DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE COVER: Drew Ray Tanner on the New Season of ‘Riverdale,’ the Time Jump, His Music, Dream Role, Identity, Isolation, and More

Drew Ray Tanner has always been Riverdale’s number one scene-stealer, and now he’s their newest series regular for the fifth season.

Riverdale is returning with an all-new season on January 20 on The CW. Drew plays fan-favorite Fangs Fogarty, and now fans can expect to see a lot more of him in the new season. From what he told us, there are a lot of exciting and fun things in store for his character, especially after the big seven year time jump. The actor was most recently seen in Netflix’s dance comedy Work It, playing the character of Charlie. He shared that his scenes resulted in a lot of hilarious improv moments and that he hopes to do more comedy in the future.

Read our exclusive interview with Drew Ray Tanner below to find out all the details on Riverdale season five, Fangs’ relationship with Kevin, future music, isolation, memorable fan moments, and what franchise he wants to join in the future.

GLITTER: Riverdale returns on January 20 with a prom episode as the premiere. Anything fun you can tease about prom? 
DREW: Well, it’s interesting because that was the last day that we were on set before the world sort of declared this global pandemic. So we were halfway through shooting it, and that was a long time ago, almost a year ago, and a lot’s changed since then. So I think they kept some of the stuff from the original shoot, and then we changed it a little bit. Mainly I think what people can expect is just a really heartwarming, sort of send-off to high school. There’s not too much drama— there’s always a little bit of drama. There’s always a little bit of this, a little bit of that, but I think after the pandemic happened, we sort of realized, and we sort of repivoted the way that we wanted to tell that little bit of story because life is short and that’s something we all realized. I think the writers went in and did a really good job to sort of hone in on the last four seasons that they’ve made and make something really touching. So that’s kind of what I can tease, is that you’re going to see all of the familiar faces, the whole gang is there, which is really cool, and it’s really hard to kind of get all these people in the same room. Everyone looks amazing as well, so stay tuned for that. Get ready to see some sweet outfits.

GLITTER: You were just promoted this season to series regular; how much more Fangs can we expect to see this season?
DREW: Well, a lot, actually, more than I thought. I was pleasantly surprised by the way that they wanted to take the character and the people that he chooses to surround himself with. There’s a lot going on there with Toni Topaz and Kevin’s character. We’ve almost got this sort of spin-off side story, which is really cool. It’s like we all are living in this apartment together, and we’re dealing with our own little set of drama and stuff like that. I love it because they just don’t waste any time with this time jump. We just cut right into what’s going on in their lives right now. So we get to sort of see that play out relationship stuff, and yeah, it’s really cool.

GLITTER: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa has revealed that Fangs will be living with Kevin and Toni after the time jump. How would you describe the three of them as roommates in three words?
DREW: Synergy, love, and popcorn.

GLITTER: What can fans expect from the time jump and what was your reaction when you found out about it?
DREW: My reaction was, “Alright,” you know, like this is about the time where, in my life— not that I don’t love playing a high school student— but, you know, I’ll be twenty-nine in February. And so my reaction was, okay, it’s good that I’ll get to age myself up a bit. I got a little bit of facial hair. My hair is a little bit longer. So the way that I looked in high school on the show and how I look now is very different. So my reaction was one of excitement because I was going to be able to do something a little bit different with the character. And also, in my mind, I looked at photos of when I was in high school and how different I looked, and that was like something that I was looking forward to working with the creators on doing.

It was a little bit bittersweet, too, because you never— again like high school— you never really know that you’re in the good days until they’re gone. I was like, “Wow, it’s possible that I could never play a high school student ever again.” So those last few days of filming those high school scenes, when we got back after the big quarantine break, I kind of was going around telling people like, “Yo, guys, this could be the last time that we’re ever walking down these hallways as seniors.” You know, maybe there’s going to be a flashback episode or something in the future, who knows? But like other than that, it was a lot of time of reflecting honestly and really touching. It affected me more than I thought it would.

