In a landscape full of superheroes, one of the biggest comic book franchises in the world is Archie Comics. The franchise has seen a bump in popularity since the premiere of the hit CW show Riverdale in 2016. Now Archie is getting a new Netflix film titled The Archies from director Zoya Akhtar which has just begun shooting.
Both Akhtar and Archie Comics took to Instagram to make the announcement showcasing one of the film slates for the project. Not much is known about the film yet — we don’t even have a confirmed cast list — but what we do know is that this is a live-action musical film set in 1960s India. This is a unique setting given that Archie has always been depicted as a small-town American teen. However, this might be exactly what this adaptation needs to distinguish itself from Riverdale with which this film shares no connection.
The Archies are just as iconic as the redhead himself. Debuting in Life With Archie #60 in 1967, The Archies is a fictional band in the Archie universe that has consisted of classic franchise characters like Archie, Betty, Veronica, Jughead, Reggie Mantle, and Kevin Keller. They were so popular real musicians produced a handful of albums as the fictional band throughout the late 60s and early 70s. They also had a Christmas-themed album come out in 2008. Other notable appearances for the band include the short-lived 1968 animated series The Archie Show, and they were recently formed (albeit briefly) on the Riverdale series. The most popular song from the group over the years has been “Sugar, Sugar.” It will be interesting to see if this upcoming film will use the band’s preexisting discography or feature their own original songs.
In recent years, Archie’s unofficial home has been Netflix. Riverdale is a Netflix Original in some countries that do not have access to The CW and the franchise’s sister series Chilling Adventures of Sabrina was also a Netflix Original before it was abruptly canceled. Because of this, it is going to be fun to see what Netflix and Akhtar have up their sleeves for this adaptation.
Akhtar has been an accomplished Indian filmmaker for almost two decades directing such films as Luck By Chance, Dil Dhadakne Do, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, and Gully Boy. With Akhtar‘s background and the Indian setting for The Archies, this should be one of the more unique stories told in the Archie universe so far. Akhtar is also producing the film with long-time collaborator Reema Kagti under their banner Tiger Baby Films.
Now that The Archies is filming we should hear more news about the project soon. This includes plot details, who is playing these iconic characters, and eventually a release date. Until then, you can catch up on the Archie universe in Riverdale and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina which are both streaming on Netflix.
Check out Archie Comics’ post on Instagram down below.
via Collider