Dave Cunningham
As of January 2021, Riverdale fans have been enjoying themselves alongside the series’ fifth season. However, being one of the more fortunate series to come out of the pandemic alive, the stress of production has slowly crept up––forcing a hiatus off the air for at least three months to allow production to catch up.
As Riverdale fans, I’m sure you’d want a sort of schedule to keep yourself posted and, at least, anxious-free as to when the fifth season of the series will be dropping globally on Netflix throughout the rest of 2021––and we’re here to deliver that to you.
Globally, the series has been doing well to follow-up on their massive start on the streaming giant. In fact, they’ve steadily been in the Netflix US top 10 list after their fourth season dropped on the 15th of May, 2020. Not only in the US, but the series has also topped charts in Germany, France, India, Canada, Australia, and even the United Kingdom.
Why did Riverdale Season 5 begin much later in all Netflix regions?
Riverdale was delayed from its original October release schedule on The CW. For productions in 2020, this should come as unsurprising as TV series around the world have decided to halt productions because of the pandemic. The series even had a reduced episode count for their fourth season. That’s how much damage the pandemic has done.
According to ProductionWeekly, the newest season was supposed to be filmed in August 2020 in Vancouver, Canada. However, it was also reported by various sources that it didn’t start until September 2020. Even then, the pandemic was still a lingering issue that they had to halt production again.
After a pretty long way, Riverdale finally aired in the United States on the 20th of January, 2021.
As you may well be aware by now, episodes 1 to 11 will be released between January and the early parts of April. However, the series will be undergoing a three-month hiatus. This is a worthy topic since this will be affecting when Riverdale will be releasing on the streaming giant.
Riverdale Season 5 Netflix Original Release Schedule
As long as Netflix exists in your region, Riverdale will continue to be a Netflix Original even for its fifth season. Some rumours have spread that The CW has taken over the series because it releases episodes a day earlier than Netflix.
Take, for example, the next couple of episodes (as of March 21st, 2021):
- Episode 509 will be released on The CW on the 24th of March, 2021, while Netflix will be released on the 25th of March.
- Episode 510 will be released on The CW on the 31st of March, 2021, while Netflix will be released on the 1st of April.
- Episode 511 will be released on The CW on the 7th of April, 2021, while Netflix will be released on the 8th of April.
- Episode 512 will be released on The CW on the 7th of July, 2021, while Netflix will be released on the 8th of July.
When will Riverdale season 5 be on Netflix in the United States?
Unfortunately, the United States drew the shorter end of the stick and will have to wait even longer for the fifth season. With the release being pushed back by three months, not to mention the hiatus, it’d take fans at least a half-a-year of waiting, and can expect the series around August or September.
With this, people have actually been worried about whether or not Riverdale will be leaving the streaming giant––but don’t get too worried about it. As a part of the streaming community, their lives are definitely not unlimited. However, for the rest of the series’ lifetime (and a couple more years after), it’ll be staying with Netflix.
Oh, and, Riverdale was also renewed for a sixth season last February 2021 so there are definitely more stories to come.
