'Riverdale' actor Ryan Grantham 'regrets' murdering his mother

A former Riverdale actor who was sentenced to life in prison for brutally murdering his mother has revealed he "regrets" killing her.

Ryan Grantham, who played Jeffrey Augustine in Riverdale, is reportedly being held in a prison hospital where he is receiving counseling to help him deal with the guilt of killing his own mother, per TMZ.

Grantham murdered his mother Barbara Waite in March 2020 as she played the piano in their home in Squamish, north of Vancouver, having shot her in the back of the head.

He had pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in September 2022, after initially being charged with first-degree murder, and was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the first 14 years.

According to TMZ's sources, Grantham is getting counseling from the prison psychologist as well as occasional visits from a psychiatrist.

His attorney, Chris Johnson, told the publication that his client is remorseful for his actions, saying: "Mr. Grantham recently advised me that he’s doing well, getting the help he needs, and has gained some insight into what happened and why. He regrets what he did to his mother."

Grantham's attorney had previously expressed his concerns that the 24-year-old would be placed in a maximum security prison, where he faced a risk of being "physically, psychologically and sexually intimidated" due to his small size.

After Grantham's attorneys pleaded to have him relocated, authorities decided to keep him at a prison hospital in British Columbia, Canada, while they work out where he will serve the rest of his sentence.

Johnson added that Grantham is taking his rehabilitation seriously and realizes he has "a lot of personal work to do," but hopes he can become "a mentally healthy and contributing member of society at some point in time in the future."

In September 2022, the court had heard that Grantham shot Waite in the back of the head while she played piano at their home, leaving her in a pool of blood with a rosary hung on the piano and candles arranged around her body, which was discovered later in the evening by his sister after she grew concerned as her calls and texts went unanswered.

The court heard that Grantham had rehearsed the killing in the days prior, approaching his mother secretly with a gun, and also filmed a four-minute confession video following the murder, in which he showed the body.

Prosecutors also said that the actor drove 130 miles after the killing beforehisacking hi car with three guns, ammunition, and 12 Molotov cocktails the following day, heading off with camping supplies and directions to Rideau Cottage, Justin Trudeau’s Ottawa residence.

After testing one of the Molotov cocktails in a remote area, Grantham did not head any further towards Trudeau's home, instead turning round and later driving to Vancouver police headquarters to turn himself in and confess to killing his mother.

He had also reportedly had thoughts of committing mass violence on Vancouver’s Lions Gate Bridge or at Simon Fraser University, where he was enrolled as a student but did not act on them, per Metro UK.

According to reports, prosecutors referenced psychiatric reports stating that Grantham was "going through an intense period of clinical depression" and experiencing urges to commit violence and take his own life. The former child star had also been an experienced gun user as well as being a former member of a gun club, and experienced a cannabis use disorder, according to reports.

The defense had argued that mental illness had been a large factor in Grantham's crime, and highlighted that he had had a previously clean record and showed "significant remorse" after the murder.

At a previous hearing, he told the court in a statement: "I cannot explain or justify my actions. I have no excuse. It hurts me to think about how badly I’ve wasted my life.

"In the face of something so horrible, saying sorry seems so pointless. But from every fiber of my being, I am sorry."

Grantham had started his acting career as a child star, appearing in Diary of a Wimpy Kid and The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus as well as iZombie.

He was also known for playing Jeffrey Augustine in a 2019 episode of Riverdale, with his character being central to the exit of Fred Andrews, who was written out after the real-life death of actor Luke Perry.

Featured image credit: jvphoto / Alamy