GLITTER: Anything you can tease about Fangs’ relationship with Kevin?
DREW: So the time jump is seven years, okay? Now, every relationship— I mean, heck, I haven’t been in a relationship for more than two years, you know what I mean? That was when I was in high school. Seven years? There are some hiccups along the way, and people are going to see some hiccups, for sure. It’s not all sunshine, roses, rainbows, and things like that. It’s definitely far from perfect, and there are some things that they’re going to have to work through. And the fact that they’ve been together this long is just a testament, which is great. I’d like to see what those seven years looked like. Did they travel and go to Italy? Did they get a vacation home? Like what’s going on with these two, for seven years; it’s great. But when we get to that seven-year point, it’s really at a point— like they’re at a crossroads, and so all I can really say is that the two of them are having to make a decision of what they want to do and that’s kind of where they’re at. Whether it’s good, whether it’s bad, we’ll see.

GLITTER: Do you have a favorite Fangs and Kevin moment, and what do you think would be a “dream date” for them?
DREW: My favorite moment for them during high school days… honestly, I’d say it was the first musical episode because it just sort of sticks out in my mind that this was a moment, a big moment for Fangs’ character to transition out of just being in a teenage biker gang. New to the school— their old high school, South Side High, had just closed down— and it was the first moment for him to feel comfortable around others, and I think it was really Kevin Keller that made him feel comfortable. At least that’s sort of what I’d come up with in my mind before we shot it. It wasn’t really written like that, but I had to sort of justify why this teenage gang member would be there, and it has to be for some comfortability reasons and feeling accepted maybe where he didn’t feel accepted before. Just that whole episode for Casey and me was so much fun because we had no expectations with it. We just wanted to play around and have improv. I was coming up with ideas, and he was like, “Yeah, do that,” and everything that he was giving me back in return was just great. So it just really happened naturally. So, yes, my favorite memory is the beginning, I would say, and there’s been a lot of cool stuff along the way, too much— like there’s so much I could talk for honestly hours about it, but that one just sticks out in my mind because it was a real turning point. I think they would have been in like grade 10, and when I was in grade 10, that was a huge turning point in my life, too, because I had changed high schools. I had come from a different neighborhood where everybody knew me in a certain way because I’d lived there my whole life, and then I went to the new high school, and it was like a reinvention point in my life. So I feel like that’s something that I really connected to.

You know what I think? I think a dream date, in high school: Fangs pulls up on a motorcycle outside his house, waits for Kevin to come on out. They hop on the bike, they ride down to a fictitious roller rink to get some milkshakes, and they go for a little juke jam roller rink date; and they get to skate around and have fun. Knowing Fangs, he probably can’t skate all that well, so it would just be like this cute little thing where Kevin would be showing him how to skate better and that kind of stuff. I think that would be really ideal; feeling free—normal, less murder, and more just escapism.

GLITTER: What is one friendship you’d like to see more of for Fangs?
DREW: Well, it’s interesting, so I’m going to be a little biased here, and I’m going to seep my real life into the show right now. When the quarantine happened, my plan was to move to Los Angeles and establish myself there. So I did actually; the story goes that I moved, I packed up my car, I drove from Vancouver to Los Angeles on March 7. I remember it because it was one of my best friend’s birthday that day. And so I get to Los Angeles, I set myself up, and then I fly back on the 12th to film on the 13th for the prom episode. Then I flew back to LA; it was just for one day. I woke up the next day, and that was March 14, and that was the day that they declared this whole thing a pandemic, and who I was living with was Charles Melton. So he and I have been roommates for just under a year, and we’re actually really good friends in real life, and our relationship and friendship just blossomed over that time.

It was a tough time because you couldn’t see your loved ones and you didn’t have much time to spend in, like, social settings, so just him and I being together was really great. We learned a lot about ourselves artistically as well, and our chemistry grew. We would just talk, we would dream, and we would write about stuff we’d want to do together. I feel like if there’s room for it in the future of this show, I would love to see Reggie and Fangs hang out more because they’re two polar opposites, and there is something tangible there that can work. Just one scene, let’s see what happens.

