Is Cole Sprouse still on 'Riverdale'? What you need to know before the new season

It's all wrapping up with lucky number 7, but is Cole Sprouse still on Riverdale, or has he exited before the final season?

The actor, who rose to fame alongside his twin brother Dylan on one of Disney's nostalgic TV shows, The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, plays the inimitable Jughead on the comic-turned-series. But in 2022, he revealed that he was planning ahead and ready to tackle new endeavors.

“I’m not a creative force behind [Riverdale]. I actually have no creative control,” Sprouse told GQ in March 2022. “We show up, receive the scripts often the day of, and we’re asked to shoot.”

Does this mean we are down a character coming into the final installation? Will he only be working on more hands-on projects going forward? Here’s what to know before the final season premieres—and your screen time is altered. 

Is Cole Sprouse still on 'Riverdale'? 

Fear not, YA enthusiasts: Cole Sprouse is still on the show and will return for Riverdale season 7 alongside Archie Andrews (played by K.J. Apa), Betty Cooper (Lili Reinhart), Veronica Lodge (Camila Mendes) and Mary Andrews (Molly Ringwald), to name a few. 

However, things will look a little different this season. The supernatural forces of the show are hard at work, and the gang is taking a trip back in time to 1955. Will they be able to return to their present-day before havoc ensues? (Here's hoping!)

While the next batch of episodes is not necessarily set in an alternate universe, things will definitely look different. There won’t be a clean break, according to creator Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa’s interview with The Nerds of Color.

"We are also using this as sort of an opportunity to do some fun resetting of the table, a little bit of mixing and matching, adjusting backstories, and things like that, but it’s very much in keeping with what we’ve done the first six seasons," he revealed to the outlet.

(Sure, the story might be coming to a close, but one thing will live in our hearts always: the beloved Riverdale Girls TikTok account.)

How to watch 'Riverdale' no matter where you are:

The show is slated for its final return on Wednesday, March 29 on The CW at 9pm ET in the US and will run weekly until the finale on Wednesday, August 23. (Mark those 2023 planners!) Once the show has aired in its entirety, it will be available for streaming on Netflix, though a specific streaming release date has yet to be revealed. (But be on the lookout for it in late-August or early September!)

Internationally, the new season of Riverdale will hit Netflix weekly, beginning on Thursday, March 30, one day after it airs on The CW stateside. Should you not have cable or a Netflix subscription, why not opt for a VPN?

A VPN allows you to change your IP address so you can browse anonymously, leading your mobile, computer or laptop to think it's in another location. We recommend Express VPN, the top-rated service by our colleagues at TechRadar.

It's simple to use and secure, plus there's a no-quibble 30-day money-back guarantee. For those who want to take the plunge and sign up for an annual plan, you'll get an extra three months free.

We'll see you soon, Riverdale fans—meet us in 1955 Glendale!