Are we the only ones forever waiting for Reggie Mantle to have his time to shine on Riverdale? Sure, maybe Reggie didn't play a huuuge role in the first season of The CW hit series – but he's v important now, okay? When news broke that newcomer Charles Melton would be replacing Ross Butler as Reggie, creator and executive producer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa explained that even though the character was important, they would only continue his storyline if they found the right fit.
He said in an interview, "You know, when we were first casting Reggie for season one, it took us forever to find the guy who kind of embodied that, and that was Ross Butler. And then when Ross had to leave, we had to make a really tough decision. Do we retire the character, or do we try to replace this great actor? For me, and I think for the producers and for the cast, Reggie's such an important part of the show, and he's such a big element, he's Archie's kind of day-to-day rival, that I said, 'Listen, if we can find the right actor we'll do it, if we can't we'll retire Reggie.'"
And sure enough, Charles was perfect for the job.
Roberto added, "Charles was one of the first actors who came in, and he had it tough because since we had had everyone else cast, we made him read with K.J., we made him read with Cole, we made him read with Ashleigh for various reasons, because he has stories with all three of them. And the chemistry was kind of instantaneous."
So yeah. We can get used to having him around – because if the writers know what's good for all of us, we'll be seeing a lot more from the oh-so-swoon-worthy 26-year-old cutie as Season 2 goes on. To truly welcome him into the Riverdale fandom, we naturally need to know everything about him. So join us in getting to know his background a bit.
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