‘Riverdale’ Season 6 Will Give Fans the ‘Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’ Crossover They’ve Been Waiting For
The Archie Comics have seen massive success since they debuted back in 1942, but the Archieverse’s television run has been a bit more tumultuous. The CW’s Riverdale continues to bring in millions of viewers, but Katy Keene and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina were both cut short. That seemingly nixed any hopes of Archieverse crossovers in the future. However, it looks like fans may get the one they’ve been waiting for after all. Riverdale Season 6 will bring in Chilling Adventures of Sabrina‘s Sabrina Spellman (Kiernan Shipka). Here’s what we know.
‘Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’ was canceled after 4 seasons
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina premiered on Netflix back in 2018, and it quickly became a beloved addition to the streamer. However, despite the series developing something of a cult following, Netflix wound up canceling the show in July 2020. It announced that Part 4 would be Sabrina‘s final outing, prompting fans to bid farewell to the characters.
While the series clearly had roots in the Archieverse, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina never actually crossed over with the biggest Archie Comics-based series: Riverdale. The show made references to its CW counterpart, and fans hoped it would go beyond that eventually. Unfortunately, the sudden cancellation of Sabrina dashed those hopes — until now.
‘Riverdale’ Season 6 will bring in Sabrina Spellman
Although the cancellation of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina dashed hopes of a Riverdale crossover, it seems season 6 of The CW series will give us one after all. On Oct. 7, the day after Riverdale Season 5 aired its final episode, Shipka took to Instagram to tease the news. She posted a picture of herself dressed in her Sabrina garb and sitting in a chair with “Sabrina Spellman” and “Riverdale” printed on it.
“From Greendale to Riverdale,” Shipka wrote. “See u in season 6.”
The official Riverdale Twitter account went on to share the exciting season 6 news, and Archie Comics’ Instagram wrote, “IT’S HAPPENING” under Shipka’s post.
Given Cheryl Blossom’s (Madelaine Petsch) recent awakening, some Riverdale fans predicted Sabrina might show up soon. It’ll be exciting to see how the show works her in — and if she could become a more permanent addition to the series later on.
Riverdale showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa confirmed Sabrina’s entrance in season 6 to Entertainment Weekly, telling the outlet:
“We’ve been talking about having Sabrina visit Riverdale since season 1, so it’s thrilling that this is finally happening, as part of our ‘Rivervale’ special event. It’s also perfect that she shows up to help Cheryl Blossom during her hour of greatest need. Everyone on set lost their minds — I think fans will, too. It’s really fun and special.”
When does ‘Riverdale’ Season 6 premiere?
With a Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and Riverdale crossover finally happening in season 6, fans might be wondering when the new episodes will air. There’s good news on that front. Riverdale is taking a shorter hiatus between seasons than usual. Although the season 5 finale aired on Oct. 6, the series is returning for its next outing on Nov. 16.
That date kicks off a five-episode event before Riverdale takes its usual mid-season hiatus, which will likely carry over into 2022. Judging by Aguirre-Sacasa’s statement to EW, Sabrina will appear in the earlier part of the season, during the five-episode event. That means fans don’t have long to wait before seeing the crossover they’ve been waiting for.