GLITTER: It’s been confirmed that there is going to be another musical episode. Can we keep our fingers crossed that you’ll be singing this season?
DREW: Boy, I have no idea because, again, we’re having this conversation in real-time. Well, that’s one thing I can say is that there is; Fangs is going to sing more. Whether that’s musical related or not, I can’t really say, but because Vanessa Morgan and I started making music in the last year and a bit, that sort of caught on to Roberto. He saw an opportunity for Vanessa and me to take those types of passions that we have outside of the show and use them in the show. So there’s actually this really good musical number that she and I got to do. So stay tuned for that. It’s really special and fun, and she kills it because she’s like eight months pregnant while we filmed it. So stay tuned for that!

GLITTER: What has your journey on Riverdale been like, and what has it taught you as an actor?
DREW: Well, it’s interesting because before I did Riverdale, I’d been what is sort of described as a journeyman actor in Vancouver. So in Vancouver, your job as an actor in a lot of ways is you do a lot of day player roles. You do a couple of one-liners, and while you’re doing all of this, you’re working two other jobs, and you’re sending in tapes, and you’re auditioning for big stuff, but you’re just hoping for, like, all the right things and all the stars to align for you to have some success and to continue to grow your career. So for a lot of years, it was that for me; it was building up and building up, and Riverdale was just another one of those things. I didn’t realize the impact of the show until the first season had come out, and I’d heard about it, but it was this sort of Archie Comics reimagining, and it was just not on my radar as something that like I personally would watch.

Then I was with a couple of my friends, and they were like, “Drew, we’re gonna go out to Mission tonight to this place called Rocko’s.” I was like, “Okay?” Like why are we driving an hour away to go to this diner? They’re like, “Oh we’re looking for Archie!” I was like, “Looking for Archie?” And they’re like, “Yeah!” So we go to this diner, and it was the diner that they shot the pilot episode as Pop’s Chock’Lit Shoppe. I get there, and there’s a line up out the door. I’m like, what is going on in here? There are people literally in there just taking photos with their lettermans on and stuff, and I ask my friends, “Guys, what’s the deal?” They’re like, “Oh my God, this show is so amazing,” and I’m like, all right. Well, I called my agent the next day. I was like, “Hey, listen, this Riverdale thing— get me in the room cause I need to audition for this more.” So we started the process and started auditioning for season two, and Fangs was really only supposed to be in a couple of episodes.

The reason why I’m giving such a long answer to this is because what it taught me as an actor was that— when I had gotten to that point, it wasn’t like I hadn’t done something like that before. Yes, it was on a show that I actively was trying to get on and put in my mind manifestations and things like that. So, yes, it was a big achievement for me to do, but in terms of the work and in terms of professionalism, nothing had really changed. What I learned in that first seven years as a day player was just how to conduct myself in a professional way around others. I guess what I can say is that this was the first time I was able to sort of see something through in terms of patience. I was able to just exercise some patience with everything— it’s just such a story as old as time in Vancouver; you get on a show, you do your part, and then you’re gone, and that’s it. I feel like many people really overstay their welcome within those first few days of work. What you’ve got to realize is that relationships take a long time to develop, and friendships don’t happen overnight, and I was really aware of that. I just tried to be myself, and by being myself, it really paid off because it kept bringing me back. It wasn’t until, like, ten episodes later where I kind of looked at myself in the mirror one night, and I said, “Listen, bro, you need to start making some choices. Next time you get a scene, you do something with it. Being polite and doing everything is good, but maybe this is your time, and maybe you can offer something as an artist.” What it taught me was A) be yourself, B) don’t be afraid to realize your potential if somebody sees it in you before you even do, and to just make those choices and to take those risks within the scene.

So everything outside of the scene, everything going on behind the scenes, that was just a lot of being generous, being polite and knowing my lane, knowing what I could offer in terms as a professional worker in a work environment. Now between action and cut, it was, “Okay, I’m ready, I’m here to throw down,” and I’ve taken that with me now through everything. I’ve realized my abilities; I realized my potential. I believe now that I do have something to say. I do have a story to tell, and I’m just not afraid anymore to just go in and throw down with the best of them because I learned from a great cast.

