‘Riverdale’: Shannen Doherty ‘Deeply Honored’ to Help Pay Tribute to Luke Perry With Season 4 Episode

Beverly Hills, 90210 star Shannen Doherty reacted to Sunday’s news that she will be helping Riverdale honor the memory of Luke Perry by making a cameo appearance in the Season 4 premiere. The actress said she was “deeply honored” to join the show. Perry starred on Riverdale as Archie Andrews’ father, Fred.

“I am deeply honored to pay tribute to Luke on Riverdale. The care in which this show takes in honoring his memory is beautiful. He is missed. Today. Tomorrow. Forever,” Doherty wrote on Instagram Sunday, along with two photos of herself with the late actor.

During Sunday’s Warner Bros. Television Studios San Diego Comic-Con panel, executive producer Roberto Aguitte-Sacasa said Doherty will have a small but significant role in the Season 4 premiere, “Chapter Fifty-Eight: In Memoriam.” According to PopCulture.com‘s sister site ComicBook.com, Aguirre-Sacasa said Perry tried to get Doherty on the show as early as Season 1.

“They were such good friends, and when we were putting together this tribute episode, we wanted to make it as special as possible, and so we asked Shannen to do a pivotal, super-emotional role,” Aguirre-Sacasa said. “She read the script and immediately said ‘yes.’ It’s very impactful.”

Perry died in March at age 52, a few days after suffering a massive stroke. Following his death, Doherty honored Perry several times on her Instagram page. The close friends played couple Dylan McKay and Brenda Walsh on 90210.

“Yesterday morning I got a phone call that devastated me,” Doherty wrote on Instagram in March. “I’m struggling with this loss and am having a hard time with my thoughts. But, my heart goes out to his family and friends who were blessed by his light in their (and mine) lives. Processing this is impossible right now.”

Aside from the Doherty casting news, Aguirre-Sacasa also showed a tribute reel at the beginning of the show’s panel, reports Entertainment Weekly.

“We suffered a huge, huge, huge loss and it’s something that we’re going to be feeling for as long as we’re lucky enough to keep making the show,” the series creator said. Aguirre-Sacasa said Perry immediately connected with his character, who became a mentor to the young cast both on and off screen.

“We really wanted to honor Luke, we really wanted to honor Fred,” Aguirre-Sacasa said of the season premiere. “We wanted it to be a very special episode, kind of [a] standalone.”

He also confirmed that Molly Rongwald, who plays Archie’s mother, will be back “more or less full-time this season.”

Riverdale Season 4 starts on Wednesday, Oct. 9 at 8 p.m. ET on The CW. In the meantime, you can see Doherty in Fox’s limited event series BH90210, which kicks off on Wednesday, Aug. 7 at 9 p.m. ET.

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