Karen Lucille Hale (born June 14, 1989) is an American actress and singer. Her breakthrough role as Aria Montgomery in the television series Pretty Little Liars (2010–2017) won her seven Teen Choice Awards, the most for any actress in a single series. She has also won accolades at the Gracie Awards and the People's Choice Awards.
Hale first became known in 2003, as one of five winners of the reality show American Juniors. She appeared in the film The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 (2008) before landing her role on Pretty Little Liars. While starring on the show, she appeared in the films A Cinderella Story: Once Upon a Song and Scream 4 (both 2011), released her debut album Road Between (2014), and began hosting Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve (2016–2021).
Hale's television roles following Pretty Little Liars include Life Sentence (2018), Katy Keene (2020) as the titular character, and Ragdoll (2021). Her continued film appearances include Truth or Dare, Dude (both 2018), Fantasy Island (2020), The Hating Game (2021) and Which Brings Me to You (2024).
Early life Karen Lucille Hale was born on June 14, 1989, in Memphis, Tennessee, to Julie Knight and Preston Hale.Lucy Hale. NBC. Retrieved November 11, 2008. She was named after one of her great-grandmothers. Her mother is a registered nurse. She has an older sister, Maggie, a step-sister, Kirby, and three stepsisters through her father. Hale was homeschooled as a child. During her childhood, she took acting and singing lessons.
Career
2003–2009: Early roles and recognition In 2003, Hale first appeared on television as a contestant in the Fox reality show American Juniors. On July 30, 2003, Hale finished in fourth place and became part of a group of the same name formed of the top 5 finishers (Chauncey Matthews, Danielle White and Tori & Taylor Thompson). The group disbanded in 2005, after their self-titled studio album's lackluster sales.[ American Juniors]. Allmusic. Retrieved November 11, 2008.
Hale moved to Los Angeles at age 15 in the hopes of getting a record deal. Shortly after, she started auditioning for acting roles and received a minor role on Drake & Josh and guest roles on shows such as Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide, The O.C., and How I Met Your Mother. She appeared as Miranda Hampson in two episodes of the Disney Channel show Wizards of Waverly Place.
In 2007, Hale appeared in NBC's short-lived series Bionic Woman. Hale plays Becca Sommers, the younger sister of the title character Jaime Sommers (played by Michelle Ryan). The character was originally portrayed by Mae Whitman in the unaired pilot episode, after which Whitman departed the series.
In August 2008, Hale made her film debut in The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 portraying Effie Kaligaris, the younger sister of Lena Kaligaris (played by Alexis Bledel). Hale then appeared in The CW series Privileged as Rose Baker, with co-stars Ashley Newbrough and JoAnna Garcia. She starred in the Lifetime television film Sorority Wars.
2010–2017: Pretty Little Liars and mainstream breakthrough
In October 2009, Hale was cast as Aria Montgomery in Pretty Little Liars, based on the book series of the same name by Sara Shepard. The television series lasted seven seasons from 2010 to 2017, with Hale's performance being praised by critics. She also received a number of awards and nominations for her performance, including seven Teen Choice Awards, a Gracie Allen Award, a People's Choice Award and a Young Hollywood Award.
In January 2010, Hale appeared as the singer Phoebe Nichols and her identical body double Vanessa Patton in the CSI: Miami episode "Show Stopper". In 2011, Hale had a cameo role as Sherrie in the slasher film Scream 4. Later, she was cast as the aspiring singer Katie Gibbs in A Cinderella Story: Once Upon a Song, the third installment of A Cinderella Story series, which was released on direct-to-video in September 2011. She also recorded songs for the film's soundtrack.
Hale has made appearances of music videos, such as Foy Vance's "She Burns", Chase Jordan's "Lose Control (Take a Sip)" and Jackson Harris' "Come Back Down to Earth".