GLITTER: If you had to describe Fangs’ character in only a song lyric, what would it be and why? 
DREW: (singing)
“Desperado, why don’t you come to your senses
You’ve been out ridin’ fences for so long now
Oh, you’re a hard one
I know that you’ve got your reasons
These things that are pleasin’ you
Can hurt you somehow
You better let somebody love you”

That’s the one- “Desperado,“ the Eagles.

GLITTER: Favorite thing about filming in Vancouver?
DREW: I’m from here, so the obvious answer is being close to family and friends and not having to be away from my loved ones; sometimes, it can force you into places of complacency, though. It’s sometimes good to get your feet wet in other places. But I think the greatest thing about filming in Vancouver is… Vancouver really is— just to give you like a little bit of a history lesson— it was a snowboarder’s town, it was an adventurer’s town. A small-town city is what it always was throughout the 80s and the 90s and stuff like that. I mean, I didn’t go into the city until I was almost like 20; we’d go in once in a while, but I never really knew much about the city. It was just close to a lot of local mountains to go snowboarding, and that’s what I would do. I would go, and one of my friends’ moms or my mom would drive us into the city. We would hitchhike; we’d hitch a ride up one of the local mountains, we go snowboarding all day, and then we’d come home. That’s really what Vancouver was. Then the 2010 Olympics happened, and the whole world saw Vancouver as this beautiful, wonderful city, but the city just wasn’t ready to be what it is today.

The infrastructure wasn’t there. So at its core and its heart, Vancouver really is this small-town city, and I think that that’s perfect for a show like Riverdale where it truly is this small-town show, but you need to have the support of a big city to kind of bring a show like that there and film it there and have the resources and things like that. We film ten minutes away from where I grew up, which is a very small town, lots of woods, lots of land, and the drive-in movie theater that they filmed in the first season, it’s called Twilight Drive-in movie theater, and that’s from the town that I grew up in. I moved there when I was two, and that was like the only thing that we had that was cool was this drive-in movie theater. So that sort of paints a picture of how it is an amazing backdrop for a show like this. When you make a show, it’s the actors, it’s the characters, but it’s also the world and the room tone in the environment that surrounds them. It’s also a character, you know? Riverdale, the town of Riverdale, is one thousand percent, also a character within the show. That’s what’s amazing about it; I’ve always known this about Vancouver, but now for the rest of the world to see it, it’s kind of cool.

GLITTER: What has filming the new season been like with all of the necessary safety precautions?
DREW: My nose has never been more violated in my life. That’s about it. Other than that, they streamlined it, and I’ll be honest to say that I think that our show really set the standard for safety requirements, protocols, and things like that. We were sort of the golden standard that people sort of followed because we went about it the right way. We’re currently in our quarantine right now because we traveled for the holidays. So we’re quarantined.

We really went and did it the right way, and it’s been tough. I thought it was going to be a lot different than what it was, but our team did a really good job of really making it— although we’re constantly wearing masks, sanitizing, sectioned off to our own areas, and not being able to interact with others as much— they still made an environment where we can create. I was worried about it truly as an artist because it kind of goes against everything. As an actor, you’re supposed to be close and intimate in these positions. That’s where you live, that’s where you thrive, but we found a way to make it all work. We’re getting tested three to four times a week, really staying on top of it. We haven’t really missed a step. So that’s been great.

GLITTER: You were also in Netflix’s Work It, which premiered back in August. Any fun stories you can share about filming it?
DREW: Oh, man— well, I’ll say the first couple of months leading up to it was just grueling because I decided to take it upon myself to get laser-focused on being in the best shape of my life. So it was so crappy. I hated it. You know, my brain was dead, I was like trying to read lines, and then it just ended up being a thing where I was like, “Okay when I get there on the day, I’m just going to make the magic happen.”

