6 Connections Between "Pretty Little Liars" and "PLL: Original Sin" You May Have Missed
When it comes to classic franchises staying alive in the hearts of fans, "Pretty Little Liars" is undoubtedly close to the top of the list. Its two spinoffs, "Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists" and "Ravenswood," were both canceled after one season, but this year, the newest reboot on HBO Max, "Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin," promises thrills, chills, and spills in its teaser trailer ahead of its release on July 27. Five new Liars — Imogen (Bailee Madison), Tabby (Chandler Kinney), Faran (Zaria), Noa (Maia Reficco), and Mouse (Malia Pyles) — are the targets of another anonymous criminal mastermind, one who's seemingly connected to each of their mothers who witnessed the suicide of their high school friend 22 years ago.
Even in the first three episodes, it's established these characters have more significant life challenges than just surviving high school and tracking down a mysterious murderer. The show isn't shy about exploring teen pregnancy, sexual harassment, drug use, and lots of gore in a slasher-thriller world that Reficco described as "a complete reimagination of the existing universe" in her exclusive interview with POPSUGAR.
Co-executive producer Lindsay Calhoon Bring told TVLine just how different the new iteration of "PLL" is from the original — thanks, in part, to it airing on a streamer like HBO Max. "[It] expanded the playground and let things get more dangerous. It also let us have more freedom to push the violence, to push the horror." In the same interview, co-executive producer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa said that while he and Bring are fans of "Pretty Little Liars," they wanted to "establish our town and our girls without being in the shadow of that original, iconic franchise."
Viewers are quickly putting together complex theories about the fate of the new Liars, but even with "PLL: Original Sin" being a major departure from "Pretty Little Liars," there are still plenty of connections fans of the original will pick up on. Here are some hidden "Pretty Little Liars" Easter Eggs we noticed in the first three episodes of "Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin."
