Josie and the Pussycats are returning to Riverdale -- more specifically, the original lineup of Josie McCoy (Ashleigh Murray), Valerie Brown (Hayley Law) and Melody Valentine (Asha Bromfield)."Cat's out the bag. The Pussycats are headed back to [Riverdale]!! Y'all ready?!" Bromfield wrote on Twitter, sharing a photo of herself alongside Murray and Law, as well as the cover of the script for Riverdale Season 5, Episode 15, aptly titled, "Chapter Ninety-One: The Return of the Pussycats." The episode is written by Ariana Jackson and Evan Kyle and directed by Robin Givens.
The fictional band known as Josie and the Pussycats has a long history, originally being introduced by Archie Comics in the 1960s. Josie and the Pussycats starred in their own animated series in the early 1970s, as well as a live-action feature film in 2001. When Riverdale premiered on The CW in 2017, the three-piece pop group once again graced the screen.
Josie, Valerie and Melody appeared as a band throughout Riverdale Season 1 and the first few episodes of Season 2. They would also occasionally perform with guest members like Cheryl Blossom (Madelaine Petsch), Archie Andrews (K.J. Apa) and Veronica Lodge (Camila Mendes). However, during Riverdale Season 2, the Pussycats broke up due to rising tensions stemming from Josie's aspirations of launching a solo career.
In Season 2, Episode 11 -- "Chapter Twenty-Four: The Wrestler" -- Valerie and Melody briefly reformed the band with Veronica as the new lead singer, performing as Veronica and the Pussycats. "The Wrestler" would prove to be Valerie and Melody's final Riverdale appearance up until this point. Meanwhile, Josie herself was last seen in the Season 4 premiere, "Chapter Fifty-Eight: In Memoriam."
Murray ultimately left Riverdale in order to reprise her role as Josie McCoy in its spinoff series Katy Keene, which ran for a single season and takes place five years after Riverdale Season 4. During Katy Keene Season 1, Josie reformed Josie and the Pussycats with two brand-new members, Cricket and Trula Twyst.
Riverdale Season 5 premiered on Jan. 20. The season's fourth episode, "Chapter Eighty: Purgatorio" (and every episode thereafter) takes place after a seven-year time jump, ostensibly placing most of Riverdale Season 5 after Katy Keene Season 1 in the timeline. The circumstances of Josie, Valerie and Melody's reunion remain to be seen, but it's safe to say the trio will be returning to a very different Riverdale. That said, Riverdale Season 5 went on hiatus on March 31 following its 10th episode, "Chapter Eighty-Six: The Pincushion Man," and still isn't expected to return to The CW for a couple of months -- though the Archie Comics-based drama has already been renewed for Season 6.
Riverdale stars K.J. Apa as Archie Andrews, Lili Reinhart as Betty Cooper, Camila Mendes as Veronica Lodge, Cole Sprouse as Jughead Jones, Madelaine Petsch as Cheryl Blossom, Casey Cott as Kevin Keller, Mark Consuelos as Hiram Lodge, Charles Melton as Reggie Mantle, Vanessa Morgan as Toni Topaz, Mädchen Amick as Alice Cooper and Erinn Westbrook as Tabitha Tate. Season 5 is currently on hiatus and is expected to return later this year.
Source: Twitter