‘I miss him’: Riverdale’s KJ Apa opens up about losing Luke Perry

Riverdale star KJ Apa has opened up about losing his friend and co-star Luke Perry. Perry died in 2019 after suffering from a massive stroke. The actor’s death came as a massive shock to fans of Riverdale, but most notably to his family and friends.

Apa has rarely spoken publicly about the passing of Perry, who played his dad Fred Andrews on the teen-drama series. The actor tends to keep his personal life private, but recently told Mr Porter that losing Perry “changed everything” for him.

He revealed: “It changed everything when Luke passed. I’ve never lost anyone close to me, so it was a really hard time, it’s hard still.

“Going to work, I can just feel that he’s not there any more. We had a really, really good relationship, me and Luke. I was so blessed to have him in my life. I miss him. I just miss talking to him. I miss listening to him,” he continued.

The I Still Believe star praised Perry for teaching him how to protect his privacy, “I really do work hard on protecting my privacy, my home, my family, the people I love. Luke taught me that.”

“He was just kind of a guy that kept us, especially me, grounded because he’d been through all of this stuff. I was so blessed to have him in my life to say, ‘Maybe don’t do that,’ or, ‘This is a good idea.’ Just giving me advice. I miss him. I just miss talking to him. I miss listening to him.”