It feels simultaneously like only yesterday and centuries ago that Pretty Little Liars wrapped things up with a really weird reveal that Alex, Spencer's long-lost twin sister, was Uber A and had been torturing the Liars for years. Many fans (including this one) still aren't over it. Thankfully, PLL: The Perfectionists is here to fill the Freeform-shaped hole that Pretty Little Liars left in our hearts, and it's full of new mysteries and even hotter characters, which is impressive. Two Liars, Janel Parrish and Sasha Pieterse are on the series, and given that Alison and Emily are supposed to be together, fans might be wondering if Shay Mitchell is on The Perfectionists?
Sadly, Emily is gone for now, but true fans know "never say never" in this world. Pretty Little Liars ended, finally, on a happy note for Emison — that is, Alison and Emily. They were in love and together, and they had two adorable twin babies to take care of. But we all know that in Rosewood, you can't count on a sure thing, because Alison is now in Beacon Heights, Oregon, and Emily is back in Rosewood with their children. That means that, as of the show's premiere, Emily is not a cast member on The Perfectionists — for now and she may not be making any cameos.
Most of it seems to do with scheduling. Back when The Perfectionists was being sorted out, according to Entertainment Weekly, Shay Mitchell, who plays Emily, was attached to another Sara Shepard spinoff, The Heiresses and she also had a big part in everyone's favorite new stalker drama You. That means no time to play Emily! But now spoiler alert, everyone is dead on You and The Heiresses never got an air date, so, uh, maybe It could happen now that her schedule is cleared up.
Pretty Little Liars and The Perfectionists showrunner I. Marlene King told Entertainment Tonight how hard it is to wrangle all of those actors in the first place. She said:
"The challenge of this [is that] the starting point [of the show] was who wants to do it? Who wants to really be a part of this new show? And the original four Pretty Little Liars were all ready to go do new things — that’s just sort of the way the world works. So my challenge then, as the creator of this new show, was to honor Emison's relationship and continue to honor it as we launch this new story. It was a challenge, and I hope we've done the best job possible of honoring what we know is their truth."
King went onto say that Emily and Alison's babies are about three years old in The Perfectionists, and yes, we will see their perfect chubby faces. Hmm... how will the twins get to Beacon Heights without one of their mommies present? In an on-set interview with Sasha Pieterse, who plays Alison, Pieterse told Bustle, "I can’t tell you anything, I wish I could. I can say that [Emily] is very much present, she can’t take her mind off [her family]." It sure seems like Emily is always right around the corner.
And it's a good thing, because Alison has once again bitten off more than she can chew in Beacon Heights. Another school, another murder, another group of bratty kids. At least now she's older and wiser, and she definitely has Mona to help back her up if they act up.
Additional reporting by Karen Fratti.
