Riverdale: "Graduation" Preview Released

After being away for the better part of last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The CW's Riverdale is officially back in full swing. The series definitely hasn't been pulling any punches in its return episodes, answering some of Season 4's mysteries while weaving in some fascinating new ones. All of that is expected to come to a head in "Graduation", the final episode before the series undergoes a seven-year time jump. Now, we have our first look at exactly what that will entail, as The CW has released a teaser trailer for "Chapter Seventy-Nine: Graduation".

As the title would suggest, the episode will focus on the class of Riverdale High going through their high school graduation, and also looking ahead to what the future hold. The episode is sure to be bittersweet, especially with the exits of series regulars Skeet Ulrich and Marisol Nichols, whose exits were announced before the unexpected COVID-19 shutdown.

"Yeah, I've talked to all the actors and I called Marisol and Skeet and I said, 'You know guys, obviously we still want to finish the stories we started in the season.'" showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa explained last year. "And both of them were like, 'Of course, let's do it.' And again, neither Hermione nor F.P., this isn't a spoiler, but they're not dying. My hope is to have them be a part of Riverdale for as long as Riverdale continues."

And of course, there's the nature of the looming time jump, which would have originally occurred between Season 4 and Season 5 if it wasn't for the COVID-19 shutdowns.

"It's funny, we had shot almost two-thirds of episode 20, which was going to be our prom episode. And we looked at that footage and tried to see if there was a way we could cobble together that episode," Aguirre-Sacasa explained back in May. "We actually had shot the prom, where a lot of very dramatic things happen, but we still hadn't shot some big character moments between Archie and Veronica and Betty and Jughead. So we kind of just couldn't do that."

"However, when I saw the cut of 19, what's great about it is all of the kids are in one big story together united against Mr. Honey. And it does end on a pretty shocking, disturbing cliffhanger," Aguirre-Sacasa continued. "So, it sort of was like, "Oh wait a minute, this could be a great season finale" and then prom would be a great season premiere next year. So it worked out in kind of the best way possible given everything. Obviously we would have loved to have finished the full season, and the last three episodes are fantastic. But to me, this one is fun. It's a special conceit and it brings everyone together, which I think people love."

You can check out the synopsis for "Chapter Seventy-Nine: Graduation", and share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

"STAY INNOCENT — With Graduation Day around the corner, the gang consider their next steps beyond Riverdale High. Archie (KJ Apa) learns whether he will be able to graduate with his classmates. FP (Skeet Ulrich) makes a difficult decision about his and Jellybean's (guest star Trinity Likins) future.

Lili Reinhart, Camila Mendes, Cole Sprouse, Madelaine Petsch, Mädchen Amick, Mark Consuelos, Casey Cott, Charles Melton, Vanessa Morgan and Drew Ray Tanner also star. Gabriel Correa directed the episode written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa."

Riverdale airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on The CW. "Chapter Seventy-Nine: Graduation" will air on February 3rd.