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The Black Hood Is Officially Returning To 'Riverdale,' So Start Theorizing Again

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Apparently, the town of Riverdale is still not safe from the Black Hood. Though the masked gunman was seemingly revealed earlier in Riverdale Season 2, now showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and star KJ Apa are sharing that the mysterious antagonist is going to resurface later this season. That's right, you guys — the Black Hood is returning to Riverdale. Obviously, that means that fans are going to have to go back to the drawing board and dig up their old Black Hood theories!

At a PaleyFest panel on Sunday, KJ Apa confirmed that the Black Hood mystery is not over yet, and that Archie's thirst for justice will drive him and his friends towards discovering the truth pretty soon:

I think the janitor being the Black Hood was something that [Archie] wasn’t going to buy ... With more instances showing up that could hint towards the Black Hood still maybe being out there, it drives him to find justice.

Showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa filled fans in on just how soon we can expect the Black Hood mystery to resurface: by the end of this season. He confirmed that the masked murderer will make his shocking return in "the last few episodes" of Season 2. Since the currently airing second season only has six episodes remaining, that means fans should start preparing for a Black Hood comeback to happen any minute now.

Aguirre-Sacasa also shared that he and his fellow writers have been hinting towards who the Black Hood really is for the past few episodes:

We always knew it wasn’t going to be just the janitor. But for the last 10 episodes or so, we’ve had a pretty clear idea [of who it is] and have been writing towards that.

As a reminder to fans, the mystery of the Black Hood loomed large over the first half of Riverdale Season 2, as a masked man went on a killing spree throughout the town. In the midseason finale, Sheriff Keller shoots and kills the Black Hood as Archie and Betty chased after him, and he is unmasked and revealed to be Riverdale High's janitor Mr. Svenson.

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The reveal fell flat for many Riverdale fans, who were expecting a more prominent or shocking character to be under the mask. Fans also pointed to the fact that the show had been setting up a number of details about the Black Hood that point to Mr. Svenson not being his real identity, most notably that the Black Hood was set up to have a very close connection to Betty Cooper. Although the show moved past the Black Hood mystery after the Mr. Svenson reveal, most fans were still pretty convinced that the real killer was still out there, and even on the show Archie admitted that he still has a sneaking suspicion that they did not catch the real Black Hood.

So, now that we know for sure that the Black Hood is coming back, it is time for fans to start theorizing about who could really be under that mask all over again. Here's a reminder of some of the main Black Hood suspects:

  • Sheriff Keller. As one of the only men in town that seems to have the physical attributes to match the Black Hood, Sheriff Keller was one of the biggest Black Hood suspects before the unmasking. He seemed to throw a kink in the theory when he showed Betty his logbook, which provided proof he was not near the scene during all of the Black Hood murders, but he may still be a suspect. After all, Keller was the one who killed Svenson rather than capture him — maybe he opted to kill him so that he wouldn't talk and spill the truth that Keller was working with him as another Black Hood?
  • Hal Cooper. Alongside Sheriff Keller, Hal Cooper is really the only other man in Riverdale who physically resembles the Black Hood. Obviously, he also checks off the box of having a connection to Betty, and we have seen him act more and more villainous as this season has gone on.
  • Chic Cooper. Clearly, Chic isn't the actual man under the mask, but that did not stop Betty's long-lost brother from becoming one of the most prominent Black Hood suspects among Riverdale fans. Chic turned up in town right after Svenson was unmasked, and has been super mysterious and menacing ever since... not to mention already involving Alice and Betty in a murder. Could Chic have been the Black Hood on the phone that spoke to Betty, staying back and ordering Mr. Svenson to physically carry out the murders?
  • Clifford Blossom. This is a new addition to the suspect list. Although we saw him die in Season 1, now fans are pretty sure that Cliff Blossom is secretly alive and well, and just returned to Riverdale pretending to be his own twin brother Claudius. If Cliff really didn't die, then he is totally unaccounted for throughout the whole Black Hood fiasco, and we already know he has the criminal background to pull off these murders.