PALEY CENTER FOR MEDIA, THE: PALEYFEST 2017: PRETTY LITTLE LIARS {LONG VERSION}
Summary
One in a series of evenings and special screenings presented as part of The Paley Center for Media's 34th William S. Paley Television Festival in Los Angeles. Held this year at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, the festival celebrates the excellence and diversity of American television and is dedicated to television's creative community. This PALEYFEST 2017 seminar honors "Pretty Little Liars," the drama-thriller series about the mysterious lives of a clique of young women in Rosewood, Pennsylvania, loosely based on the books by Sara Shepard.
Host Rene Reyes (director of public programs and festivals, The Paley Center for Media) offers opening remarks and welcomes Jarett Wieselman (senior entertainment editor, BuzzFeed) to the stage. Wieselman introduces a sizzle reel from the first half of the seventh season, followed by the first minute of the 7-B premiere, "Playtime." A promotion for the new Freeform series "Famous in Love" is also shown later in the evening.
After the clips, Wieselman moderates the following panelists: executive producers Joseph Dougherty and I. Marlene King; and cast members Janel Parrish (Mona Vanderwaal), Sasha Pieterse (Alison DiLaurentis), Ashley Benson (Hanna Marin), Tyler Blackburn (Caleb Rivers), Ian Harding (Ezra Fitz), Shay Mitchell (Emily Fields), and Andrea Parker (Mary Drake / Jessica DiLaurentis). Videotaped greetings from absent cast members Troian Bellisario (Spencer Hastings) and Lucy Hale (Aria Montgomery) are also shown.
The panelists touch on such topics as: the final season as "a love letter to fans"; Parker's relief at learning that her character – revealed to be Spencer's biological mother – is still alive; the long-awaited Hanna/Caleb romance and details from the not-so-sexy filming of their fireplace love scene; the kiss between Emily and Alison, who is currently pregnant with an unknown man's child; Ezra's complicated love life, including his engagement to Aria and the surprise reappearance of his former flame Nicole (Rebecca Breeds); Mona's gray morality and loyalty to Hanna; the actors' freedom to "reinvent" their characters after the five-year time jump in the middle of season six; Parrish's pride at being the first "A"; Harding's views on his character, who was also an "A" suspect; hints about the identity of "the uber-A"; Pieterse's memories of auditioning for the show at age twelve; why Mitchell was not originally King's first choice for the role of Emily; Mitchell and Benson's close friendship; Blackburn's praise for frequent scene partner Benson, who admits that she often laughs during serious scenes; their favorite moments on set, including the table read for the series finale and Pieterse's unpleasant memories of being repeatedly buried alive in season four; and "unexpected gifts" from the series, including the black-and-white fourth-season episode "Shadow Play." The actors also "recreate" several memorable scenes from the show, occasionally swapping roles; Harding and Blackburn perform an Aria/Spencer scene in place of the absent Bellisario and Hale.
Questions from the audience then lead to a discussion of the following topics, among others: embarrassing moments, including Harding's awkward sex scenes with Hale; Alison's struggles with her sexuality in the final ten episodes; Harding's upcoming first book; lingering questions about "The N.A.T. Club," which King describes as a neighborhood group of "Peeping Toms"; why Mitchell had no "qualms" about playing a lesbian character; praise for Bellisario's skills as director of the upcoming episode "In the Eye Abides the Heart"; the memorable dance scene involving Mitchell and Benson; a potential love triangle involving Alison, Emily and Emily's many exes; ideas about spin-offs series, possibly involving Aria and Ezra's child or Emily and Alison; and Harding's hopes for an "all-out nuts" reunion episode several years down the road, inspired by the "Gilmore Girls" reboot.
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: 2:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: N/A
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 129034
- GENRE: Seminars
- SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Rene Reyes … Host
- Jarett Weiselman … Moderator
- Joseph Dougherty … Panelist
- Andrea Parker … Panelist
- Tyler Blackburn … Panelist
- Ashley Benson … Panelist
- Shay Mitchell … Panelist
- Sasha Pieterse … Panelist
- Janel Parrish … Panelist
- Ian Harding … Panelist
- I. Marlene King … Panelist
- Troian Bellisario
- Lucy Hale