Who Is The REAL Charles Smith On "Riverdale"? Fans Think We've Seen Him Before

1 May 2018, 17:14

Charles Smith Riverdale
Picture: The CW
Katie Louise Smith

By Katie Louise Smith

Will the real Charles Smith please stand up?

Let's talk about that MASSIVE Chic shaped plot twist in the latest episode of Riverdale, shall we? Or should we say, Charles Smith?

As we all know, it was recently revealed in season 2, episode 19 that Chic as we know him is not Alice Cooper's real son. In a wild plot twist that we all saw coming, it was revealed that Chic had been posing as Alice's *actual* son, whose real name is Charles - and whose real dad is FP Jones (you can make the "we been knew in 2k17" cheque out to cash, thank you in advance.)

While tied up in the Cooper basement, Fake Chic revealed that he and Charles were hostel roommates who used to fight all the time. Charles once knocked on the Cooper's door, only to be turned away by Alice who dismissed him as a random kid. (Please excuse me while I cry about all of this for the millionth time...) Chic then reveals that after being rejected, Charles OD'd on Jingle Jangle and died. BUT, in conflicting reports across town, their hostel neighbour later said that she thought a grizzly murder had taken place. Chic later "confesses" to murdering Charles to Betty, who is holding him at gunpoint. So what's the truth.gif?

via GIPHY

ANYWAY the point is, this is Riverdale and unless a dead body is seen on screen, we have reason to believe that the real Charles Smith Jones is alive and well. With that in mind, fans are now starting to suspect that the real Charles has, in fact, been lurking under our noses the whole time.

Some fans are now convinced that Charles is the mastermind behind the Black Hood and is in cahoots with Chic. Betty's mystery caller somehow knew about Chic's murderous ways and Charles' time at the SOQM overlapped with Svenson. It would also explain why the caller was so obsessed with Betty but by all accounts, Charles seems like a genuinely sweet kid - there's no way. We refuse to believe it. You will not slander my sweet Falice baby with accusations like that.

But just incase that potential plot twist wasn't scandalous enough for ya, there's another handful of fans who are convinced that we might have actually seen Charles in the show before, and he's been living under our noses the whole time.

via GIPHY

Remember Ben? The random blonde kid who has popped up a grand total of three times across throughout the show for seemingly no reason at all?

He was spotted at the Drive-In, he was the last victim of Ms Grundy and he was also once seen leaving the Cooper house... His actual identity or purpose has never really been revealed but it has been hinted at by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa on ET's Sweetwater Secrets that "there is a resonance as to why he keeps popping up, but stay tuned. There will be more sightings."

Could it be because he is the real Charles? Is that why Ben is so important? A lot of people seem to think so...

As iconic as that plot twist would be, it's just not adding up because he looks nothing like the picture from Charles' file at the SOQM. Here's a side by side look at Ben and that picture of the real Charles, for reference. See? They're not the same person. Different nose, different facial structure. Theory sadly quashed and debunked. Back to the drawing board.

Ben Charles Smith Riverdale
Picture: The CW

While it's clear that we haven't seen Charles before, we're still holding out hope that he is alive and that we'll meet him soon. Like we said, unless we see a body (not a grave, not a death certificate... we need a full body for confirmation, we know what you're like Riverdale) we're not believing Chic's story. Who is he? Where is he? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH HIM?

GIVE US THE FALICE LOVECHILD WE DESERVEEEEEEE 🗣