The most fun part about that was the improv that was allowed on that set. So our director, Laura Terruso, is a fantastic director, fantastic person; I’m so lucky she had me there. She really welcomed— we were able to do sort of one take right, the right way; do it, do it right, do it with the way it’s written, but she had written in the script a lot of alternate lines and things that you could do differently, and that was something I had never really seen before. Liza Koshy is such a fantastic— I hadn’t even realized she was such a great improv actor. I like truly couldn’t stop laughing. I was not ready for that. Luckily, I had taken improv in high school. I had been part of like a little improv group, and I had hosted improv shows in the past for my high school every year and stuff. So it’s not like I was unfamiliar with that territory. I just wasn’t ready for Liza to throw down so hard as she did. Laura would give her these wild takes and say, “Go wild,” and there were no rules. She could do whatever she wanted, and I had to just sort of— you know, in improv, it’s always “Yes and,” right? So you don’t ever say no to something. So she would do something, and it was like “Yes and,” it was like, “How much?” So what was like small scenes ended up being really funny, and I would say, almost 60 to 65 percent of their interactions weren’t written on the page. It was just her and I going tit for tat, which was so much fun to do. Eating the meal that I got to eat after we wrapped, which was fried chicken, was also fantastic.

Improv really kind of shows what you’re working with. It shows your limitation as an artist as well. And you’re like, “What? Where am I with this?” It really was— just because what improv does is this weird thing whereas an actor, you are constantly working towards a place where you’re so prepared, and you know everything that you can then throw it away and just live in the moment, and improv is like that on steroids. So you get to this place where you’re unaware of what’s around you, but you’re also kind of performing because you’re firing off. It’s like a game of charades, or it’s this thing where you’re keeping your mental real sharp, and there aren’t a lot of these, like, landmarks within the scene that you can hold on to cause something could change, and you’ve got to be able to go there. It keeps you on your toes. It’s my favorite form, though, and more often than not, something funny always comes out of it too, which is genuine. I think a lot of people don’t know that I love comedy so much and I would love to do more.

GLITTER: You and Vanessa Morgan released a song together called “Sleep When I’m Dead” back in May. Can you tell us about creating it together and any inspirations behind the song? Can we expect more from you both in the future?
DREW: Well, it’s interesting, the inspiration changed because originally when we wrote it together, it was a time in our lives where— this is going back, and now that we’re in 2021, this is going back two years ago, a year and a half ago— and we’re living in Vancouver, and I just wrapped working on Work It, and I met this wonderful group of music producers in Toronto and Los Angeles. Somehow they kind of took me under their wing, and I was flying to Vegas and shows, and I was being brought backstage to this world that I’d never seen before. As an actor, you fly to a location, and you’re in your hotel room the entire time— it’s not as glamorous as people think it is, but musicians and DJs— whoa, what a trip. Like, I couldn’t believe it; it blew my mind. I was on stage with thousands of people, and I’m just happy to be there, like, I can’t believe that I’m being brought around to all this stuff. I had an amazing time. The motto for me was like; I’ll sleep when I’m dead. Like, I’m going to take these opportunities, and I’m going to take these life moments, and I’m going to live it to the fullest. I really did have a blast.

Now, Vanessa, on the other side of this— same sort of thing, like her and I— always our little thing was we were so close when we were filming in Vancouver, and we would always go out and just have such a fun time. She and I could just go out, like just the two of us, and have a blast. Naturally, because we were just so charismatic— people would flock to us in our friend group; I say that sarcastically, but it’s sorta true. Everyone would see us having a good time, and everyone would get together, and it was just a wonderful, wild time in our lives. We were very aware of our age and where we were in our 20s, and just what that may mean in terms of a song, and how can we write this? How can we write a song that sort of symbolizes that? Then fast forward to the release date, which was May of last year, and the message had sort of changed for us because this wasn’t now a song that meant that. Things have changed for the whole world, and it was more or less about like go out and party as much as you can, like go rage. It was more like life is short and hold your loved ones tight, and when all of this is over, yeah, we’re going to go and have a good time, but right now, when you’ve got a little bit of time to reflect and be with the people that you can be with, yeah.

Some of the lyrics are, you know:
“Let’s take a joy ride, and we can bring our friends, tell me, are you in?
And when the sun rises, we can take our time and watch the days blend”

I feel like that’s kind of what sort of ended up happening; it was a lot of driving around, and it was a lot of watching sunsets and sunrises, and just being with their friends. That’s sort of what the quarantine was. So I think that’s kind of what the song became in a way. We do have some more music, so stay tuned for that. She’s obviously in the middle of a pregnancy right now, so we’re prioritizing that. As much as people would love to see a music video with Vanessa and her pregnant belly dancing around and having a good time— yeah, I’d love to see that, too, but there are some more important things to do first. Once she’s ready to come back to it, we will.

