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Riverdale was a television series that was known for taking big swings. The CW primetime drama reimagined the characters from Archie Comics in a murder mystery setting. As time went on, the series leaned into the strange and unusual, introducing magic, time travel, and alternate realities. Audiences were entertained, but one cast member was feeling burned out. By the end of season 5, Skeet Ulrich left the show.

During an appearance at Megacon 2025, Ulrich spoke about his journey with Riverdale, and why he ultimately said goodbye.

“I raised my twins on my own, so I only worked in LA from the time they were born until I did Riverdale when they were almost 16. I didn’t have nannies or anything like that, so they were always on set, and they were always with me. And when I took that show, I was doing four flights a week to Vancouver, because it was my first time out of town. It was 170 flights a season.”

“A lot of it was a blur. Most of those seasons are airports in my memory. When we got to season 3 my kids begged me to slow down a bit and take some time up there. If I didn’t work for two days, I came home. And then we set a thing, like if you don’t work for three days, then come home. So, I got to slow down a bit and enjoy it a little more and see Vancouver a little more.”

Ulrich spoke candidly, saying that he felt the show had lost what made it special.

“In terms of the plot of the show, and the story, and all that, it got weird. It got really weird. I love the human aspect of the first season, and I thought it was what really drew people in, and my kids being that age that sort of was the demo at that time. The reason it resonated around the world like it did was that it gave kids an opportunity to go, wait, my parents are screwed up like that, or my parents have those flaws or those faults. There was a relation aspect to viewers. I think that’s what the linkage was in my mind.”

“I thought there was a lot of value in the beginning of that show that sort of went into oddities that I didn’t really understand, and so when it came time for me to re-up my contract or not, I wasn’t in love with the show anymore.”

As a result, FP Jones was written off the show, and Ulrich was absent from the final two seasons. While Ulrich had fallen out of love with Riverdale, he had nothing but praise for his onscreen son, Cole Sprouse.

“The thing that changed my life was my friendship with Cole. He’s a lovely human being who is deeply insightful, and intelligent, and interesting, and funny. He’s become a dear friend of mine, so when I look back at that show, I really think of that relationship that became part of my life.”

Here's how to watch Riverdale, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, and more in order.