The CW’s Katy Keene Pilot Adds Jonny Beauchamp and Julia Chan

Following the addition of Ashleigh Murray as Josic McCoy, Deadline reports that Penny Dreadful actor Jonny Beauchamp and Saving Hope‘s Julia Chan have signed on for leading roles in The CW‘s upcoming Riverdale musical spin-off Katy Keene.

Beauchamp is set to portray the role of Jorge/Ginger Lopez, who works at his family’s bodega during day. However, when the night comes, he goes by the name of Ginger, a drag queen who works as a bartender and performer at a local club. Meanwhile, Chan will be playing the character of New York City “It Girl” named Pepper Smith. She is described as the life of the party and dreams of one day opening her very own version of Andy Warhol’s Factory.

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In Katy Keene, the 20-something Josie McCoy has left the small town of Riverdale in pursuit of a new adventure in the Big City. More determined than ever to break into the music scene as the next Diana Ross, Josie finds herself forging new friendships, falling into new relationships, and, one day, becoming the star she is destined to be.

Directed by Maggie Kiley, the Riverdale spinoff is a musical dramedy that follows the lives and loves of four iconic Archie Comics characters — including fashion legend-to-be Katy Keene and singer/songwriter Josie McCoy— as they chase their twentysomething dreams in New York City. The musical dramedy chronicles the origins and struggles of four aspiring artists trying to make it on Broadway, on the runway and in the recording studio.

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Much like the Netflix adjacent Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, the shows will have a shared branding with their basis in Archie Comics but won’t see any crossing over in the foreseeable future.

Riverdale showrunner Robert Aguirre-Sacasa will co-write the pilot with Michael Grassi. Greg Berlanti and Sarah Schechter of Berlanti Productions will executive produce alongside Aguirre-Sacasa, Grassi and Archie Comics CEO Jon Goldwater. Warner Bros. Television is the studio.

(Photo credit: Getty Images)