I’ll be the first to admit that when I heard that there was going to be another live-action iteration of The Archies franchise, I was not excited. After seven seasons of Riverdale on The CW, I was done. I never wanted to hear about Riverdale or Archie and Betty ever again. But here I am in 2023 looking forward to The Archies.
In a way I kind of feel like The Archies hits on the nostalgia for the franchise in a way that Riverdale never did. Even in the beginning, before all the crazy everything happened, Riverdale gently leaned into its roots before quickly spiraling into a teen drama where Archie took off his shirt all the time and was in this creepy relationship with an older woman. It did not feel like the comics that I grew up reading. But I took it for what it was and just ran with the garbage. The Archies feels like it understands the source material, from the clothes to the dancing and friendships.
The Archies is a movie by Zoya Akhtar (Lust Stories). They are known from Made in Heaven. It stars Agastya Nanda as Archie Andrews, Khushi Kapoor as Betty Cooper, Suhana Khan as Veronica Lodge, Vedang Raina as Reggie Mantle, and Mihir Ahuja as Jughead Jones. Set in the ’60s, it tells the story of a town heading into the future and the teenagers who want to make sure that they preserve what makes Riverdale what it is. And the events of the movie are set into motion when Veronica, the forever iconic girlie, moves into town with her rich father. What follows is friendships blossoming, connections being made between unexpected couples, and teenagers realizing that no matter what some adults say, their opinion matters.
That’s why when The Archies comes out, I’m going to watch it. For the friendships, for the fashion, and for the vibes that this movie absolutely nails.
There’s also the fact that we have seen Hollywood do a remake of absolutely everything under the sun but in English. I like this Indian version of The Archies. And I’m looking forward to getting to know these actors and the director who is helping bring this to life. Like I’m so invested that I want to sit down and figure out where this was filmed or who was in charge of the set design and clothing department. It feels like Archie and friends. And while I will always love Riverdale for the shit show it was, The Archies really seems to understand who these teenagers are to fans. And all it took was one official trailer.
Watch the official trailer below:
The Archies premieres December 7th on Netflix.
