‘Riverdale’ Actress Bernadette Beck Discusses Lack of Diversity on Set

The actress recently spoke about her experience working on The CW hit series, and you need to hear what she has to say.

Another Riverdale actress is speaking out about the popular CW television show.

Bernadette Beck, who played Peaches ‘N Cream on seasons 3 and 4 of Riverdale, has decided to open up about her experience on the teen drama–a decision that was made not long after co-star Vanessa Morgan spoke out about Black representation in the media and, specifically, on Riverdale. In an interview with Elle, Beck shared her own experience working on the show.

“I get it, there’s always a protagonist and antagonist, but I never had much of a story plot or enough character development to even be considered an antagonist,” Beck shared. “I was, for no reason, depicted in a very negative, unattractive light. And I’m not the first Black actress to show up on set, stand there, chew gum, and look sassy and mean.” She added, “I feel like I was just there to fulfill a diversity quota. It’s just to fulfill points.”

“You can’t treat people like they’re invisible and then pat yourself on the back for meeting your diversity quota for the day.” #Riverdale https://t.co/pJ4LQ4dCxS

— ELLE Magazine (US) (@ELLEmagazine) July 27, 2020

Beck went on to say that there were times when she was “completely forgotten in the scene.” Furthermore, the actress explained that her white co-stars were “getting all this screen time and character development,” allowing them to build a massive following, whereas Beck’s character was “looked at with disdain.”

She also expressed her concern with how this sentiment may affect her opportunities in the future: “If we are depicted as unlikable or our characters are not developed or we’re looked at as the enemy all the time, that affects our public persona. What kind of opportunities are we losing out on even after Riverdale?”

This isn’t the first time Beck has spoken out against systemic racism. Ever since the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement, the actress has been very active on Instagram where she has spoken about growing up as a Black child and called for justice for victims of police brutality.

The CW has yet to comment on Beck’s remarks, but we are hopeful that her voice will be heard and that real change is on the way.