Kelly Ripa plays Mrs. Mulwray, the alleged mistress of Hiram Lodge (Mark Consuelos). Kelly Ripa is married to Mark Consuelos.
Mulwray, the name of the water inspector in Season Three's "The Red Dahlia", is the same name of the water inspector in the movie Chinatown (1974). The last words spoken in "Chinatown" by detective Walsh are paraphrased by Veronica at the end.
In his opening narration, Jughead refers to Riverdale as "Noir Town", and references Raymond Chandler, "dames to kill for", "postmen who like to ring twice", and Martin Scorsese. This episode is presented in the "film noir" style, a term applied to dark and atmospheric crime films, particularly from the 1940s-1950s, often featuring archetypal characters such as the private eye and femme fatale. Raymond Chandler was a well-known author of crime fiction, especially stories featuring the detective Philip Marlowe. Several of his stories have been adapted to film, and he also wrote several screenplays for crime/noir films. "A Dame to Kill For" is the second story of comic book legend Frank Miller's neo-noir "Sin City" series, published in 1993. "The Postman Always Rings Twice" is a 1934 crime novel by James M. Cain, famously adapted to film in 1946 and 1981. Film director Martin Scorsese is famous for his crime/mafia epics like Goodfellas (1990), Casino (1995), and The Departed (2006).
Reggie (Charles Melton) says, "Sounds a lot like the plot of Bad Boys II (2003)." Melton is cast in the new "Bad Boys" movie, Bad Boys for Life (2020).
The song sung by Josie is Madonna's "Sooner or later", which appears on the soundtrack of the film "Dick Tracy". the atmospheres of this episode recall those of a 1930s detective film.