‘Riverdale’ Casts Its Archie, Josie, Fred Andrews!

Briefly: For some reason, we (I) were (was) pretty damned excited back in January when we learned that The CW had officially ordered a pilot titled Riverdale, a series based on classic comic character Archie and his pals, which will take place in the present-day and offer “a surprising and subversive take” on the characters and situations.

Last week, we learned that Cole Sprouse (The Sweet Life of Zack and Cody) would portray Jughead Jones, and that Lili Reinhart (Surviving Jack) will play Betty Cooper, and today the CW has revealed three new cast members, including Archie himself.

Beverly Hills 90210‘s Luke Perry has been cast as Fred Andrews (Archie’s dad… duh), who is noted as “”easygoing” and the owner of a construction firm who is hoping his son, who worked for him all summer, will someday take over the family business.”

Next up, Ashleigh Murray has been cast as Josie McCoy, “a gorgeous, snooty and ambitious girl who is the lead singer for popular band Josie and the Pussycats. She has zero interest in recording any songs written by fellow teen Archie.”

Last, but not least, KJ Apa is our Archie, “an intense, conflicted teen, a boyish high school sophomore who got pumped up over the summer working construction and is now juggling the interest of several girls, as well as trying to balance his passion for writing and performing music — against the wishes of his father and his football coach.”

Excited? Yeah, me too.

The CW notes that “The one-hour drama will be written by Archie Comics Chief Creative Officer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and produced by Warner Brothers Studios and Berlanti Productions and has been described as a subversive take on the classic Archie mythos. Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schecter, Jon Goldwater, and Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa serve as executive producers.”

The pilot will film in Vancouver this March, and again, as someone who never read Archie until the Mark Waid / Fiona Staples title launched last Fall, I have no idea why I’m so excited for it.

What do you hope to see in the series? Sound out below!