Madelaine Petsch Recalls ‘Really Strong’ Advice Luke Perry Gave Her on ‘Riverdale’

Luke Perry made a lasting impact on Madelaine Petsch during his time on Riverdale.

Perry — who died in 2019 at age 52, just five days after suffering a massive stroke — starred as Fred Andrews, dad to Archie Andrews (KJ Apa), on the first three seasons of the CW series. And Petsch, 31, who played Cheryl Blossom, still looks back on her time with the late actor fondly.

“Luke taught me so much,” Petsch said on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen in response to a fan question about what Perry taught her.

“He was really a champion in my career, and he held my hand through the process, because he went through similar fame on 90210.”

“He gave me two really strong pieces of advice,” the Strangers – Chapter 2 star continued. “One is: don’t read anything about yourself, ever.”

She admitted that one’s “really hard” and she doesn’t do very well at abiding by it.

“The second was: the first thing you can do on a set is introduce yourself to every single crew member and remember all of their names,” she said, to which even host Andy Cohen was impressed.

In a post following the news of Perry’s death, Petsch called the actor “a light in our lives” and “the most genuine & kind soul I will ever know.”

“From day one of this show you were the most amazing mentor to me. Thank you for teaching me not only about this industry, but also about kindness and being a family and how to foster and nurture those important relationships,” she wrote. “You were the absolute best at that. I love you Luke, you and those sweet forehead kisses will forever be missed. 💔.”

She later told Seventeen that Perry was “my oracle throughout Riverdale,” as she said he always “opened his door to me” when she had questions. “He was the kind of actor that gave you everything when he worked with you,” she said.

The CW series paid tribute to Perry in the season 4 premiere, and stars Molly Ringwald and Skeet Ulrich said that the episode doubled as a way for them to say goodbye to the actor in real life, too.

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Shannen Doherty, who died in July 2024 after a cancer battle, made an appearance in the episode to honor Perry, her former 90210 costar, which she said was “beautiful.”

Riverdale is now streaming on Netflix.