
In other relationship news, Reinhart and Sprouse reassured fans that things are “looking pretty solid for Bughead,†while Amick let it be known that she’s also ready for “Falice†to happen.
Kevin and Moose “definitely are a thing†in Season 3, said Cott. Aguirre-Sacasa also teased that there will be “an unlikely romance for Reggie starting in Episode 3.â€
“Riverdale’s†Season 3 is scheduled to kick off on Oct. 10.
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