'It was really, really special to be able to connect again.'
Shay Mitchell is thankful for her Pretty Little Liars cast mates! ET's Katie Krause spoke to the 33-year-old actress via Zoom and she gushed over her recent virtual reunion with Troian Bellisario, Sasha Pieterse, Lucy Hale, Ashley Benson and more, which raised money for charity.
"I'm so grateful to connect with them," Mitchell said. "And truly who knows, maybe if it wasn't over a virtual reunion we may not have been able to get together at the same time. I'm truly grateful we were able to connect even if it was not in person. It was so nice to be able to catch up."
"I think we had about an hour prior to going live where we got to talk one another which was really nice. It was great," she continued. "I do see Troian quite often, so it's always nice, but for other people I don't see it was really really special to be able to connect again."
One thing the cast was able to discuss before they went live for the reunion was Pieterse's recent news that she's expecting her first child with her husband, Hudson Sheaffer.
"Oh gosh, I'm so excited. I'm so excited for her," Mitchell gushed. "...We were able to say our congrats and ask her how it's been. I'm just so excited. She's going to be so wonderful, both her and her husband. Obviously I'm here if she needs anything, a diaper bag, I'll send her mine. This is the most exciting time, you know? I'm so happy for her."
Mitchell herself welcomed a daughter, Atlas, last year, while Bellisario is mom to 1-year-old Aurora.
"I'm always so curious because people are always like, 'Did you guys plan to name your kids with the initial A?'" Mitchell quipped, referencing the nickname for PLL's villain. "Maybe Sasha will follow. It was not a planned thing, but what a coincidence."
As for whether their real-life reunion could potentially lead to a return to their Pretty Little Liars characters in a movie, Mitchell says "never say never."
"If that was something that was happening, I would jump on board for sure. Absolutely," she told ET.
Regardless if a return to their characters happens, Mitchell has fond memories from her time on set of the series.
"The first thing I remember about our first day of shooting was Lucy's pink highlights because that was the first scene. I remember that outfit that I wore, I may or may not have loved it," she recalled. "I remember shooting it and it was in Vancouver, so I was so grateful because truly that was the only way I would have been able to be a part of the show. My papers hadn't come in yet and I was Canadian, and so everything managed to work out."
Mitchell even made sure to give some of her real-life friends and family special secret shout outs during her time playing Emily Fields.
"I would hide different messages and things in my locker. One of my nicknames from my aunt was Peanut, and I printed out a Peanut and put it in my locker. I thought it'd be funny because she'd always be like, 'I saw it!'" she confessed. "[I did] little things like that for people that were watching. [I'd put] a photo of my best friend and it was a real photo and she'd be like, 'You put me in the show?'"
"So little things like that, they were cute and fun to look back on," Mitchell added.
Watch the video below for more of ET's interview with Mitchell.
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