Lucy Hale Sees ‘So Much’ of Herself in ‘Katy Keene’ Character

The CW announced in March that Lucy Hale would be taking on the role of Katy Keene in the upcoming show of the same name, with the series based on the fashion-loving character who first appeared in Archie Comics books in the ’40s.

Katy Keene is an aspiring fashion designer who will do whatever it takes to make her dreams come true in New York City, and Hale, who has been working as an actress since she was a teenager, told PopCulture.com that she instantly related to the character’s passion and drive.

“I see so much of myself in her,” she said. “I moved to LA as a 16-year-old who had these big dreams and would do anything to make them happen and obviously Katy’s the exact same way and all of her friends are the exact same way. They’re in their early to mid 20s and they all have a different dream or a different goal and they will stop at nothing to make it happen.”

“I think the struggle and the hopefulness and leaning on your friends and all of that really just reminded me of myself and my journey to where I’m at,” Hale continued. “I think that it will be really inspirational for people. I think that we need more shows like this where we see people stopping at nothing to make whatever it is come true.”

Like the CW’s Riverdale, Katy Keene is based on characters from Archie Comics, and Hale shared that she wants to be sure to stay true to the spirit of Katy as she was originally written.

“I’m always nervous taking on a new role and especially if it’s one like this,” she said. “I always want to do it justice and I want to get it as close to the comic as possible. I think it’s always cool to create a new world and they’ve really trusted me with this character.”

Hale revealed that Katy Keene is tonally very different from its sister show, with the upcoming series focused much more on big-city magic than small town murder.

“It’s completely different from what I think [fans are] expecting of the show because you hear ‘Riverdale‘ and I think they expected it to be very similar to that and it’s really not, at all,” the 30-year-old said. “It really is about this group of four friends and the trials and tribulations of living in the city and being knocked on your feet and getting back up and just making their dreams come true.”

Along with Hale, Katy Keene will star Jonny Beauchamp as performer Jorge Lopez and his drag queen alter-ego, Ginger, Julie Chan as socialite Pepper Smith and Ashleigh Murray as singer Josie McCoy, a name Riverdale fans will quickly recognize. Katy Keene picks up several years after Riverdale and finds Josie having just moved to the Big Apple to pursue her dreams of becoming a star, with the series including a few winking nods “where we let the audience in on the fact that we know [about Riverdale],” Hale revealed.

Katy Keene has already shot its pilot and will head to New York City in the fall to film the rest of the first season, with the show having been ordered to series. Since Katy Keene was originally marketed as “America’s Queen of Pin-Ups and Fashions,” it’s no surprise that fashion will play a major part in the show, and while Hale shared that there will be plenty of throwbacks to the comics, she wouldn’t necessarily wear her character’s clothes in her own life.

“Katy’s definitely way more girly that I am. She’s way more feminine and way more put together,” she admitted. “The stuff she comes up with, I never in a million years would think of, but it’s so fun to get to play dress up with her and that’s really her life, fashion is her life.”

Photo Credit: Getty / Dia Dipasupil