FREEFORM ANNOUNCES THE SERIES FINALE OF 'PRETTY LITTLE LIARS'

The Series Finale will be a Two-Hour Television Event

The Final 10 Episodes of Season Seven, Airing in April 2017, will be Followed by the Premiere of I. Marlene King's New Series 'Famous In Love'

"Pretty Little Liars" will premiere its final season in April 2017 after seven seasons of the hit original drama series. Freeform announced the news today via a Facebook live interview with creator and showrunner I. Marlene King and cast members Troian Bellisario, Ashley Benson, Lucy Hale, Shay Mitchell and Sasha Pieterse. The "Pretty Little Liars" summer finale will air TUESDAY, AUGUST 30 (8:00-9:02 p.m. EDT), on Freeform, the new name for ABC Family.

The final season will continue to be filled with homecomings and reunions, bringing back old characters as it has already done in the first half of the season, including Wren Kingston (Julian Morris), Pastor Ted Wilson (Edward Kerr), Jenna Marshall (Tammin Sursok), Paige McCullers (Lindsey Shaw) and Sydney Driscoll (Chloe Bridges). A #PLLWedding for one of the Liars is also in store for the latter half of the season. To conclude the series, the season seven finale will be a two-hour, drama-filled television event.

After its premiere in 2010, the series quickly developed a cult following, which led to groundbreaking social media numbers and a plethora of award nominations and wins. In the social realm, PLL boasts over 14 million followers on Facebook, 3.7 million followers on Twitter and 5.8 million followers on Instagram, ranking as the No. 1 scripted TV show of the season with over 214 million total engagements across Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr and Twitter. In addition, the series still holds the top six most-tweeted scripted telecasts in cable TV history (Source: ListenFirst through July 2016). Adding to the evidence of the colossal fan following of the series and its cast, "Pretty Little Liars" has received 36 Teen Choice Awards and four People's Choice Awards.

"Through brilliant storytelling, compelling characters and social media phenomena, 'Pretty Little Liars' paved the way for television shows, writers and cast to interact and engage with audiences on a national and global scale like never before, which led the series to unparalleled success," said Karey Burke, executive vice president, Programming and Development, Freeform.

"It's been an honor to work with such a talented cast and crew over the last seven years. We are a family, and it will be hard to say goodbye to a show that has made such an impact on young audiences and been a mouthpiece for cultural change. I'm excited for fans to finally have all of their questions answered, and I believe they will be satisfied with the wild ride that is our last ten episodes," remarked I. Marlene King. "I am also thrilled to embark on my next endeavor 'Famous In Love' with Bella Thorne and for PLL fans to get wrapped up in Paige's rise to stardom and the pitfalls of Hollywood."

While "Pretty Little Liars" will be concluding, executive producer I. Marlene King will launch her highly anticipated new series "Famous In Love." The one-hour soapy drama that puts the spotlight on the dark side of fame will premiere following the "Pretty Little Liars" final season premiere in April.

Based on the novel by Rebecca Serle published by Little, Brown and Company, "Famous In Love" follows ordinary college student Paige (Bella Thorne) as she gets her big break after auditioning for the starring role in a Hollywood blockbuster. She must now navigate her new star-studded life and the highs and lows that come with being the new It Girl in town as well as balancing her college workload.

"Pretty Little Liars" is produced by Alloy Entertainment in association with Warner Horizon Television and is executive produced by I. Marlene King, Charlie Craig, Joseph Dougherty, Oliver Goldstick, and Leslie Morgenstein. The series stars Troian Bellisario, Ashley Benson, Tyler Blackburn, Lucy Hale, Ian Harding, Shay Mitchell, Andrea Parker, Janel Parrish and Sasha Pieterse.

"Famous In Love" stars Bella Thorne ("The DUFF"), Carter Jenkins ("The Following"), Charlie Depew ("The Amazing Spiderman"), Georgie Flores ("CSI"), Niki Koss ("My Stepdaughter"), Pepi Sonuga ("The Fosters"), Keith Powers ("Straight Outta Compton") and Perrey Reeves ("Entourage"). I. Marlene King ("Pretty Little Liars"), Christopher Fife ("Revenge"), Miguel Arteta ("Getting On") and Dan Farah ("Ready Player One") are executive producers, and Rebecca Serle is co-executive producer. The series is produced by Long Lake Media, Farah Films and Carmina Productions, Inc. in association with Warner Horizon Television.

About Freeform (the new name for ABC Family)

Part of the Disney|ABC Television Group, Freeform is distributed in 94 million homes. The network connects to audiences and goes beyond entertainment with bold original programming and immersive social engagement. The network delivers a unique mix of quality original and acquired series, plus fan favorite movies and the holiday events "13 Nights of Halloween" and "25 Days of Christmas." The Freeform app is a service that allows viewers with participating TV subscription services access to 24/7 live viewing of the network, as well as continued on-demand access via a wide array of devices.