As teen drama mysteries television series go, ever since Pretty Little Liars debuted in 2010, it’s been one of the ‘monsters’ - the one all follow, try to emulate. Riverdale in 2017, led by chief creative officer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, was one of those worthy successors.
So what if Sacasa got involved with the PLL franchise? It’s happening now with Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin. Of special interest to us, is that one of the five leads is played by a young Filipino-American actress, as Malia Pyles portrays Mouse Honrada. Her mother hails from Cebu.
And to add spice to the whole enterprise, the big surprise is that playing Mouse’s mother, Elodie, is played by no other than Lea Salonga. Known for her Disney Princess, and stage appearances, this is the first time that Lea is involved with a horror thriller/ slasher series; and during the round table interview the Philippine press was granted with both Lea and Maila, Lea made the surprising statement that she actually auditioned for the role of Elodie.
She gamely admitted that film, television and limited series have not been her forte over her career. She played the aunt of the main character in Yellow Rose; but it’s been rare to find her working in this field. To top it off, this particular genre of teen drama and a slasher series at that, is a first for her. So she auditioned for this and running through my mind was more of what the others who had also been auditioning for the role of Elodie must have thought.
Malia on the other hand, gushed over the fact that she had THE Lea Salonga playing her on screen mother. She confessed that back in 2016, when she posted something about the Women I Most Admire, Lea was among those in the list. At a party when the news came about who had been cast to play her mother, she immediately called her parents and they were both floored, excited about how their daughter would be trading lines with Lea. Malia is a tender 22 years of age now, so she wasn’t even born when Lea picked up her Olivier and Tony back in 1990.
Beyond this opportunity to work with Lea, Malia sees significance in this casting as one of the lead roles in PLL:OS, as one of inclusivity and expanded representation. It would have to be accepted that even just a decade ago, casting for the leads of five girls in a television series would have probably been a matter of three white girls and possibly one or two of African-American persuasion. It is a sign of the times that the five girls now include a young actress from Argentina, and Asian-American Malia.
Mention was also made of how Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa comes from Nicaragua. Lea readily admitted that with a teenage daughter herself, she was a great fan of Riverdale, so it was a bonus to be cast in a series that had Roberto at the helm.
As for the genre of horror itself, Lea laughed, admitting the movie The Ring ruined the genre for her as she doesn’t need the sleepless nights that she endured after watching that film. And what she likes about PLL: OS is that is goes beyond the genre to also be a dysfunctional family drama as we follow the lives and back stories of the five young female leads.
There are secrets that daughters keep from their mothers, and vice-versa - how little daughters know about their mothers. As these secrets pile up on each other, they produce consequences across generations - and that’s one of the themes of the series, that daughters can be paying the price of what their parents got involved in, even if it stretches back to twenty years ago.
Lea also mentioned that for Filipino audiences, it may be interesting to note that besides Lea and Malia, there are two other Filipinos in the cast of PLL, although one isn’t portraying a Filipino-American as such.
Exciting times for the two; with Lea stretching her wings, even at this stage of her storied career. And for Malia, a chance to shine as a lead in a series that hails from a franchise that has such a strong following. The series debuts with two episodes on July 28, with a new episode every week thereafter.