Sabrina Returning to TV, But Not How Fans Wanted

Kieran Shipka’s Sabrina Spellman will be coming back to your TV screens soon — although, it might not be the kind of return that fans are hoping for. Instead of starring in her own show, Shipka will make an appearance on an upcoming episode of Riverdale as Sabrina.

According to TV Line, Shipka will reprise her role as Sabrina in an upcoming episode of Riverdale. She previously guest-starred on the series earlier in the season in order to help out her friend Cheryl Blossom (Madelaine Petsch) with a spell. Sabrina will help out Cheryl yet again, albeit for a very different reason. This time, Cheryl has been possessed by her evil ancestor Abigail and she needs some help from Greendale’s resident teenage witch. The CW has not shared an airdate for the episode just yet. 

Shipka previously starred as Sabrina in Netflix’s Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. While the series ran for four seasons, it was canceled in July 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The last episodes of the show aired later that year. Upon the announcement of the show’s cancellation, showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa released a statement that highlighted the “incredible honor” that working on the show afforded him. Not only was Aguirre-Sacasa a showrunner on Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, but he also developed Riverdale, paving the way for crossover opportunities between the two shows. 

“The cast, beginning with Kiernan as everyone’s favorite teen witch, has been an absolute joy,” Aguirre-Sacasa’s statement read. “I am beyond thankful to the crew, writers, editors, assistants, and everyone for pouring so much love into this dark dream of a show. I’m also grateful to our partners at Netflix, Warner Bros., Berlanti Television, and Archie Comics for letting us tell the story we wanted to tell, the way we wanted to tell it. We can’t wait for everyone to see Part Four.”

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina was originally developed by The CW to be a companion series to Riverdale. However, it later moved to Netflix. Even though it landed on the streaming service, Shipka’s Sabrina still found her way to Riverdale. It was announced in October 2021 that the character would officially be making an appearance in the drama. Aguirre-Sacasa said about the crossover event, per Entertainment Weekly, “We’ve been talking about having Sabrina visit Riverdale since season 1, so it’s thrilling that this is finally happening, as part of our Rivervale special event.”