Zombie Archie Trailer Shown At SDCC

Afterlife With Archie (JUL130792) — a new comic book from writer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and artist Francesco Francavilla — was promoted with a trailer at this year's Archie panel for San Diego Comic-Con.

The upcoming series, which will launch in October, sees the gang dealing with a completely new challenge when the zombie apocalypse begins. The clip gives us a first look at what Riverdale will look like with some new residents: zombies.

"It is dark in that the Archie gang is fighting for their lives and survival, and there is a body count," says Aguirre-Sacasa. "But if you think of the Evil Dead movies Sam Raimi did or even Peter Jackson's zombie movie Dead Alive, there was always definitely a sense of humor about it. It wasn't tongue-in-cheek or campy, but it was fun."

The story begins with Jughead's dog, Hot Dog, being run over with a car. Jughead brings the dog to Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, who, after much deliberation, brings the dog back to life. But Hot Dog is not the same sweet hound he was before, and he bites Jughead, infecting him with his virus.

"On the night of the Halloween dance in Riverdale, the zombie apocalypse begins," says Aguirre-Sacasa, who was also recently tapped to write the upcoming Warner Bros. live-action Archie film, which will not have any undead visiting Riverdale. "The Archie movie is a straight-up Archie movie. It's much more of a teenage coming-of-age story," he says, adding that he's been working with director Jason Moore on outlining the story.

Look for it at your local comic shop!