Riverdale Showrunner Says Vanessa Morgan Is Right, Vows to Do Better

Vanessa Morgan may have felt like she was screaming her frustrations out into the wind, but “Riverdale” showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa wants to make it known publicly that she is being heard, and more importantly, she’s right.

“We hear Vanessa. We see Vanessa. We love Vanessa. She’s right,” Aguirre-Sacasa wrote in a tweet posted Thursday night. “We’re sorry.”

He went on to tell fans of the show that he is making the same promise publicly that he’d already made to her in the days since she came forward with her frustrations on May 31.

“We will do better to honor her and the character she plays,. As well as all of our actors and characters of color.” he said (emphasis his). “CHANGE is happening and will continue to happen. Riverdale will get bigger , not smaller.”

While not saying anything explicitly, it sounds like the show’s creators want to really take this moment in culture and this lesson about systemic racism to really focus on having their show be a better advocate and representative of true diversity.

“Riverdale” is planning a significant time jump a few episodes into this new season, which is the perfect opportunity for Aguirre-Sacasa and his team to put their writing where his tweet is and show viewers the kinds of stories they can tell when all voices are heard and seen.

“Riverdale will be part of the movement, not outside it,” he continued. He then reiterated that all of the writers had already donated to the LA Black Lives Matter organization, but he knows that’s not enough.

“We know where the work must happen for us,” he said. “In the writer’s room.” Morgan retweeted his comments to her page.

Everyone has a role to play in evolving the culture of this country, and that includes the television industry. Black actors and actresses deserve to be the lead in their own stories, even on an ensemble show. They certainly do in real life.

It was railing against this perception that she was never going to get to be the lead that led to Morgan’s frustration in the first place.

Springboarding off of the tragic death of George Floyd, killed by police during an arrest over an alleged fake $20 bill, which has spawned a global protest movement fighting against a system steeped in racism, Morgan began sharing her experiences in another environment.

“Tired of how Black people are portrayed in the media, tired of us being portrayed as thugs, dangerous or angry, scary people,” Morgan wrote in tweet on May 31. “Tired of us being used as side kick non dimensional [sic] characters to our white leads. Or only used in the ads for diversity but not in the show.”

She further vowed to fight for the black community in Hollywood, adding, “I will no longer take roles that don’t properly represent us.”

When a supporter said “Riverdale” was getting “double the diversity” and “more bang for their buck” because Morgan’s character is also part of an LGBTQ+ storyline with Madelaine Petsch’s Cheryl Blossom, she just had to laugh.

“Lmao too bad I’m the only black series regular but also paid the least,” she replied. “girl i could go on for days. But exactly, used as the token biracial bisexual.”

Systemic racism is rooted deep in almost every system in America, including the world of entertainment. Morgan has shared an array of stories exposing some of that racism in Hollywood, and in other fields across the spectrum, all the while keeping her pulse with the ongoing protests and the fight for change.