Riverdale: Kiernan Shipka Details Reprising Her Role as Sabrina for Season 6 Crossover

Ever since it was announced that Kiernan Shipka would be starring as Sabrina Spellman for Netflix’s Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, fans have been hoping to see the actor cross over with The CW’s Riverdale, an opportunity that seemed to have been missed when the Netflix series concluded last year. Luckily, fans learned earlier this month that Sabrina is finally slated to head to the town of Riverdale for the upcoming sixth season of the series, with Shipka recently sharing her excitement about not just the crossover event, but also how it marks the first time she’s said goodbye to a character, only to return to reprise the role. The crossover episode is set to debut on The CW later this year.

“I don’t think it’s a matter of younger or old. I think it was a matter of … It was really interesting for me slipping back into her shoes because I hadn’t been her in two years,” Shipka shared with ComicBook.com in regards to the experience of returning to the role years later. “I was surprised at just how quickly she just took over again. It was like riding a bike and you never know about that kind of thing. I’d never played someone and then not, and then gone back and did it again. So that was a new thing for me. I didn’t know how that was going to work, and I was just like, ‘Oh, this fits like a glove.’ And it was very fun.”

Netflix ordered four parts of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, but opted not to move forward with more episodes. At the time, Shipka was unaware of any plans for a crossover episode, while also being unaware that filming Part 4 would be the last time she’d seemingly play the teen-aged witch.

“I had no idea I was coming back,” the actor admitted. “Well, also when we shot Part 4, we didn’t know it was the last one. So I’ve had no warning. I’m rolling with the punches, but I love Sabrina so much that anytime I get to play her, I’m there.”

In the meantime, audiences can hear Shipka lending her voice to the “podcast movie” Treat, which is available now wherever you get your podcasts.

From C13Features, written by Nathan Ballingrud, in partnership with Babak Anvari and Lucan Toh of Two & Two Pictures, and co-produced with Best Case Studios, Treat tells the story of a seemingly perfect American town on one Halloween night when its idyllic image is threatened by its buried evil past and terrifying pact with the Piper, the town’s sinister outcast. Shipka stars as protagonist and narrator Allie West, a teenager dealing with issues beyond her years while struggling to fit in. But when she learns about the mysterious Piper’s powerful hold on the town, she, along with her younger brother, realize they are the only ones who can save their community before it rots at the hands of the Piper.  

Stay tuned for details on Season 6 of Riverdale. Treat is available now wherever you get your podcasts.

Are you looking forward to seeing Sabrina’s return? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!