When the Pretty Little Liars finale airs on Tuesday, fans will finally get the answer to the question they’ve been asking for years: Who is “A”? But once that mystery is solved, the show’s not wasting any time when it comes to moving on.
When season 6B picks up in early 2016, the Liars will be five years older, one year out of college, and EW has an exclusive first look at the girls — er, women — post-time jump.
“We made that decision so they would have a year to finish school and firmly root themselves into their desired careers, so their wardrobe and hair and makeup and styles reflect where they are professionally in their lives,” showrunner Marlene King said.
As for what they’ve been doing during those five years, King said, “The girls lived a free life for 5 years. They have not been tortured or tormented by this anonymous cyber bully. They’re taking yoga now, they’re breathing. They have more time for extracurricular activities because they’re not being chased by an anonymous stalker.”
However, don’t expect the effects of said cyber bully to have fully disappeared. “They still suffer from post-traumatic stress at times and we will hear as we go into the next season some stories about how what they’ve been through has still haunted them and affected the decisions that they make,” King said, adding, “Something like that really does change you and it’s probably helped them all make decisions that they might have not made had that experience not happened to them. Maybe they take greater risks and maybe they can handle pressure more easily than someone who hasn’t been locked in a demented dollhouse.”
With that being said, fans shouldn’t worry about the Liars changing too much. “They’re not different people,” King said. “They’re just more grown-up versions of themselves.”
After all, this is Pretty Little Liars, which means the “A” mystery might be solved, but King promised that “there’s definitely some mysteries to come and a lot more story to tell.”