The series Riverdale first aired on The CW in January of 2017. Riverdale is currently on its seventh and final season, which began airing on March 29th. A new episode has been released weekly on Wednesdays since then, and the final episode is set to premiere on August 23rd.
In anticipation of the series ending, one of the lead actors Lili Reinhart (Look Both Ways, Chemical Hearts) shared her thoughts on her time as Betty Cooper on Riverdale.
In an interview with Vulture, Reinhart first shared how she got involved in the series. She stated, “I had just signed a lease by myself in L.A., and I was terrified because I couldn’t afford it. This was my second time moving there to try and make it work, and I had no money and no job.”
Reinhart continued, “I remember after my final audition, I was on the phone with my mom and told her it was the first time ever in an audition process that I felt like I truly was okay and at peace with whatever the outcome was: ‘I gave them my version of what this character is, take it or leave it.’ That night, I found out I got it.”
Riverdale and its set of main characters are based on the Archie Comics franchise. The television series has taken on different shapes with each new season. For instance, the first season of the series is set in modern times while the seventh season is set in the 1950s.
Reinhart also spoke to Vulture about the mixed opinions Riverdale has received throughout the years. She explained, “I think it’s important to acknowledge that our show is made fun of a lot. People see clips taken out of context and are like, What? I thought this was about teenagers. And we thought so as well—in season one.”
Vulture added, “By 2019, “Riverdale Cringe” videos had become a genre online, be they TikTok reactions to particularly funny lines of dialogue or YouTube compilations of strange moments from the show.”
Reinhart also defended the series, stating, “But it’s really not been easy to feel that you’re the butt of a joke. We all want to be actors; we’re passionate about what we do. So when the absurdity of our show became a talking point, it was difficult. It is What the fuck? That’s the whole point. When we’re doing our table reads and something ridiculous happens, Roberto is laughing because he understands the absurdity and the campiness.”
Although The CW series Riverdale is coming to an end, fans can look forward to seeing Lili Reinhart as Betty Cooper one last time on August 23rd.