The higher-ups at The CW certainly aren’t ones to rest upon their laurels.
With the third season of the massively popular teen drama Riverdale having only concluded last month, the network has already green-lit a season four that is expected to begin production sometime in July.
Details about the upcoming season’s plot remain thin.
Of course, eagerly anticipating fans can always look toward the seven-decades worth of original source material that is the Archie Comics in hopes to isolate a story arc with the potential to manifest on-screen, though tragic behind-the-scenes circumstances will play a drastic role in how things shape up this time around.
Actor Luke Perry, who portrayed Archie’s father Fred Andrews for all of the show’s three seasons, lost his life after suffering a stroke back in March this year, leaving a gaping hole that remains yet unaddressed in the show.
Showrunner Roberto Aguire-Sacasa has since clarified that Fred’s conspicuous absence from the tail-end of season three was simply a by-product of the writers has already concocted an ending to the season that didn’t involve Archie’s father even before Perry’s passing. And that the responsibility to write out the character in a respectful manner would only fall upon them during season four, giving us a sense of the emotional weight the show could potentially have come winter.
Concerning the rest of the ensemble, much of the lead cast is expected to return, with the likes of KJ Apa, Camila Mendes, and Cole Sprouse all reprising their roles. Meanwhile, Ashleigh Murray will depart proceedings, although only to star in Katy Keene, itself a Riverdale spin-off.
It would also come as no shock to fans that season four will probably release around October, given that it would thus keep-in-line with previous seasons and is also slated to begin shooting around the same time-frame as its predecessors.
Seasons One to Three of Riverdale can currently be streamed on Netflix.