Betty and Veronica have been frenemies after Archie’s heart since 1942. The CW’s Riverdale plans on changing that.
We talked with Camila Mendes (Veronica Lodge) and Lily Reinhart (Betty Cooper) at San Diego Comic Con about the changes in their characters, #Beronica, and the iconic love triangle.
Right off the bat Mendes version of Veronica comes off as a softer, more sympathetic character, who genuinely wants Betty to go after Archie. This Veronica is reining in that cattiness. “I think Veronica is always gonna be struggling. She’s not used to being the nice girl. But after everything that’s happened with her father and the whole fraud/embezzlement she’s trying to be a nicer person. She’s trying to reinvent herself.”
Both women don’t want the relationship between Betty and Veronica to be a constant battle to one up each other and bag Archie. Reinhart said, “We don’t want these girls to be catty. We really don’t. We want them to be friends at the end of the day. We don’t want it to be a constant, head to head, rivalry. We want these girls to like each other.”
Riverdale continues to differentiate itself from the comics by pulling away from the love triangle and making Betty & Veronica independently characterised and with their own issues.
“They all have other things going on in their lives. I have my family drama. She’s (Betty) got her family drama. Archie has all these decisions he has to make. Also there’s another love interest for him,” Mendes said.
In fact, there are other love interests for all of them.
It isn’t just about the love triangle or silly antics that Archie manages to get himself into. Reinhart explained, “There is a love triangle. But the show is not strictly about the love triangle. It’s about all of these characters in this town, the secrets are coming out, shining a light on all these problems.”
To learn more about the #Beronica relationship, Betty getting her hands dirty, and the issues Camila Mendes & Lily Reinhart’s characters face, check out the full interview below:
Riverdale premieres in 2017 on The CW.
