AE: Lindsey, I swear to God, if Paige is A, I will lose it.
LS: I can't tell you that! They've entrusted me deeply with those secrets!
AE: Can you tell me what's going to happen with Paige in the next episode?
LS: You're going to see some jealousy arise in Paige. You saw Paige being really jealous in the first few episodes she was in, but that jealousy kind of returns in a different way. And there are some hurt feelings, and it gets tricky to navigate.
AE: Is it going to result in another drowning attempt?
LS: No, I think Paige is done with that. She got that out of her system. I think she probably went home and wrote in her journal, "Oh my God, what was I thinking? Oh my God, Emily is going to hate me!" It was — let's call it a momentary lapse in judgment.
AE: Yes, that does sound much better than attempted murder.
LS: Truly, though, the drowning scene was one of my favorites — no, no, don't laugh! It was one of my favorites because of Shay. You think Paige was scary? Shay was scary. She was like, "No, hold me under longer! Push me down longer! I can take it!" I mean, she was acting, but I kept thinking she was in serious trouble. And I was like, "Listen, all of your daredevil ways — that comes off on me! Your fans are going to think I'm really trying to hurt you!" She was asking for it, I'm telling you. She was asking for it!
AE: Was that your favorite scene you filmed with Shay?
LS: Oh, come on! I can't choose just one! You know, we both had qualms about the karaoke scene. We had to go in and record it before we filmed it, and we both had so much anxiety, but there was also this shared camaraderie that really brought us together.
AE: Did you do your own swimming, too? You did your own singing. And your own drowning.
LS: I do all my own stunts, man. Shay and I took swimming lessons together. You know, Shay and I had a long and beautiful friendship. We did swimming lessons together — like crazy swimming lessons where the instructor was like, "Come on, girls! Go, go, go!" We learned how to dive and do flip-turns. Everything in the pool was really us.
AE: You said that playing Paige was fulfilling as an artist and as human being. What do you mean by that?
LS: Playing a lesbian character is obviously relevant right now. There are so many equality issues and issues with gay teens being bullied, and I feel like the media has always been a leader in helping shape people's attitudes. You know, it lends a little understanding. It makes people less fearful. And being given the opportunity to play a lesbian character, I really took it seriously.
I just wanted to be as emotionally truthful as I could, even if I've never experienced these things first hand. But, I mean, this wasn't just another role for me. It was a big opportunity to speak to people and change their attitudes, and to speak kids who are maybe struggling with their sexuality and to say, "You're wonderful. And you're not alone."
AE: That's a lovely thing to say.
LS: It's true. And Pretty Little Liars was fulfilling to me as a person because you never know where you're going to fit in — or if you're going to fit in at all — when you go into someone else's family. And that's what I was doing when I went to the Pretty Little Liars set. I was very nervous because I just didn't know. And when I got there, they could not have been more welcoming. Everyone was warm and smiling, and they let me know that it was just a safe space to let go and inhabit this character.
And the leader in that was Shay. You know, she's such a gorgeous girl. And I told her that afterward. I was like, "I thought you were probably going to just be another pretty girl, but knowing you has enriched my life. Just knowing you, personally, and knowing you exist in the universe." I am so in awe of how gorgeous she is on the outside, and how truthful and good and pure she is on the inside. It was something I wasn't expecting, and it was the most wonderful surprise in the world. We were playing something very intimate, and it got easier and easier because we had this mutual respect for one another.
AE: It translates. To the screen I mean.
LS: Thank you.
AE: The scene on Monday night, when Paige comes to Emily's after her date with Sean and says that kissing a guy after kissing Emily felt like a farce, and then going, you know, "If I say it out loud, if I say 'I'm gay' it will change everything" — I've been writing for lesbians for a long time and I have watched a lot of TV, but that was one of the most emotionally resonant scenes I have ever seen on American television. Sorry, I'm choking up.
LS: Wow. Thank you. Heather, thank you so much.