Yahoo News Pretty Little Liars' Lindsey Shaw tells emotional story of firing from show
The following article contains discussion of themes including body image and addicition.
Pretty Little Liars star Lindsey Shaw has shared the powerful story of how she was fired from the show in its fifth season.
The actress played Paige McCullers in the US teen drama series, and was part of a fan-favourite couple with Emily Fields (Shay Mitchell) — which was a groundbreaking portrayal of an LGBTQ+ romance at the time.
However, the character was abruptly written out of the series during its fifth season as part of a story arc where Paige suddenly left Rosewood and broke off her relationship with Emily.
Related: Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin gets new name for season 2
Shaw has now delved deep into this traumatic period in her life as part of recap podcast Ned's Declassified Podcast Survival Guide, about her Nickelodeon show of the mid-2000s.
In a frank and gripping discussion, Shaw spoke about her struggles with drug addiction and body image issues that manifested at the same time as she was let go from Pretty Little Liars.
The first person to notice that Shaw was struggling with her body image was co-star Shay Mitchell because they were going to the same nutritionist. She remembers Shay bringing her protein supplements in hopes of helping her.
"It was awful, it was awful," Shaw recalled.
Sometime later, the actress was "called into" the producer's office and was told the reason she was being fired was "not because of [her] acting".
"[The producer] was like, 'Do you have anybody to talk to?' And I was like, 'no'," Shaw tearfully recalled. "She was like, 'We'll find somebody [for you to talk to] and we have to let you go for now.'"
Shaw went on: "It was really sweet because they brought me back in season 7 and it was so lovely of that writing team to see that relationship, and that character, out but that was rough."
The actress reiterated that the whole process was handled with "so much care", so it led to her addressing both her addiction and body image issues properly.
"I just gave away everything I cared about," she remembered. "I just don't know that I've ever gotten back to the point in my career that I was before that talk, that meeting, or that whole season of using [drugs]... Caring about your body can make you go in a lot of different directions, from plastic surgery to drugs to withholding to any kind of shit."
Shaw continued: "[The Pretty Little Liars team] did me so right, bringing me back for season 7. Just [letting] me say goodbye, I will just never forget that… That whole ride, I'm starting to be able to step away from it more, and forgive and appreciate and accept.
"That was a wild time and it kind of brought me here to where I am now."
The actress stressed that she's "so much happier" these days and in a much more positive "mental space" after confronting her "cycle of using" following her departure from Pretty Little Liars.
Beat is a charity which raises awareness and understanding of eating disorders, and supports those affected by them. It has a one-to-one secure messaging service, and details of its phone helplines can be found here.
For more on drug addiction and dependency, including information and support, please visit FRANK or Action on Addiction.
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