Cole Sprouse has opened up about the abuse he received from Riverdale fans after his split from co-star Lili Reinhart.
The two actors began dating in 2017, at which time their Riverdale characters, Jughead and Betty, were also an item on the show.
With life imitating art at the time, fans of the CW teen drama – which is currently airing its seventh and final season – were eager to root for the former Disney Channel star and Reinhart, 26.
However, Sprouse, 31, later devastated fans after he confirmed that the pair had split in March 2020.
Speaking to Vulture in a joint cast interview, the Sweet Life on Deck child star reflected on the “really nasty” reactions he faced from fans following the breakup.
“I get a lot of stuff sent to my house or my loved ones’ houses. Death threats, really nasty, honestly criminal stuff,” Sprouse alleged. “And I do think it’s because at least four of us at this table have dated our co-workers.”
Camila Mendes, 29, and Charles Melton, 32, whose characters Veronica and Reggie date on the show, were also together in real life from 2018 to 2019.
Lili Reinhart and Cole Sprouse— (Getty Images)
“Is that just a consequence of an incredible love? Or is that what fanaticism looks like?” Sprouse questioned. “Perhaps because those lines were blurred to our audience, it’s hard to break those things up when life moves on.”
The actor has previously spoken about the difficulties of navigating the aftermath of his relationship with Reinhart. “It was really hard,” Sprouse told Alex Cooper on her Call Her Daddy podcast in March. “I know we both did quite a bit of damage to each other.”
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Months after the two broke up, the Hustlers actor came out as a “proud bisexual woman”.
In an interview with GQ last year, Sprouse acknowledged that while their relationship had “all this public currency”, what they had was “as real as it gets”.
Sprouse has since been dating model Ari Lou Fournier. In January of this year, the couple celebrated their two-year anniversary.
Meanwhile, earlier this month, Reinhart confirmed her new relationship with TikTok star Jack Martin.
In a celebratory Instagram Story on 3 August, Reinhart wrote: “It’s my cowboy’s birthday,” alongside a photo of Martin wearing a black cowboy hat.
“I’m so grateful for the light you’ve brought into my life,” she wrote over another photo of herself and Martin embracing while standing on a pier. “Happy birthday, mon petite.”
