KJ Apa: Riverdale star reveals addiction battle and moment he ate McDonald’s off floor after peeing around it

New Zealand actor KJ Apa has come clean on the extreme lengths he would go to quell his “addictive” urges while filming hit series Riverdale. Apa starred as protagonist Archie Andrews for seven seasons on the show, which aired between 2017 and 2023, after relocating to the US at 17 to pursue acting. Appearing on the newly launched Wildmen Podcast, he admitted there were elements of his life that he found difficult to control at the time. “I had so many things that I was doing that were so unhealthy that kind of bred throughout that show in me because of . . . having my shirt off all the time, even just experiencing fame,” he said. “I’ve been sober a year and a half, but it’s been six years of . . . anything that makes me feel good, I will abuse. It’s something that I’ve learned about myself.” Speaking with writer Brendan Columbus and actor Dylan Sprouse, the latter being the twin brother of co-star Cole Sprouse, Apa said he would regularly eat donuts while on set then return to his trailer to throw up. He shared one particularly crude story that illustrated the extent of his impulses. “I was quarantining, I was in a house with two of my friends on the show, and I was trying to be sober and not smoke weed or anything and I remember I was so hungry one night . . . I was also trying to lose a lot of weight because I was going back to work. And when I’m on a vibe I’m like beast mode, I’m obsessed about it,” Apa said. “And so which then also makes me do crazy s... but I ordered all of this McDonald’s. I ordered like three Big Macs, a bunch of McNuggets and stuff, and fries, milkshake and it’s like 2am, about to beast mode this thing. “I slam like half of it, and immediately I’m like, ‘Why did I do that? Why did I do that?’ I p..... on the rest of the food. “I took it outside, I p..... all over it. I go throw up all the food that I ate.” With the hosts already amused and riffing off Apa’s anecdote, the actor interjected and said there was more to the story. “I go back outside about 20 minutes later after lying in bed going, I’m hungry again, because all the food is now out of my body, and when you do that you get hungry again really quickly,” he continued. “I went downstairs, I go outside, it’s there, right? And I start eating around the p..., I eat the rest of the food and left the soaking piss food there. “I could have just ordered more food, but I needed to have it right now.” As a friend of Apa, Dylan attempted to explain his actions. “And you also needed to punish yourself and make it harder for yourself,” he posited. “Exactly,” Apa said. Apa also spoke of once being “punched” by co-star Cole after learning the Kiwi had relapsed. Known for his red hair and pale skin on Riverdale, the actor has since emerged as a colourful social media personality and film actor. Entering another arm of the entertainment industry of late, Apa has released music and performed under his alter ego Mr. Fantasy, though publicly denies having any connection to the character.