This Tiny Detail In 'Riverdale' Could Be A Huge Clue About The Videotapes

Riverdale is finally back for its fifth season, and it brought a cryptic new mystery with it. Well, it's not exactly a new mystery, but some new details involving the creepy auteur may point to the truth about who is behind all those disturbing videotapes. The most notable new discovery is that the filmmaker is apparently a big fan of owls. Fans might be wondering what the owl mask on Riverdale means, and while it may seem arbitrary, the villain's animal mascot could also be a very telling clue.

Spoiler alert: This post contains spoilers for Riverdale Season 5, Episode 1, "Climax." The new season premiere kicked the videotapes mystery into high gear, as Betty and Jughead seemingly encountered the person who's been taunting them with strange videos at an underground movie night/rave. The figure hid their face under an owl mask and got away before Betty or Jughead could get a better look. Then, when the auteur struck again on prom night, the video showed Blue Velvet Video employee (and prime videotapes suspect) David wearing the owl mask while being stabbed to death.

It's unclear whether David is really dead or not, given that Mr. Honey wasn't actually killed following a video of his supposed death. However, when Betty and Jughead rushed to the scene of the apparent snuff film, nobody was there. All they found was the owl mask and a sign on the video camera saying, "Smile, God's watching."

What could it all mean? Well, owls are famously a symbol for wisdom, and the message on the camera seems to suggest the auteur sees themself as some sort of god. Together, the clues suggest the auteur is someone who is all-knowing, or at least knows a lot more than anyone realizes.

The owl doesn't point to any character specifically, but TBH, it makes the theory about Charles being the auteur even more convincing. As the half-brother of both Jughead and Betty, he is likely privy to a lot more family secrets than he is letting on — like his hidden relationship with Chic, for starters. Plus, he's an FBI agent with an expertise in surveillance, which totally fits in with the image of an all-knowing, all-seeing owl.

It's still too early to be completely sure about who's been making these weird videotapes and why they're doing it, but fans can expect the big reveal very soon.

Riverdale airs Wednesday nights at 8 p.m. ET on The CW.