Published : 21 Aug 2025, 08:02 PM
Updated : 21 Aug 2026, 01:41 PM
Universal Pictures is developing a feature adaptation of the popular "Archie" comic book series, with Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, the producers behind the Spider-Verse franchise, set to lead the project.
Tom King, the Eisner Award-winning comic book author known for Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, will write the script. Plot details for the untitled film have not been disclosed.
“We are longtime fans of Archie, Veronica, Betty and the gang in all of their iterations. When we heard Tom King’s take on the classic material, we instantly thought it made sense as an event movie for all audiences -- both lifelong fans and a whole new generation,” Lord and Miller said in a statement on Wednesday.
“We’re so excited to bring these beloved characters to the big screen.”
Emma Watts, who first brought the project to Lord and Miller, will serve as a producer.
Archie Comics chief executive and publisher Jon Goldwater will also produce, alongside Aditya Sood, president of Lord Miller.
Universal Pictures executives Britt Hennemuth and Christine Sun will oversee the project for the studio.
Archie Comics has sold more than three billion copies worldwide over its 85-year history and maintains a substantial presence on social media.
The characters debuted in 1941’s Pep Comics No. 22, and many of the stories centre on depictions of small-town Americana.
Though Archie has not matched the sales of industry leaders Marvel or DC Comics, the brand has long enjoyed strong recognition, in part because of its decades-long presence at grocery store checkout lines.
Meanwhile, the announcement has sparked reactions in India, where fans quickly noted that Bollywood had already delivered its own Archie-inspired story last year with Zoya Akhtar’s The Archies.
Starring Agastya Nanda, Suhana Khan and Khushi Kapoor, the film reimagined the gang in a 1960s Anglo-Indian town.
Although it did not receive a theatrical release, it premiered on an OTT platform.
“Why not just put the Bollywood Archies movie in theaters instead?” one fan asked on social media.
Another added, “We don’t need this. We already have the Bollywood Archies movie.”
