Shay Mitchell isn’t completely ready to watch Pretty Little Liars with her daughter Atlas. During an appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show on Thursday, June 6, the 37-year-old actress admitted she “always” ponders over whether she and her 4-year-old should watch her highly successful Freeform series.
“I always think about this, me and my partner are always like, he’s like, ‘The day Atlas is old enough, we’re going to watch it back,’ and I’m like, ‘Ooh, my eyebrows are real thin shooting that entire season,'” Shay explained.
The Canada native went on to describe how “incredible” it was working on the hit show, in which she played Emily Fields alongside her castmates Lucy Hale, Ashley Benson, Troian Bellisario and Sasha Pieterse. Emily’s journey on the show involved coming out to her parents as gay in season 1 on top of battling an unknown stalker with her friends, Spencer, Aria and Hanna after their queen bee friend, Allison, went missing.
“I don’t know if I’m ready but, you know, it’s — it was such an incredible experience, absolutely, I have only fond memories from shooting,” Shay added. “Maybe I’ll watch a couple episodes. It was a lot, it was seven seasons. There was a lot of show, but maybe when the time comes.”
Shay previously opened up about PLL during an interview with Byrdie last year. While speaking to the publication in December 2023, the Dollface alum admitted she was “scared” about her lack of acting credits in comparison to her co-stars’ experiences.
“When I booked the show, I knew I didn’t have as much acting experience as the other girls,” Shay said. “A part of me was scared, but I knew I would eventually figure it out. Do I think my performance was Academy Award–winning? Absolutely not. But f**k it. I did it, and I tried my best. I learned more [on that set] than I could in any acting class.”
As for Shay’s personal life, she welcomed Atlas in October 2019 and second daughter Rome in May 2022. She shares both children with her longtime partner, Matte Babel, whom Shay has been dating since 2017.