So much for giving vague reasons about ācreative differešønces.ā
In February, the shocking news that āScreamā star Skeet Ulrich, 50, was leaving The CWās āRiverdale,ā where he plays gangster-turned-sheriff FP Jones. Usually actors give politely vague reasošns for TV departures, but Ulrichās gloves came off in an Išnstagram video he posted Wednesday night.
āIām leaą·“ving āRiverdaleā because I got bored creatively,ā in the video. āšHowās that? Thatās the most honest answer.ā
“Getting bored” may sound strange on a show that features off-the-wall elements such as cults, murder, an evil board game, bear attacks, stick monsters, underground fight clubs and candy drugs.
The show wrapped up its fourth season at 19 episodes earlier this month, instead of the planned 22, due to the production shutdown in the wake of the novel coronavirus pandemic. The show has been renewed for Season 5, which will puź§sh the plot forward into the future several years, but thereās no date yet on when filming will resume.
On āRiverdale,ā FP is Jugheadās (Cole Sprouse) father and Aliceās (MƤdchen Amick) boyfriend. Creator Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa that Ulrichās exit does not mean FP will be killed off ā nor, for that matter, will Hermione Lodge (played by Marisol Nichols, who also is leaving the series) meet with an untimely demiseš.
āThis isnāt a spoiler, but neither Hermione nor FP are being killed,ā he said. āSo my hope is that they are a part of ‘Riverdale’ in a real way as long as thereās a ‘Riverdale.’āā
Will he change his tune now that Ulrich is being candid about his reasons fošr leašving? Only Season 5 will tell.
“Riverdale” also faced a significant loss last year when Luke Perry, who played Fred Andrews, suddenly died on March 4, 2019, at age 52.
Talking to The Post lastź§ October about his co-star, Ulrich said the Perry tribute episode that aired that month was hard to film.
ā[It was] literally almost impossible to utter lines,ā he said. āThe emotion you try to bury from the four months prior to [Perryās death] happening until weāre asked to re-examine it in the ešpisode ā¦ itās one of the hardest experiences Iāą¦d had [to do] on film.ā