Riverdale star KJ Apa appeared carefree as he joked around with a pal on Saturday, after being ‘falsely accused of sexual assault alongside three Riverdale co-stars’.
The actor, 23, was seen smiling as the pair stepped into the road and laughed with each other while outside a restaurant in Silverlake, California.
Earlier this week the New Zealand native, along with Cole Sprouse, Lili Reinhart and Vanessa Morgan, was named in tweets from anonymous Twitter accounts alleging sexual assault.
Relaxed: KJ Appa, 23, appeared carefree as he joked around with a pal in California on Saturday, after being ‘falsely accused of sexual assault alongside three Riverdale co-stars’
Since then co-stars Madelaine Petsch and Camila Mendes have spoken out and defended their cast-mates against the accusations.
In the pictures taken on Saturday, KJ appeared to be relaxed as he laughed with his friend.
The star donned an oversized white t-shirt and baggy black trousers for the outing and completed his ensemble with a pair of Nike trainers.
KJ also sported a more rugged look than usual, swapping his clean shaven face for a beard and messy hair.
Smiles: The Riverdale actor smiled as his pal followed him into the road during their outing
Casual: KJ donned a white t-shirt and baggy trousers, which he paired with white trainers
Riverdale actors Cole Sprouse, Lili Reinhart, Vanessa Morgan and KJ Apa were accused of sexual misconduct on Monday by several anonymous Twitter accounts and all four have vehemently denied the allegations which they have called ‘false’.
Cole spoke out about the allegations in a series of Tweets hours later, with him and Lili looking into legal action.
The actor, 27, wrote: ‘Earlier today myself and three other cast mates were falsely accused of sexual offense by anonymous accounts on twitter. I take these accusations very seriously, and will be working with the right teams to get to the root of it.’
Cole continued: ‘False accusations do tremendous damage to victims of actual assault. Furthermore, I would never silence anybody. I encourage that people look into the accusations themselves, as the events detailed were factually untrue.’
Having fun: The New Zealand native was seen leaning on his pal as they both laughed
Lili, who was accused on another anonymous account, quotes his tweet minutes later and added her statement: ‘I have always taken sexual assault allegations seriously. But it was proven that this account was specifically to create false stories about me and my cast.
She said: ‘I can’t think of something more twisted than lying about sexual assault. It invalidates the men and women who are brave enough to come forward with the truth. This kind of lie can ruin lives and careers – and I can call it a lie because the person who made the allegations already admitted that the stories were fabricated.’
She wrote: ‘We are looking into taking legal action. This kind of sick behavior only harms true survivors. This was incredibly triggering for me and scary because I’ve always supported survivors and believed them.’
Deny: Cole Sprouse and Lili Reinhart denied the sexual assault allegations made against them and their Riverdale co-stars Vanessa Morgan and KJ Apa by several anonymous Twitter users on Sunday
His statement: Cole took to Twitter on Sunday to deny the accusations made against him and his three other cast mates
Lili, 23, concluded: ‘I hope and pray that this does not discourage real survivors from speaking out about their experiences.’
The accusations against Cole came from an anonymous account with the handle @Victori6680029; the user alleged sexual misconduct by Cole at a party in 2013 at New York University.
Accusations against Lili, Vanessa and KJ arose from other anonymous Twitter accounts, with one of those accounts later tweeting: ‘Do you see how easy it is to lie and you guys believe it? Vanessa Morgan and Kj Apa didn’t do jacks**t. You will believe anything,’ via Us Weekly.
Her statement: Lili quoted his tweet minutes later and added her statement
Speaking out: Riverdale co-star Madelaine Petsch came to their defense
Riverdale co-star Madelaine Petsch came to their defense and tweeted: ‘As someone who has been sexually assaulted, I am deeply disturbed that anyone thinks that it is okay to falsely accuse someone of sexual assault.
‘This is why real assault allegations can sometimes not be taken seriously, you should be ashamed. This is disgusting.’
While Camila Mendes also spoke out against the allegations, saying it was ‘sickening’ and ‘incredibly destructive to falsely accuse people of sexual assault.’
Cast: Cole spoke out about the allegations in a series of Tweets hours soon after the accusations were made, with him and Lili looking into legal action; pictured (L to R): Cole Sprouse, Lili Reinhart, Luke Perry, Camilla Mendes, KJ Apa, Madelaine Petsch and Ashleigh Murray in 2016