Shannon Purser’s role as Barb may have made her all Stranger Things to all people on the internet, but she’s not looking to live in the past (for obvious reasons). The actress has been weighing her post-Netflix options, including campaigning for the role of Doreen Greene in the Squirrel Girl movie that only she and Anna Kendrick seem to think is getting made. And it looks like she’s just taken a big step out of Hawkins, Indiana, as Entertainment Weekly reports that Purser has joined the cast of the CW’s gritty-for-some-reason Riverdale series.
Greg Berlanti’s assumed the responsibility for adapting Archie comics for the small screen, and he’s already enlisted actors to take on the iconic roles of Archie, Jughead, Betty, and Veronica. (There’s also a Josie in there somewhere for good measure.) With the core group and rivalry in place, the CW felt it was only right to finally cast Purser as Ethel, she of the dark hair and Jughead crush. And yet, Ethel will “find herself in a romantic relationship with someone very different” than Archie’s burger-snarfing best bud. She’ll also make fast friends with Betty and Veronica, as well as join Archie’s Coalition For Teens Against Reggie, according to EW. And look, we know a multidimensional joyride sounds like it could fit right into this “darker” take on the charming comics of yore, but just steer clear of that damn jalopy, Ethel/Barb.