They often say that the best things come in threes, and Lili Reinhart, Camila Mendes, and Madelaine Petsch’s friendship proves that. With Riverdale’s series finale airing on Aug. 23, I’m ready to get nostalgic and reflective on the lives of the infamous Riverdale gang. Riverdale has become an iconic fixture in the recent end of teen dramas, leaving behind a legacy of hilarious moments (I’ll never get over the epic highs and lows of high school football), many fashion statements, and yes, those yearly musical numbers.
As much as we’re all going to miss seeing our Riverdale group sitting inside Pop’s diner, we’re also going to miss seeing one of the internet’s favorite trios: Reinhart, Mendes, and Petsch. Even though sometimes their characters on screen may be frenemies, in reality, the trio have held a special place in all our hearts and have made fans love their Riverdale characters even more. In honor of Riverdale’s series finale, here’s a friendship timeline of this dynamic trio.
2016: The Riverdale cast is announced, introducing us to the core group.
2016 doesn’t sound that long ago, but seven years really does fly by. Riverdale was announced in early January 2016, and cast announcements began popping up on social media. Reinhart was cast first as Betty Cooper in early February. A few weeks later, The CW announced Mendes’s casting as Veronica Lodge in late February, as well as Petsch’s confirmed casting as Cheryl Blossom. We didn’t realize it then, but these casting announcements began the start of a seven-years-long friendship between the three leads.
Jan. 26, 2017: The very first episode of Riverdale is released.
A year after the casting announcements, fans found themselves transported into a new version of the Archie comics. The first episode of Riverdale premiered on The CW to 1.3 million viewers between the ages of 18 and 49, making it the top drama of the television season. As a result of the large success, the Riverdale cast became celebrities almost overnight, and thus began the many Riverdale posts on your explore pages.
2020: The pandemic brings our favorite trio closer together.
During the filming of Season 5, the coronavirus pandemic kept the cast of Riverdale in Canada. In an interview with Us Weekly, Mendes explained how she had learned a lot about Reinhart during these months, such as Reinhart being a sleep talker. “Lili makes a lot of noise when she sleeps. Like, she’s a sleep talker,” Mendes revealed. Mendes also told a story about how Reinhart downloaded an app to record herself sleeping, and played it for both Mendes and Petsch during quarantine.
2020: Blonde, Brunette, and Redhead is formed on TikTok.
After quarantine ended, the trio formed a shared TikTok account, called Blondebrunetteredhead. The account has mini-interviews, dance routines, and yes, a lot of chaos. If you’re having a bad day and need a laugh, log onto TikTok and look at some of the trio’s videos.
Oct. 31, 2020: The Riverdale trio kills it on Halloween, no pun intended.
I don’t know about you, but I love a friendship group that understands the assignment when it comes to Halloween. During Riverdale co-star Vanessa Morgan’s Halloween-inspired baby shower, the trio dressed up as The Powerpuff Girls and needless to say, the internet was obsessed with this crossover.
2021: breakups cause bonding between the trio.
In an interview with Paper Magazine, Mendes expressed her gratitude for Petsch and Reinhart and elaborated on the reason as to why the trio got so close. “We all got out of relationships at the same time, and then went through this pandemic together. And now, we’ve bonded by how much change has happened,” she explained. “Me, Madelaine and Lili, specifically, we’ve never been closer than we are this season. It’s really nice to have them, to feel like I do have friendships here — meaningful ones.” I’m sorry, I have to stan even harder after reading those quotes.
Oct. 31, 2022: We love to see a Hocus Pocus moment.
In case you haven’t noticed, this Riverdale trio goes all out for Halloween. First, it was the Powerpuff Girls, and for 2022, they decided to take Halloween to the next level. As a tribute to one of the most iconic Halloween movies, our favorite tri-hair colored trio dressed up as the Sanderson sisters from Hocus Pocus with a modern day twist.
2023: the cast post their farewells to Riverdale.
I’m going to be completely honest: If you told me Riverdale was going to end after seven seasons, I wouldn’t have believed you. And to make the situation even more bittersweet, the trio had the sweetest farewells to their characters after seven years of being together. In Mendes’ dedication to Veronica, she explained that she was saying “goodbye to an entire life I created in Vancouver” and how this period of time transformed her as an adult. Reinhart and Petsch posted their brief goodbyes with pictures from the set, solidifying the end of an era.