A live-action Archie Comics movie is in the works

Technically, we’ve had something adjacent before. Josie and the Pussycats (the 2001 cult classic, not the comic panels) counts as an Archie movie in a roundabout way, but that one left Archie, Betty, Veronica, and Jughead on the sidelines. This new film seems poised to finally center the Riverdale gang proper, which means we’ll likely be seeing the familiar small-town drama, eternal milkshakes, and that iconic love triangle front and center. Josie might show up, but this project feels like the straight-down-the-middle Archie story fans have been waiting decades to see.

The untitled Archie movie doesn’t have a plot yet, but it does have some heavy-hitters behind it. Phil Lord and Chris Miller are producing, which is a nice splashy name to attach even if they’re probably too busy with Spider-Verse and Project Hail Mary to be hands-on. Of course, their résumés include Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, The Lego Movie, and, yes, that time they got booted off Solo.

As for who’s actually putting pen to paper, that would be Tom King. King has spent years writing for both Marvel and DC, and James Gunn even tapped him to help map out the new DC film slate. Fun fact: before he was writing superhero comics, King was a CIA agent. That background isn’t exactly Archie core, but hey, maybe Riverdale has darker secrets than we thought.

In a statement, Lord and Miller said:

We are longtime fans of Archie, Veronica, Betty, and the gang in all of  their iterations. When we heard Tom King’s take on the classic material, we instantly thought it made sense as an event movie for all audiences — both lifelong fans and a whole new generation. We’re so excited to bring these beloved characters to the big screen.

The only potential drawback? It’s live-action. An animated Archie flick in the style of Spider-Verse could have been amazing, especially with Lord and Miller involved. Instead, we’re headed into the tricky waters of casting real people to play characters who’ve spent 80 years looking like glossy comic panels. Still, Riverdale’s gang has survived countless reboots and reinterpretations, so we’re intrigued nonetheless.

(h/t Variety)