Skeet Ulrich is out — and it was clearly his choice. The actor opened up about his decision during a recent Instagram Live with girlfriend Megan Blake Irwin.
“I’m leaving Riverdale because I got bored creatively,” the actor, 50, said via the social media platform, that was captured by a fan and shared on Twitter. “That’s the most honest answer.”
Ulrich, who has played Jughead’s (Cole Sprouse) dad, F.P. Jones, since season 1, announced in February that season 4 of the CW teen drama would be his last.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the friendships I’ve made on Riverdale, and I will miss seeing everyone on a daily basis,” the Scream star said at the time. “I’m proud to have been part of such a talented group of people, in front of the camera and behind. But I’ve decided that it’s time for me to move on to explore other creative opportunities.”
Marisol Nichols, who portrays Veronica’s (Camila Mendes) mother on the series, also announced she wouldn’t be back after season 4, which finished airing in May. The show was planning a time jump, likely to the kids after college, which may have meant less screen-time for the parents.
However, the plans have changed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The show was forced to end early and the cast was unable to film their final episodes — including prom and graduation. That means that both Nichols, 46, and Ulrich will be returning in the first three episodes of season 5.
“When this all went down, I reached out to all of the cast, and I reached out to Marisol and Skeet and said that we haven’t finished those stories, and we want to make sure that you guys have great sendoffs,” creator Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa told TVLine in May. “The truth of it is, and this isn’t a spoiler, but neither Hermione nor F.P. are being killed. So my hope is that they are a part of Riverdale in a real way as long as there’s a Riverdale.”
Now, season 5 will begin with the last three episodes intended for season 4, then do a time-jump that will bring the characters closer to their real ages. (Sprouse is 27, Mendes is 25, KJ Apa is 22 and Lili Reinhart is 23.)
It will be interesting to see where the series heads in season 5, as Archie Comics has “always been about two things,” Aguirre-Sacasa told Us ahead of season 4. “One is that they’ve always been in high school, and two is that there’s always been a love triangle. Strangely, on Riverdale, we haven’t played a lot of high school stuff, and we have not played the classic love triangle as much.”