Hale hosted an episode of MTV's Punk'd which aired on April 26, 2012. The episode also featured Hale's Pretty Litte Liars co-star Ian Harding, Vanessa Hudgens and Josh Hutcherson. The same year, Hale voiced Periwinkle, the twin sister of Tinker Bell (voiced by Mae Whitman) in the Disney animated film Secret of the Wings. In June 2012, Hale announced that she had signed a record deal with Hollywood Records (in co-partnership with DMG Nashville). On June 11, 2013, Hale announced her role as Ambassador of the beauty brand Mark Girl. Hale co-hosted the Teen Choice Awards with Darren Criss in 2013 and David Dobrik in 2019 and the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards Pre-Show with Sway Calloway. Hale's debut studio album Road Between was released on June 3, 2014.
In 2015, Hale collaborated with Rascal Flatts on a cover of "Let It Go" from the Disney animated film Frozen for the compilation album We Love Disney. Hale served as a correspondent in New Orleans and co-hosted with Ryan Seacrest in Times Square for Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve (2016–2021), making her the first millennial actress to co-host the Times Square segments.
Hale has recorded two stand-alone Christmas songs, the original song "Mistletoe" and a cover of Francesca Battistelli's "You're Here", released in 2014 and 2017, respectively.
2018–present: Continued film and television work In 2018, Hale was cast in The CW comedy-drama series Life Sentence as Stella Abbott, a woman who finds out that her terminal cancer is cured. The show was canceled after one season. The same year, Hale starred in three films, Truth or Dare, Dude and The Unicorn. On March 11, 2019, Hale was cast as the lead role in Katy Keene, based on the Archie Comics character of the same name.
In 2020, Hale starred as Melanie Cole in the supernatural horror film Fantasy Island. In 2021, Hale starred as the lead role in the romantic comedy film The Hating Game. The same year, Hale became a brand ambassador and model for lingerie company Hunkemöller. She was set to star in Scarlett Holmes in 2027.
Artistry Hale described music as her "first love". Her early musical influences were Christina Aguilera, Shania Twain and Faith Hill, but her interest in pursuing music was prompted by Britney Spears' "...Baby One More Time". Kristian Bush of country band Sugarland said: "She sounds like Carrie Underwood—strong with a blues side and a pop side to it. And a lot like Faith Hill."
Personal life Hale has struggled with anxiety, depression, and eating disorders, discussing the latter in August 2012. She also struggled with addiction, having started drinking at 14 and attempting to quit alcohol on several occasions. In an episode of The Diary of a CEO podcast, Hale said: "I just held on to that belief that the real Lucy came out when she was drinking. It also quieted my mind... my brain just doesn't shut off and it's exhausting. I was a textbook binge drinker, blackout, wouldn't remember what I did or what I said, which is scary." In January 2024, Hale announced that she was two years sober from alcohol.
In her free time, Hale enjoys hiking, yoga, and Pilates.
Activism On September 14, 2024, Hale received the Humanitarian Award at the 34th Annual Friendly House Awards Luncheon in Los Angeles. Friendly House is a women's addiction recovery center. She told People magazine: "When I got sober, my intention was never to be the poster child of sobriety. But when I began speaking about it, it came from a place of needing to heal and take my power back."
