K. J. Apa and Lili Reinhart of the 'Riverdale' television show speak during the CW portion of the 2017 Winter Television Critics Association Press Tour at the Langham Hotel on January 8, 2017 in Pasadena, California. (Photo : Getty Images/Frederick M. Brown)
The kiss between Jughead Jones (Cole Sprouse) and Betty Cooper (Lili Reinhart) in "Riverdale" Season 1 episode 6 titled "Chapter Six: Faster, Pussycats! Kill! Kill!" was not part of the "Archie" comics. After the episode aired on March 2 on The CW, Reinhart talked about the kiss.
In an interview with Too Fab, Reinhart explained that the relationship between the characters she and Sprouse play was something the writers added just for "Riverdale." She said they wanted to make the series more modern and add a love interest for her character that was not Archie Andrews (K.J. Apa).
Jughead and Betty ended up being a wonderful match, Reinhart noted. For Betty, Jughead is someone who genuinely cares for her while Archie is busy other things and other women in his life although he also cares for Betty, the actress explained.
Reinhart revealed that Jughead is simply dealing with his own family issues, and he will only share these things with Betty later on in the season. The actress pointed out that Betty is so lovable that Jughead just cannot help but care about her.
Aside from Jughead's genuine intentions, Betty also feels like she can relate to Jughead, Reinhart said. Betty feels like she and Jughead are both outsiders who do not necessarily fit in and this is what draws her to him, the actress added.
In a different interview with Comic Book, Sprouse commented on the fact that his character in "Riverdale" is not necessarily the same as the asexual Jughead introduced by Chip Zdarsky in the comics.
For Sprouse, these are things viewers need to juggle when considering what Jughead is in The CW series, which he said is a new universe and a new take on the character. The actor described the character as a tortured damaged kid looking for someone who can relate to him on a personal level.
Watch Reinhart as she talks about the kiss between Jughead and Betty on "Riverdale" here:
