Season 3 (Riverdale)

Season 3 of The CW's American teen-drama television series Riverdale was renewed on April 2, 2018. The season began airing on October 10, 2018. The season finale is set to air on May 15, 2019.

Synopsis
The second season of RIVERDALE picked up moments after Season One's finale, with Fred Andrews (Luke Perry) shot by a mysterious assailant in a black hood—and his son Archie (KJ Apa) racing to save his father's life. No one was safe from The Black Hood's wrath…except for Betty (Lili Reinhart), whose speech at the town's Jubilee “inspired” the Black Hood and made her the object of his murderous obsession.

All of our gang teamed up to stop the Black Hood, including Jughead Jones (Cole Sprouse), who also acclimated to a new school and endured a trial-by-fire to become a full-fledged member of his father's gang, the infamous Southside Serpents —even as FP Jones (Skeet Ulrich) struggled to get back on the straight and narrow. As Archie and Betty wrestled with the “darkness” the Black Hood had revealed in them, Veronica Lodge (Camila Mendes) agreed to help her father Hiram (Mark Consuelos) and mother Hermoine (Marisol Nichols) with the “family business,” which pulled her and Archie into a dangerous world of mobsters and criminals. Even star-to-be Josie McCoy (Ashleigh Murray) was drawn into the Lodge's political machinations. Meanwhile, Queen Bee Cheryl Blossom (Madelaine Petsch) was locked in a power-struggle with her mother Penelope (guest star Nathalie Boltt), and found an unlikely ally in Toni Topaz (Vanessa Morgan), a Southside Serpent, who had recently transferred to Riverdale High. Furthermore, Betty and Alice's (Mädchen Amick) lives were turned upside-down when Betty's long-lost brother Chic (guest star Hart Denton) moved into the Cooper house.

With tensions between the North and Southside at an all-time high—stoked by Hiram Lodge with the help of Reggie Mantle (Charles Melton), and intensified with the Black Hood's unexpected re-emergence—a civil war seemed imminent. And, indeed, after a brief respite during which everyone came together to put on “CARRIE the Musical,” directed by Kevin Keller (Casey Cott), Season Two built to a riot that brought out the worst (and best) of Riverdale and its citizens, and culminated in the shocking arrest of one of our main characters.

Main

 * KJ Apa as Archie Andrews (16/23)
 * Lili Reinhart as Betty Cooper (17/23)
 * Camila Mendes as Veronica Lodge (17/23)
 * Cole Sprouse as Jughead Jones (17/23)
 * Marisol Nichols as Hermione Lodge (13/23)
 * Madelaine Petsch as Cheryl Blossom (15/23)
 * Ashleigh Murray as Josie McCoy (12/23)
 * Mark Consuelos as Hiram Lodge (16/23)
 * Casey Cott as Kevin Keller (15/23)
 * Charles Melton as Reggie Mantle (15/23)
 * Vanessa Morgan as Toni Topaz (12/23)
 * Skeet Ulrich as FP Jones (15/23)
 * Mädchen Amick as Alice Cooper (14/23)
 * Luke Perry as Fred Andrews (11/23)