GLITTER: What was a day in social isolation like for you and did you learn anything about yourself during it?
DREW: A day would be: I’d wake up, I would make a pot of coffee— we had this wonderful coffee maker, it was this little yellow old sort of coffee maker— and you know what, the whole time, it never crossed my mind to order something from Amazon; get a nice espresso machine because I love coffee. This little thing was a powerhouse. It would make like six cups of coffee at a time between Charles and me, but we definitely got our money’s worth with this thing. Not that we paid for it, it was in the house when we got there. Yeah, so I’d wake up, I get a cup of coffee, I’d put my feet on the ground, I would say thank you to the world.

I tried practicing that more, and that was something I sort of adopted well, and quarantine was just to be thankful. If I wake up and put my feet on the ground and open up and say thank you, that the day will go as well as it can, regardless of what’s happening. A lot of running— I adopted running as a form of exercise. I had never been a runner in my life, was always a football player, sprinter type; long-distance just seemed ludicrous, insane, and ridiculous. Like who would want to do that? Subject their body to things like that? But it was a way for me to sort of see Los Angeles without being around people. I could drive through a canyon or a beach and just run by myself, and I did that honestly almost every day. That was sort of my routine. I’d wake up and say, “Thank you,” have a cup of coffee, take all of that caffeine adrenaline, and run for an hour. Then I’d come home, and the rest of the day kind of took care of itself after that—lots of movies, lots of cooking, lots of FaceTimes, and lots of Zooms.

GLITTER: Is there a film franchise that you’re a fan of and would like to join in the future? Any dream roles in that franchise?
DREW: I honestly don’t know if anyone is even aware of the level of obsession that I have with Star Wars. Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever even told anyone; like, I don’t talk about it, I don’t post about it, it’s not something like people hear. I don’t go around talking about it; I will try to start a conversation about Star Wars with people, even people that I think would be into it, and they’re like, “Yeah, yeah. Whatever, it’s Star Wars.” I’m like, “No, you don’t understand; I want more.” I love Star Wars. I’m a die-hard fan. I watched every movie at least once a year. I’m probably going to do it again now that I’m in quarantine. I’m going to watch it again. I’m obsessed with The Mandalorian.

I really would say that a dream role would be something in that universe because I love science fiction so much. And also, my mom reads a book a day— like she’s an avid reader, loves entertainment, loves science fiction. She’s the one that sort of got me into science fiction as a kid, and she remembers seeing Star Wars when it first came out. So that’s something that we’ve shared and will continue to share, our love for this series of movies. So if I could be in that universe, I would do it justice. I would know the backstories of things. I would understand the terminology. I would pay respect, where respect is due. I would bring something fresh. And that would be so much fun, whether he’s a Jedi or not. I think there is a place in a wonderful world of Star Wars where there are so many different colorful characters and people that occupy that space; I think there’s room for this guy, I believe that.

But, you know, I don’t know if there’s a cross-reference for fans between Riverdale and Star Wars, but maybe now that the writers know, perhaps they’ll have an episode where I’ve just got a toy lightsaber— that would even make me happy. Even that would just satisfy it for me.

GLITTER: Do you have any memorable fan interactions?
DREW: Oh, you know, I do. My mother is a teacher, and you know, mothers— they’re your number one fans, and she is such a great supporter of me, she always has been. And I think I was just trying to get my passport, and I needed like a copy of something from her to renew it, or I needed her as a reference or something. I went to the school that she teaches at. It was just a day to sort of just get this paperwork done, and of course, I underestimated the level of proudness my mother has, and so she starts introducing me to everybody in the school, and I realize that there’s a lot of kids that love the show in her school. I’m being introduced to everyone, and the school’s almost been closed for the day because I’m there to talk to everyone. Teachers are like throwing out their agendas and stuff like that, and they’re like, “Come in and say hi to our students.” I went from classroom to classroom and got to know these kids and just hang out. So what started as that became this sort of annual thing where I’d go to my mom’s school and just hang out with some kids there.

