ABC FamilyIt's been seven days.
Seven days since Pretty Little Liars' ugly cry-inducing season-four finale, and we're still trying to process the whirlwind of crazy that whipped across our TV screens. Here's our super-spoilery, itty-bitty recap: Mrs. DiLaurentis (Andrea Parker) is dead. Mona (Janel Parrish) has known Ali (Sasha Pieterse) was alive this entire time. And last, but certainly not least: Ezra (Ian Harding) was shot in a confrontation with "A"!
Now, fans must endure 77 Rosewood-free days (it's not like we've been counting, or anything) before we can be reunited with our fab fivesome and witness the sure-to-be shocking aftermath of that fateful night on the roof. To help pass the time, and alleviate some of your worries, we chatted with stars Lucy Hale and Ian Harding and got them to spill exclusive secrets on the future of Ezria's romance, Fitz's fate and more! Read on, little liars—you know you want to…
Let's just immediately get this out of the way, OK? When asked about Ezra's future fate, Harding was all smiles at the Pretty Little Liars' PaleyFest celebration last week. "I'm feeling great!" the actor gushed. "I signed a contract for a fifth season, so I'm feeling all right." Phew! Let's all take a minute to breathe a collective sigh to relief, shall we?
Although it appears that our favorite English teacher is going to survive his traumatic altercation with the enemy, let's just say Ezra is not going to be hitting the gym or running any marathons anytime soon. "He's going to be in bad shape," Harding revealed. "I haven't seen the first script back, but in the costume fitting, I was getting fitted for medical gowns, several of them." Confession: We asked, but it looks like the gowns are not going to be backless. Aw, snap!
Our heads are still spinning from Ezra's roller-coaster ride of a season and, apparently, so is Aria's. Hale reflected, "It's been such a ride, with the bombshell of thinking Ezra was 'A,' and then figuring out that he wasn't, and then him helping out the girls in the end. Seriously, crazy."
However, now that we know that Ezra will survive his unexpected sacrifice for Aria and the girls, we're curious to find out if will join Team PLL in the fight against "A." "I'd be interested to see how much am I helping them now or how much do they trust me considering that I've been living a lie for the past four years—or I guess year and a half in Rosewood time," Harding explained of Ezra's allegiance.
But let's be honest, many fans only care about one thing: Will Aria and Ezra be able to move past all of their hurdles and become a full-fledged couple again? Although Harding joked that he is "surprised Aria is not in a mental institution" from all the lies she had to endure, the star is optimistic about the couple's future together.
"They're going to have to clearly like regain trust, but I don't think it's the end. Emphasis on 'think,'" the actor stressed. "I think the love that they have is just so insanely strong, and it's why such a cerebral, intellectual guy as Ezra decided to say, 'No, screw you law enforcement, I'm gonna go for this.' I don't think that can just simply end because I think Ezra is a good person. He's just driven by this obsession."
Echoing her onscreen beau's sentiments, Hale agrees that Aria and Ezra have the potential to rekindle their romance. "I feel like Aria's a hopeless romantic," she smiled. "I want to say that hopefully she'll come around and be with him, but at the end of season four, things are up in the air. It's almost like how much more can they take, you know? So I don't know. If she's strong enough to get back with him, I would hope so, but we'll see." Sounds like things are looking up, Ezria fans!
Season five of Pretty Little Liars will premiere Tuesday, June 10, on ABC Family.