Supporting

 * Jordan Connor as Sweet Pea (14/23)
 * Drew Ray Tanner as Fangs Fogarty (13/23)
 * Alvin Sanders as Pop Tate (11/23)
 * Zoé de Grand'Maison as Evelyn Evernever (9/23)
 * Martin Cummins as Tom Keller (8/23)
 * Nathalie Boltt as Penelope Blossom (8/23)
 * Gina Gershon as Gladys Jones (7/23)
 * Robin Givens as Sierra McCoy (7/23)
 * Peter Bryant as Waldo Weatherbee (7/23)
 * Trinity Likins as Jellybean Jones (6/23)
 * Julian Haig as Elio Grande (5/23)
 * Tiera Skovbye as Polly Cooper (5/23)
 * Henderson Wade as Michael Minetta (5/23)
 * Cody Kearsley as Moose Mason (5/23)
 * Rob Raco as Joaquin DeSantos (4/23)
 * Shannon Purser as Ethel Muggs (4/23)
 * William MacDonald as Warden Norton (4/23)
 * Beverley Breuer as Sister Woodhouse (4/23)
 * Bernadette Beck as Peaches 'N Cream (4/23)
 * Eli Goree as Mad Dog (3/23)
 * Barbara Wallace as Rose Blossom (3/23)
 * Brit Morgan as Penny Peabody (3/23)
 * Chad Michael Murray as Edgar Evernever (2/23)
 * Lochlyn Munro as Hal Cooper (2/23)
 * Scott McNeil as Tall Boy (2/23)
 * Barclay Hope as Claudius Blossom (2/23)
 * Moses Thiessen as Ben Button (2/23)
 * Kelly Ripa as Mrs. Mulwray (1/23)
 * Tom McBeath as Smithers (1/23)
 * Riley Keough as Laurie Lake (1/23)
 * Molly Ringwald as Mary Andrews (1/23)
 * Major Curda as Dilton Doiley (1/23)
 * Tommy Martinez as Malachai (1/23)
 * Penelope Ann Miller as Ms. Wright (1/23)
 * Michael Consuelos as Young Hiram Lodge (1/23)
 * Hart Denton as Chic (0/23)

Press Release
THE CW NETWORK PICKS UP TEN CURRENT SERIES FOR 2018-19 SEASON

Network Gives Early Renewals for Next Season to "Arrow," "Black Lightning," "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend," "DC’s Legends of Tomorrow," "Dynasty," "The Flash," "Jane The Virgin," "Riverdale," "Supergirl" and "Supernatural"

April 2, 2018 (Burbank, CA) — The CW Network has given early renewals to ten of its primetime series for the 2018-2019 season, it was announced today by Mark Pedowitz, President, The CW.

"As The CW expands to a six-night, Sunday through Friday schedule next season, we are proud to have such a deep bench of great returning series for 2018-19. By picking these ten series up for next season, we have a terrific selection of programming to choose from when we set our fall schedule in May, with more still to come," said Pedowitz. "And I’m especially happy that we’ll continue to work with the incredibly talented casts, producers, and writers who create the series our fans are so passionate about."

The series being ordered for the 2018-2019 season include second seasons of the electrifying freshman hit BLACK LIGHTNING and DYNASTY, which recently saw the debut of Nicollette Sheridan as Alexis Carrington, as well as new seasons of ARROW (Season 7), CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND (Season 4), DC’S LEGENDS OF TOMORROW (Season 4), THE FLASH (Season 5), JANE THE VIRGIN (Season 5), RIVERDALE (Season 3), SUPERGIRL (Season 4), and SUPERNATURAL (Season 14). Specific premiere dates for each series will be announced at a later time.

The CW also recently announced it would expand its primetime schedule to six nights, Sunday-Friday (8:00-10:00pm ET/PT), beginning in October 2018.

Production Notes

 * Filming for season 3 began on July 9, 2018 and is scheduled to end on April 19, 2019.
 * Riverdale started airing on The CW starting on October 10, 2018. Netflix carries the show internationally and Netflix US will stream the third season some time in 2019, shortly after the season finale.
 * Season 3 episodes of Riverdale become available for streaming on UK Netflix on Thursdays, starting October 11.
 * A three-month time jump takes place between the Season 2 finale, Chapter Thirty-Five: Brave New World and the Season 3 premiere, Chapter Thirty-Six: Labor Day.
 * Much like Season 2, Season 3 included another full-fledged musical episode.
 * It was later revealed that the musical for this season would be Heathers: The Musical.
 * A cult-like storyline will be playing a role during this season, and it will be partially inspired by the Netflix television series Wild Wild Country.
 * Season 3 marks Luke Perry's final on-screen appearance. In addition, production was temporarily shut down in the wake of his death on March 4, 2019.