The upcoming HBO reboot of Pretty Little Liars, Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin, will not be starring original cast member Lucy Hale, according to the actress herself. The original was an ABC Family (now Freeform) series that began in 2010 as an adaptation of the YA novel series of the same name by Sara Shephard. The intense mystery-thriller series consisted of a group of teenage girls who were continuously tormented by an unknown villain known simply as "A," who seemed to be lurking behind every corner. Since the ABC drama came to an end in 2017, the show has produced multiple spin-offs, including The Perfectionist, which was sadly cancelled after just one season.
Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin will be stepping out of the familiar town of Rosewood and into the fictional town of Millwood that exists in the same universe, with a new group of teenage girls who seem to be experiencing an evil A of their own. Among the new Pretty Little Liars cast sits Bailee Madison, Zaira, Malia Pyles, Chandler Kinney, Maia Reficco, Mallory Bechtel, Eric Johnson and Lea Salonga, Sharon Leal and Zakiya Young to name a few. The new take on the series is written by Riverdale's Roberto Aguirre Sacasa and Lindsay Calhoon Bring, with Alloy Entertainment and Warner Bros TV backing the project.
As reported by Variety, Hale says she will not be joining the upcoming reboot, Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin, as fans had hoped. Hale went on to state that no one from the original cast is involved in the upcoming series as far as she knows. However, Hale noted that it will be dark like its predecessor.
While some fans are saddened by the lack of Hale and other original cast members, this gives the Pretty Little Liars storyline a fresh start for a new generation, whipping the A slate clean and starting anew. It certainly would have been interesting to see at least one original cast member reprise their role in the upcoming reboot, but it's probably for the best for the new series to establish independence from its predecessor.
With a solid cast and crew lined up, the reboot seems to be in good hands as the franchise continues. Long-time fans might already be skeptical of the emotional rollercoaster that Pretty Little Liars is known to take one through. However, the nostalgia and natural curiosity of wanting more to a story already has older fans and newer fans alike hanging onto their seat for Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin, which is currently set to release in 2022.
Source: Variety