Riverdale‘s final season had a few surprise cameos, but there was one more surprise in the finale that some may have missed. As Betty relived and remembered her senior year one last time, Angel Jughead told her how her classmates lived and died after high school. He mentions that Cheryl ended up being a very successful painter, and she and Toni moved out West together and had a son. They named him Dale, “after Riverdale, of course.” It was only fitting that Vanessa Morgan, who plays Toni, had her real son, River, play her on-screen son, ET confirmed.
It was a pretty full-circle moment. Morgan announced her pregnancy in 2020. Instead of hiding it on the series, the Season 5 time jump made things a bit easier. When Archie goes back to Riverdale after being away in the army for seven years, he finds out that Toni is expecting. Morgan continued to be on the series until it was time for maternity leave, and Toni gave birth to Baby Anthony at the Whyte Wyrm.
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While Baby Anthony was not played by River, the show’s jump back in time gave writers yet another excuse to change things up. With no Baby Anthony and the gang back in high school, fans were able to get another build-up to Choni. They were once again wondering whether their favorites would find their way back to each other. No matter what timeline, though, it was always Choni. Fans were able to get Cheryl and Toni’s relationship as endgame and them having a son together. Not to mention that their son was Vanessa Morgan’s real-life child, which made it even better.
It’s the little details that matter. The ones that not many would notice until it’s pointed out. The series finale of Riverdale was definitely emotional as fans found out what happened to the Core Four and beyond. Mostly everyone even lived long and happy lives. Maybe this will be the start of River appearing in more projects alongside his mother. He is still pretty young, though, so it might be a while until his name starts appearing everywhere. At least he can say that his acting debut was on the Riverdale series finale as his mother’s son.
The extended version of the is available to watch on The CW website and The CW app for free. Fans may want to have some tissues next to them just in case, and watch out for little River’s big debut.
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NEW YORK CITY – DECEMBER 19: "Toil and Trouble" – Elsbeth is thrown into the world of television after the showrunner of a long-running police procedural is brutally murdered in his office, and although it appears to be the act of a disgruntled fan, she begins to suspect the show's longtime star Regina Coburn (Laurie Metcalf) who yearns for artistic fulfillment. Meanwhile, Judge Crawford (Michael Emerson) continues to be a thorn in Elsbeth's side, on the CBS original series ELSBETH, Thursday, Dec. 19 (10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on demand for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers, or on demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode airs). Pictured (L-R): Carrie Preston as Elsbeth Tascioni and Carra Patterson as Kaya Blanke. (Photo by Michael Parmelee/CBS via Getty Images)