There was one interaction in particular where— so my mom lives in Vancouver, B.C.— it’s a small town of about 15000 people, and where she works is this other town, which is even smaller, and there are kids like me who are mixed-race that often feel like we don’t fit in growing up. At least I did, and it was tough for me to find a particular crowd that really represented me. I was just this melting pot of different ethnicities, and it was really hard for me to find where I fit in that world. There’s a student at my mom’s school, who is also mixed and biracial, and I just sat down one day, and it was this weird thing where I would go to a classroom and kids would just bring up their books and asked me to sign it. I was like, this is ludicrous to me, I don’t understand this at all, but whatever, I’m going to do it. I tried to chat with each kid and just get to know them, and this one student came up, and we had a great conversation. He loves soccer, and we talked about him playing soccer, and I come to find out that the mother had reached out to my mom to say, like, “Thank you. You don’t understand how much that meant to my son, that he felt somebody that looked like him listened to him and connected with him, and that he had somebody to look up to that also looked like him,” and it was a sort of weird thing where I didn’t really have a lot of people like that in my life growing up. Maybe it wasn’t something that I craved, but I think that if it appeared, I think I would have been aware of it, and it would have meant a lot to me. I wasn’t really putting the pieces together until I got home, and I was able to donate some stuff to this kid and some memorabilia, and I kept in touch. I just think that that’s been one of the better highlights of all of this, especially because it’s a hometown thing. It’s a homegrown sort of— it’s very close to my heart. Every interaction is spectacular and a blessing, 1000%. No matter where I go in the world, if I go somewhere and somebody recognizes me, it still blows my mind. But this one meant a lot because I did feel like it made a difference, and it did make a difference for me, too. So what more could you ask for?

GLITTER: What is your favorite thing about getting to bring a character to life on screen?
DREW: Probably just to take a break from being me. That’s the easy answer that a lot of people come up with, but it’s true. Actors have the saying—we’re just a bunch of kids who ran off to the circus, which is still true. I’m still this kid that ran off to the circus. So I’m running, I’m running from something usually. To have a character to play that gives me somewhere to stay for the night, it’s comforting.

GLITTER: What is one role that will always be special to you, and why?
DREW: Probably this one. Yeah, as in— for those who don’t know what I’m talking about—Riverdale, playing Fangs in Riverdale, and the relationships I formed. I looked it up today to see where we’re at with the season and stuff like that, getting ready for this interview and refreshing my mind, and I’d realize that they’d added more of the episodes on to IMDb, and I looked at it, and I realize I’m in over half of the episodes. Like I looked at the list, it says like “show more” or something, and then this big list went, and I was like, “Whoa!” You forget how fast time goes. I just was impressed. This has been something that’s been going on for a little over three years of my life, and I’ve really, truly made relationships with people that will last a lifetime. And it’s not like I met people when I was a lot younger, and then your life changes and stuff like that. You know, I’m getting older now, and life is starting to settle in just a little bit, and I truly believe I’ve just met some people and created some bonds that will last a lifetime. That fact alone will make it stick out in my mind that this character that was only supposed to be in a couple of episodes springboard into being a series regular three years later. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to top an experience like that; hopefully, just build upon that and continue and keep going. Try to recreate that everywhere I go, maybe try to pass the torch on a little as I proceed. Just take what I’ve learned and let it snowball into other projects and things like that. That’s what I would love to see, but I’ll never forget it. It’s meant a lot to me, and Riverdale’s has got a soft spot in my heart, that’s for sure.

GLITTER: Last show you binge-watched?
DREW: The Mandalorian. I binge-watched it because I knew it was starting to get released, but I waited until like five episodes had been released, and I watched them all like that night.

GLITTER: What is your go-to movie for movie night? 
DREW:  It’s interesting. What movie would I choose? That’s a good question because I wouldn’t want to choose something that wouldn’t fly with other people. I like some abstract movies. I’m also a fan of, like the tent-pole franchise, movies like Star Wars, Marvel, that kind of stuff. You know what? I think you can’t go wrong with Lord of the Rings. I think that it’s a long movie, but the payoff is so well-deserved, and I’ve yet to show that movie to anyone and not have them walk away and become a fan. There’s something so magical and special about those movies. I would attempt to play half of one of those movies, an hour and a half; that seems reasonable. Finish the rest tomorrow, that kind of thing.

