About a year ago, critically acclaimed writer Tom King tackled The Decision for Archie Comics, a one-shot that promised but purposefully did not deliver to finally answer the age-old question: who should Archie Andrews choose, Betty Cooper or Veronica Lodge? Turns out that King is far from done with Archie, though, as the writer has been hired to write a movie version of the Riverdale gang, for none other than Phil Lord and Chris Miller, aka the duo behind (among other things) The LEGO Movie and the Spider-Verse series.
Per Variety, no plot details have been confirmed about the film, though I’ll go out on a limb and say that it will take place in Riverdale and feature characters from Archie Comics. There have been rumors this might be based on Archie: The Married Life, a comic that did follow Archie making a decision — though both paths, with half the comic following Archie marrying Betty, the other half marrying Veronica.
However, we do know the movie will be live-action, not animated. And Lord and Miller will produce with Aditya Sood, who is the president of their production company. It’s also through the duo’s first-look deal with Universal Pictures, so if it does get picked up it likely will end up there. Emma Watts, who, per a press release from Archie, “brought the project to Lord Miller with King, and Archie Comics CEO and Publisher Jon Goldwater,” will also produce.
“We are longtime fans of Archie, Veronica, Betty, and the gang in all of their iterations,” said Lord and Miller via Variety. “When we heard Tom King’s take on the classic material, we instantly thought it made sense as an event movie for all audiences — both lifelong fans and a whole new generation. We’re so excited to bring these beloved characters to the big screen.”
Added King via Archie’s press release, “Archie is about how we find the meaning of life in our love and the meaning of love in our life. And also about how incredibly hungry Jughead is. Like so hungry.”
Given that it seems like this project is in the early stages, there’s no word yet about casting, or if Lord and Miller will direct as well, or simply produce. Previously, Archie Comics has been adapted for the big screen in 2001’s Josie and the Pussycats, as well as by Netflix for 2023’s Hindi film The Archies. The comics have also been adapted multiple times for TV, including Riverdale, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, and Katy Keene, as well as several television films, animated iterations, and the live-action Sabrina the Teenage Witch.
“I couldn’t be more excited to be working with the dream team of Phil, Chris, Emma, and Tom,” Goldwater said. “These are the perfect visionaries to bring our wonderful Archie characters to life on the big screen. This is an event that’s been 85 years in the making, and I can’t wait for everyone to see what is about to come.”
This also comes at a fortuitous time for the brand. We reported earlier this month that Archie Comics seems to be downsizing its lauded digest editions considerably, now only releasing one every two months. And other than crossovers, the non-digest comics have been few and far between. Hopefully, a big-screen adaptation will goose interest. That’s an industry term: goose interest.
And King is a busy guy right now. In addition to helping shape James Gunn’s overall DCU and providing 50% of the inspiration for the upcoming Supergirl movie, he’s also working on HBO’s Lanterns and showrunning an adult animated version of his own Mister Miracle. Plus all the comic book writing. That’s why they call him the King, I guess!
This article has been updated to include the quotes from King and Goldwater.
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