Gina Torres Is Guest Starring on ‘Riverdale’ As Riverdale High’s Guidance Counselor

Gina Torres might be one of the most prolific actresses working today, and now, you can add another TV show to her resume: she’ll be guest starring on the December 4 episode of The CW’s Riverdale as Riverdale High’s guidance counselor, Mrs. Burble. No, I’m not joking.

The episode, titled “Chapter Sixty-Five: In Treatment,” is written by Tessa Leigh Williams and directed by Michael Goi. As you can probably surmise from the “In Treatment” part, the teens of Riverdale High get some help dealing with the stress of *checks notes* a serial killer half-brother (Betty Cooper, played by Lili Reinhart), two crime boss parents and a secret half-sister (Veronica Lodge, played by Camila Mendes), a criminal named Dodger (Archie Andrews, played by KJ Apa), a haunted doll and a potentially haunted corpse (Cheryl Blossom, played by Madelaine Petsch), and not currently attending Riverdale High (Jughead Jones, played by Cole Sprouse).

Tl;dr version, there’s a lot going on in the fourth season of Riverdale, as per usual, and thankfully Mrs. Burble is there to help. Before you get all up in arms about the ridiculous name, and yes, it is ridiculous, there’s also precedent. Mrs. Burble was first mentioned back on Season 2’s “Chapter Fifteen: Nighthawks.” But more importantly, she actually exists in the Archie Comics. When originally introduced, she was called Ms. Burble, which was later changed to Mrs. Burble in 2005’s “Tales of Riverdale #1.” She’s also the school’s guidance counselor, as she is on the show. It all checks out, folks.

If Torres’s name doesn’t sound instantly familiar, you’ll probably recognize her from one of her million roles, including recently starring in Suits spinoff Pearson, as well as Zoe on cult hit Firefly, stints on Hannibal (with husband Laurence Fishburne), Angel, Xena: Warrior Princess, and so many more. Point being, chalk up another great casting choice for Ye Olde Riverdale Casting Team.

You can check out the full synopsis for the episode here:

GINA TORRES GUEST STARS AS RIVERDALE HIGH’S GUIDANCE COUNSELOR — As residents across Riverdale begin receiving more mysterious videotapes on their doorsteps, the seniors of Riverdale High eagerly await their college decision letters. Concerned that the stress may be getting to them, Mrs. Burble (guest star Gina Torres), the school’s guidance counselor, meets with Betty (Lili Reinhart), Archie (KJ Apa), Veronica (Camila Mendes), Cheryl (Madelaine Petsch) and Jughead (Cole Sprouse) to discuss what’s plaguing them. Madchen Amick, Mark Consuelos, Casey Cott, Skeet Ulrich and Vanessa Morgan also star. Michael Goi directed the episode written by Tessa Leigh Williams (#408.) Original airdate 12/4/2019.

In case any of that seems confusing, there are some mysterious videotapes being left at doors that, so far, have only been six hours of footage of people’s houses. Presumably, things get more threatening than that. You can also check out some photos from “In Treatment,” here.

Riverdale airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on The CW

Where to watch Riverdale