It’s no secret the adult cast of Riverdale is chock-full of former teen idols, including Mädchen Amick (Alice Cooper), Skeet Ulrich (FP Jones), Marisol Nichols (Hermione Lodge), Robin Givens (Sierra McCoy) and Molly Ringwald (Mary Andrews).
Although the creators didn’t originally want to go in that direction, that all changed when Luke Perry (Fred Andrews) walked through the door and fought for the role of Archie’s (KJ Apa) dad. In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, casting director David Rapaport discussed the late actor and revealed that he nailed his Riverdale audition.
“Luke came in and fought for the role [of Archie’s dad],” he said. “We had to make a decision: Do we do this, or do we not do this. Part of the show is there’s so much nostalgia involved, so there is something about having a former heartthrob play the father of a heartthrob.”
Rapaport went on to say that Perry was the first adult actor to join the cast, adding, “Luke was the first one that we cast. And then Mädchen was undeniable, and Marisol’s performance blew us away. Then Skeet Ulrich came in and seemed like a no-brainer, and we hired Robin Givens and Molly Ringwald, and then it became the cool thing to do.”
