Warning! The following contains spoilers for Riverdale's "Chapter Fifty-four: Fear The Reaper."
Riverdale has aired Luke Perry's final scene on the series, as Fred Andrews tried to console Archie after he accidentally killed a fighter during a boxing match. Archie knew drugs played a factor in his opponent's death, but still felt responsibility for going through the fight knowing the fighter was juicing. Fred was the voice of reason, and told his son not to be so hard on himself.
The scene was good and a fitting end considering pep talks were one of the best things Luke Perry's Fred gave the show. With that said there was no further story on Fred the rest of the episode, and if fans didn't know it was impossible for Perry to do more scenes, one wouldn't expect his story to be over from there. So what's next for Fred Andrews with Luke Perry gone?
That's the question Riverdale viewers should be asking, as someone out of the loop may be expecting to see Fred pop up again next episode with a smile on his face. The episode ended with no farewell to Fred, no plot-twist that brought about his death, or scene that explained what he's up to. Fans were left hanging, with the conclusion seemingly meaning Fred's fate will be addressed in a future episode.
Which means there's still a plethora of futures for the character on the table. For example, the rather uneventful scene may mean that Riverdale is considering recasting Fred Andrews, and having him pop back in the picture like nothing happened. It wouldn't be the first time Riverdale recast a notable character's role, although one would think this recasting would be met with backlash given the circumstances of Luke Perry's passing.
Then again, is the answer killing off Fred Andrews? That could be seen as equally insensitive to some, despite the fact that Riverdale tends to use death quite a bit when writing off characters. That does make it an option, of course, as all the show needs is a body double for a scene or a character to explain his death happened off-screen.
This feels unlikely, however, given all that's happening in the story. Archie losing his father in the midst of all that's happening would run the risk of derailing the story that's been in the works since the beginning of Season 3. If Fred's death happened at the end of the season as a cliffhanger, however, that may make it easier to pull off.
Riverdale will, hopefully, bring more answers regarding Fred's future in the coming episodes that air on The CW Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET. Should Riverdale recast, kill off, or figure out something else to do with Fred Andrews? Sound off in our poll below.
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