Riverdale’s Search For the Black Hood’s Identity Will Accelerate His Actions

Riverdale season 2 has introduced a frightening new villain with the Black Hood Killer, and series star K.J. Apa says efforts to uncover his identity will only intensify the mystery man’s actions. That’s bad news for the intrepid teens of The CW’s series, especially since Archie himself has made it his number one priority to track down the man responsible for shooting his father. It may be even worse for Betty now that the Black Hood has begun tormenting her with his creepy phone calls.

Putting a serial killer front and center makes for a different season than Riverdale‘s first outing, which began as a murder mystery and ended with a shocking revelation about the Blossom family. There’s still a mystery component in season 2, but it’s centered on the identity of the killer making the small town his personal hunting ground. Naturally, everyone wants to know who is behind the ratty black mask that gives the killer his moniker, but the search for answers will make things worse before they get better.

Series star K.J. Apa said as much during a recent Riverdale set visit that we took part in. Apa had to work his way around inquiries about the killer carefully because, as he said, “It’s a hard question for me to answer because I know who it is.” Without giving anything away, he steered the discussion to the inevitability of a reveal, and that it would likely come at a cost for the residents of Riverdale. Apa said:

“I think it becomes more real for them in a way where it becomes more constant. The communication becomes more constant. I feel like Betty is becoming smarter about the situation and understanding the Black Hood more. It gets us closer to figuring out who he is and that makes his actions more accelerated.

The whole thing is, the writers have been really smart in the way they’ve come at it. It’s just really unexpected. You couldn’t guess it, but at the same time you could guess it. Honestly, it’s amazing what the writers did.”

So far, the Black Hood managed to make a name for himself and instill fear in just about everyone around town. The idea that his actions will intensify as the walls begin to close in on him sounds like it will mark a dark period in the series’ run. That will certainly ramp up the drama for the series, which already has its hands full with Nick St. Clair, Hiram Lodge, and the inescapable new drug jingle jangle (feel free to laugh).

There have been plenty of good guesses for who’s hiding behind the mask, but so far nothing has been confirmed. If the reveal is as amazing as Apa insists it is, Riverdale might set a new precedent for itself in season 2.

Riverdale continues next Wednesday with ‘Tales From the Darkside’ @8pm on The CW.