It's been a few years since the dark and devious A was unveiled, and the show came to an end.
Fans were taken on a whirlwind of constant drama watching Pretty Little Liars, but it's
safe to say that the actors were facing their fair share of off-screen battles too. While
they weren't trying to uncover a murder mystery, some of the cast members went through serious
health scares, battles with their depression, sexual orientation and even tragic family
losses.
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Janel Parrish
You probably weren't sure whether you loved or hated Mona, but your love for Janel Parrish
never went into question.
The actress suffered the most tragic loss in 2018 just weeks before her wedding to Chris
Long. Her-soon-to-be father-in-law, called Buck by those who loved him dearly, was killed
in a horrific car accident that was caused by a drunken driver. He had been driving in
traffic in the morning and was suddenly hit head-on by an 18-year-old intoxicated driver.
Buck was killed instantly by the impact.
"Words can't explain the feeling of losing someone to something so senseless... something
that could have been prevented."
Janel and Chris's family were shaken and totally heartbroken from the loss. Their wedding was
right around the corner, and a time that was supposed to be spent celebrating love and
union was rather spent mourning the loss of someone they had all loved.
The actress used her large Instagram following to speak out against drinking and driving.
She asked that her followers not let Buck's passing be in vain by making donations to
Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), a nonprofit devoted to honoring victims and survivors
of drunk driving and putting a stop to further devastating incidents.
Sasha Pieterse (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReNnLHkkSg4
- 0.08)
Ally was a complex character. First, everyone thought she was dead and then she wasn't dead,
then she was friends with everyone and then everyone hated her. It's fair to say that
fans were taken on a rollercoaster of emotions with her character, because deep down they
all knew that they could never really trust Ally.
Sasha on the other hand couldn't be further from her character on the show that made her
famous. Aside from being warm, loving and kind to all those around her, she created
a lifestyle website that has a focus on entertaining and food and she's also written her own cookbook.
But the actress and businesswoman haven't had an easy journey to get to where she is
now. She was bullied and harassed online for a while for gaining weight and decided to
speak out against those who were body-shaming her.
"People were actually angry that I had gained weight, I was being (and still am) called
names, made fun of, the (unfortunate) usual but it wasn't until people started asking
and assuming I was pregnant that I decided to say something."
For almost two years, the Pretty Little Liars star was left baffled by her weight gain.
She was being swarmed by cyber-bullies that made her feel terrible about herself when
none of it had been in her control and she didn't know what had caused it.
"I had no idea what was going on and I didn't have any way of solving it. Very recently
I was diagnosed with PCOS, [a] hormone imbalance. And finally I knew why this was happening
to me."
She went on to explain that the journey to loving herself has been truly challenging.
She's had to learn that being healthy isn't simply about eating well and exercising, but
also being kind to yourself and surrounding yourself with people that love you.
Sasha and her husband are now new parents, to a gorgeous baby boy, who has totally changed
their lives for the better. "We are absolutely in love with him and we
still can't believe he's ours."
Tyler Blackburn
Everyone loved the tech-savvy Caleb from Pretty Little Liars. They probably loved Hanna and
Caleb even more. The on-screen couple had fiery chemistry that may have leaked into
their off-screen relationship too.
Although they never confirmed that they were officially dating, Tyler said that sometimes
the lines between Hanna and Caleb's relationship and Tyler and Ashley's relationship would
get a little blurred. The pair had even been spotted kissing the one year at Coachella.
"We had periods when we felt more for each other, but ultimately we're good buds."
Tyler also opened up about something that he had kept very private for most of his life.
At the age of 32, the actor came out as bisexual. He said he had identified as bisexual since
he was a teenager, but the stereotypes that came with it made him feel like he wasn't
ready to embrace his true self.
"For the longest time, I suppressed more of my attraction to men. It wasn't until my late
20s, towards the end of Pretty Little Liars, that I really allowed myself to go there …"
The actor admitted that he had dated his first guy, but because he hadn't come out to the
public, it almost felt as though he was shying away from his sexuality. It wasn't fair to
his boyfriend at the time and things didn't end up working out. So after turning 30 he
decided that it was time to come out as his true self finally.
Ashley Benson
Hanna was witty and always knew when there was something wrong with one of her friends.
She was often thought of as being smarter than Spencer, and of course, when she and
Caleb broke up for a while on the show, fans were heartbroken … In fact, that's not the
only break that's wrecked fans' hearts.
The actress made headlines back in 2019 when she and her then-girlfriend Cara Delavigne
announced with an Instagram post that they were dating. The couple took "adorable to
another level and fans couldn't get enough of them.
The actress also made a point of not labeling her sexuality because she was aware that news
and tabloids were going to focus on the fact that she was dating a girl anyway. So she
didn't feel the need to draw attention to something that really wasn't important.
They played jokes on the paparazzi, posted the sweetest birthday messages to one another
and for a while, the world was able to believe in love because they saw it between Cara and
Ashley.
And then, two years later the couple made headlines once again but this time it wasn't
for being cute … it was to announce their breakup and fans could not have been more
devastated.
"Cara and Ashley always had their ups and downs before but it's over now," an unnamed
source said, "Their relationship just ran its course."
Then, just a few months later, Ashley was spotted with the musician G-Eazy. The actress
featured on his latest album, and soon it seemed that they were doing a lot more than
just collaborating together.
Fans were enraged at the sight of Ashley seemingly moving on so quickly from her ex-girlfriend,
Cara. So naturally, as passionate fans do, they lashed out at her online and on social
media. Benson was being bullied so badly for her new relationship with G-Eazy that Cara
herself had to step in and tell people to back off and leave her alone.
"It's more important now than ever to spread love, not hate…To everyone hating on Ashley
Benson, please stop. You don't know the truth, only her [sic] and I do and that's exactly
how it should be."
The actress did her best to ignore the haters and enjoy her relationship with her new man.
It seemed that the couple fell hard and fast for one another. They were spotted kissing,
holding hands and at one point, the actress was even wearing a diamond ring on THAT finger
which fuelled rumours of an engagement.
But it seems like a year down the line, things burned out just as quickly as they fired up.
Friends of the couple said that they had started to fight more often and things took a turn
for the worst. Eventually, it was Ashley that called it quits and left G-Eazy.
Shay Mitchelle
Emily was always a fan favorite, and her initial struggle to come to terms with her sexuality
moved the show audience. While Emily felt like she needed to come out as gay, Shay hasn't
felt the need to define her own sexuality.
"Right now I'm dating a guy. I don't know what it's going to be in three years. You
love who you love. Black, white, polka-dot, that's what my dad always said. I'm never
going to label myself."
Shay has maintained a very active presence on social media, so when it comes to what's
going on in her life, her fans are always up to date.
Recently, the actress opened up about her journey to motherhood and admitted that she
may not want to have another child. Shay was candid about her battle with prenatal depression
and how much she struggled through her pregnancy with her daughter, Atlas. Despite really wanting
her daughter to have a sibling, she is frightened about having to go through another bout of
depression.
"I wasn't that beaming goddess that absolutely loved it," she continued. "I don't want to
do it again because it took a toll on me mentally."
But never, say never. Shay said that she hasn't completely shunned the idea of having another
baby, she just wants to do it when it is right for everyone.
We think it's fair to say that the cast of Pretty Little Liars has faced their fair share
of personal battles. But throughout all of their struggles, they’ve remained open and
honest with fans around them because they understand that if they're able to open up
about whatever dark times they may be facing, that it will give fans the hope that they
need to get through their dark times too.