GLITTER: What is currently at the top of your playlist?
DREW: I’ve got Drake, Lil Wayne, I’ve got The Band, “The Weight,” which is a great song. I’ve got some Wilson Phillips. I’ve got Donna Summer. I’ve got Chance the Rapper. I’ve got Young Thug. I’ve got The O’Jays, Teddy Pendergrass, Hall & Oates. Some Bob Dylan, and Bob Marley; the two great Bobs.

GLITTER: What advice would you give to anyone looking to join the entertainment industry?
DREW: Honestly, my answer to this is usually like ask me in 20 years cause I want to know my answer is going to be really the same, you know, like go after your dreams, don’t hesitate, you’re afraid to make the leap, and it’s not the leap that you’re scared of, it’s just taking the leap and that kind of stuff. Sure, like, that stuff’s interchangeable, you’ll hear that from anyone. Treat the craft with the same respect that somebody would treat another profession, like any other profession. Some people approach this without any thought of training or working on fine-tuning their tools; you know what I mean? Like, I sold cars for four years, and I had to know what model it was, I had to know the interest rates and know trade-in values. I had to be good. I had to know how to close the deal; how to introduce myself. There were things that made me a better salesman as the years went on that I had to actively work at.

So my advice is because there are people that have jobs in the world that are the best at their job. It doesn’t matter if you’re a line cook at Wendy’s like I’ve met people that are the best at what they do and people like that while they’re going to school or while they’re studying for their other career, that mentality of being the best at their job, it transitions into the next stage of their life. So if you’re working a job right now, you know— I worked so many jobs, I was a bartender, landscaping, demolition, you name it. I built chainsaws for a time. Be the best at it and take it seriously, because when you get to acting, yes, it’s an art form. Yes, it’s about emotions. And yes, it’s about feeling it and what your choices would be, but don’t forget to be a technician when it comes to your craft because it really is that at the end of the day, it is a lot of practice, and I’m still like, again, ask me in 20 years, and I’ll have a better answer because I’m still in the process of fine-tuning my toolset and working towards my craft. It’s never stopped for me. I keep working at it. So that’s my advice.

GLITTER: Glitter has a celebrity #SelfLoveCampaign. What does self-love mean to you?
DREW: Being able to be alone with yourself. I find that recently I’ve been attempting to be more alone, I’ve never really traveled alone before, and I just did some of that. I don’t think we realize how alone we really are when we’re in a room cut off from the world and it’s just you in the mirror, and it’s like, “What do we got, buddy? What are we working with here?” You know? If it’s just you and me, and we got one life to live, let’s make it the best, because I’m not getting anybody else. It’s just you and I. And when you got nobody else to compare yourself to, and you’re comfortable with that, then I think you can start to self-love. I think that if you can be comfortable being alone with just you, you realize that all of these other pressures in the world and society, they just don’t mean anything; it’s just bullsh*t. It’s just bullsh*t— you know, why you compare yourself to somebody else. I say all of this, and it’s really hard, though, it’s really not easy. It’s easier said than done to be able to walk into a room alone and just to be with yourself. It’s something that I’m still working at. It’s not something that I’m good at by any means. Still, I believe that that’s what self-love means to me, is that if I can truly be alone and be myself in those spaces where nobody else is looking, nobody else is paying attention— it’s just you and me, then I think I can leave those spaces and feel like I love myself a little bit more.

GLITTER: Do you have any new projects coming up that you can share?
DREW: Season five of Riverdale— tune in! Get your tickets! That’s been the highlight of my year cause we signed the deal and got it all closed about five or six months ago. That’s been my full commitment, I’ve been putting my whole heart into it, and so that’s what I have coming up.

GLITTER: What are the best social media platforms for fans to keep up with all things Drew?
DREW: Instagram, TikTok— be patient with me, I’m getting better at it. I’m trying to create more stuff when I’ve got time, but go there, follow, get the support in, and that’s it. Those are your two platforms, so make them count.