Riverdale ends with 67-year time jump revealing polyamory and murder in characters’ futures

Teen drama aired its final episode after seven years

Riverdale has ended with a bizarre look to the future as the teen drama comes to an end after seven years.

The CW series, which stars Cole Sprouse, KJ Apa, Lili Reinhart and Camila Mendes among its ensemble cast, first aired in 2017.

On Wednesday (23 August), the show – based on the Archie comic book series – reached its conclusion after seven seasons and 137 episodes.

The Riverdale finale saw the timeline jump forward 67 years for the aptly titled episode: “Goodbye, Riverdale”.

In the last ever instalment, Betty (Reinhart), now in her eighties, learns that Jughead (Sprouse) has died, making her the last member of their friendship group who is still alive.

Betty asks her granddaughter to take her back to Riverdale, where she dreams that she meets Jughead again. Unfortunately, howeevr, she dies in the back of her granddaughter’s car on their way back to Riverdale.

In her dream, Jughead fills her in on what has happened to her friends since high school.

Among the revelations, she learns that she, Jughead, Archie (Apa) and Veronica (Mendes) were in a quad relationship for a year.

During this period, the four all dated each other and would swap who they were romantically involved with each evening.

Betty, viewers learn, became an author and advice columnist who launched her own women’s magazine. Jughead also founded his own satirical magazine, and never married.

Archie worked as a construction worker, and Veronica got a job at a production company, going on to win two Academy Awards for her work.

Toni (Vanessa Morgan) had a child with her high school sweetheart Cheryl (Madelaine Petsch) and the pair continued working as artists and activists, with Cheryl going on to become a successful painter.

Another couple, Kevin (Casey Scott) and Clay (Karl Walcott), also stayed together. Clay became a professor at Columbia university while Kevin founded an off-Broadway theatre company.

Tom (Martin Cummins) and Frank (Ryan Robbins) were murdered by Chic (Hart Denton), a character who previously pretended to be Betty’s long-lost brother.

Reggie (Charles Melton) became a professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers, and eventually returned to coach the high school team in Riverdale.

Riverdale is available to stream on Netflix now.