Oni Press will soon be publishing Archie Comics.
That’s the short version of yet another comics publishing trend that is becoming increasingly common: legacy publishers licensing out their venerable titles to other publishers who can bring a fresh take.
Following Oni Press’s success with the EC Comics brand, the publisher will now produce and distribute Archie Comics periodical comics beginning in early 2026. Creators include such fresh names as Patrick Horvath, Corinna Bechko and Fábio Moon.
The benefits to both publishers are clear: Oni adds some of the most iconic characters in American pop culture to its brand, and Archie Comics, which has recently made changes in their distribution model, get new life for those icons.
“How do you take a character that is so malleable and has been put in virtually every situation possible in Riverdale and beyond and do something fresh in the year 2026?” said Oni’s chief Hunter Gorinson. “That is the kind of tall order that we put up for ourselves.”
According to Oni, they have licensed the full Archie Comics catalog and will take over monthly periodical titles as well as collected editions.
Per the official announcement, there will be a few new ongoing Oni/Archie comics, including Archie by W. Maxwell Prince and Fábio Moon, and an untitled horror comic from Eisner winner Patrick Horvath and Out of Alcatraz artist Tyler Crook. A Sabrina the Teenage Witch title will also serve as a launch book, in time with DC’s DC KO appearance of the teenage witch.
Sarbina the Teenage Witch and EC/Oni’s Kano will collaborate on Sabrina the Teenage Witch, while Archie in Hell, another horror series, will hail from Horvath and Crook.
“From the world of comics – where Archie’s stories led so many to pick up their very first comic book – to the long-running success of Riverdale, Archie’s cherished cast of characters have few rivals in terms of their visibility or influence on global pop culture,” said David Steward II, Chairman of the Oni-Lion Forge Publishing Group. “This new partnership is one of the most significant moments in Oni Press’ three decades as a leading publisher of independent comics, and, in collaboration with the Archie team, we look forward to writing a memorable new chapter in the history of these legendary characters that will set the stage for decades worth of stories yet to come.”
“Archie comics are always stories with elements of hope to them,” editor Jamie Rotante. told THR. “Even when you veer into the dark, or the tone gets serious, one thing that people look to for Archie is comfort and familiarity.”
“You only get so many chances to start these characters fresh, and we wanted to do something meaningful,” Gorinson said. “The mission statement was to take big swings and do big ongoing books that people can sink their teeth into over the course of years.”
There is no word yet as to whether current Archie standard-bearer Dan Parent will have a role in the reinvented publisher. Parent was largely absent from the “New Riverdale” reboot of 2015, but returned to prominence in the years since.