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes 2008 The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 Effie Kaligaris As Lucy Kate Hale 2009 Fear Island Megan / Jenna Campbell 2011 Scream 4 Sherrie Cameo A Cinderella Story: Once Upon a Song Katie Gibbs Direct to video 2012 Secret of the Wings Periwinkle Voice role 2016 Waiting on Roxie Roxie Hart Short; also producer 2018 Truth or Dare Olivia Barron Dude Lily The Unicorn Jesse 2019 Trouble Zoe Bell Voice role 2020 Fantasy Island Melanie Cole A Nice Girl Like You Lucy Neal Also co-producer Son of the South Carol Anne 2021 The Hating Game Lucy Hutton Also executive producer 2022 The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry Amelia "Amy" Loman Borrego Elly Big Gold Brick Lily Deveraux 2023 Inside Man Gina Puppy Love Nicole 2024 Which Brings Me to You Jane Also producer Running On Empty Kate 2025 F*** Marry Kill Eva Vaughn Also co-executive producer The Twelve Dates of Christmas Christina Walker White Mars Sammie Post-production Princess Post-production
Television Year Title Role Notes 2003 American Juniors Herself / Contestant Finished in fourth place An American Idol Christmas Herself Television special 2005 Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide Amy Cassidy Episode: "Upperclassmen" & "Gross Biology Dissection" 2006 Drake & Josh Hazel Episode: "Theater Thug" Secrets of a Small Town Tisha Steele Episode: "Pilot" The O.C. Hadley Hawthorne Episode: "The Man of the Year" 2007, 2014 How I Met Your Mother Katie Scherbatsky Episodes: "First Time in New York" & "Vesuvius" 2007 Bionic Woman Becca Sommers Main role (as Lucy Kate Hale) American Family Brittany Jane Television film 2007–2008 Wizards of Waverly Place Miranda Hampson Episodes: "First Kiss" & "Pop Me and We Both Go Down" 2008 The Apostles Rachel Rydell Television Film 2008–2009 Privileged Rose Baker Main role (as Lucy Kate Hale) 2009 Ruby & the Rockits Kristen Episode: "Smells Like Teen Drama" Sorority Wars Katie Parker Television film Private Practice Danielle Palmer Episode: "Pushing the Limits" (as Lucy Kate Hale) 2010 CSI: Miami Phoebe Nichols / Vanessa Patton Episode: "Show Stopper" 2010–2017 Pretty Little Liars Aria Montgomery Main role 2012 Punk'd Herself Episode: "Lucy Hale" 2013 & 2019 Teen Choice AwardsHerself, co-host 2014 2014 MTV Video Music Awards Baby Daddy Piper Stockdale Episode: "Bonnie's Unreal Estate" 2015 Baring It All: Inside New York Fashion WeekHerself Documentary 2016–2021 Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve New Orleans correspondent (2016–2019), Co-Host (2019–2021) 2018 Life Sentence Stella Abbott Main role Hollywood Medium with Tyler HenryHerself Episode: "April 4, 2018" 2019 Ryan Hansen Solves Crimes on Television Episode: "The Ry Chromosome" 2020 Katy KeeneKaty Keene Main role 2020–2021 Riverdale Episodes: "Chapter Sixty-Nine: Men of Honor" & "Chapter Eighty-Four: Lock & Key" (voice role) 2021 Ragdoll DC Lake Edmunds Miniseries 2027 Scarlett Holmes Scarlett Holmes Miniseries; also executive producer
Podcasts Year Title Role Notes 2020 Day by Day Maya Voice role; episode: "Big Nights In" 2023 Broad Ideas with Rachel Bilson Herself Voice role; episode: "Lucy Hale on Panty-Droppers, Mental Health, and Chakras"
Web Year Title Role Notes 2014 The Road Between with Lucy HaleHerself 4 episodes 2017 Lex & Los Episode: "Human vs. White Shark"
Discography
Studio albums Title Album detailsPeak chart positions SalesUS CountryUSCANAUS Road Between Release date: June 3, 2014 Formats: CD, Digital Download Label: Hollywood, DMG Nashville 4 14 13 57 US: 44,000+
Soundtrack albums TitleDetailsA Cinderella Story: Once Upon a SongReleased: September 6, 2011 Formats: CD, digital download Label: WaterTower MusicKaty Keene: Special Episode –Kiss of the Spider Woman: The MusicalReleased: March 20, 2020 Formats: CD, digital download Label: WaterTower MusicKaty Keene: Season 1 (Original Television Soundtrack)Released: May 15, 2020 Formats: CD, digital download Label: WaterTower Music
Singles TitleYearPeak chart positionsAlbumUS Hot CountryCountry AirplayUSCAN"Run This Town"2011 — — — —A Cinderella Story: Once Upon a Song"Bless Myself" — — — —"You Sound Good to Me"2014 21 47 88 57Road Between"Lie a Little Better" — 54 — —
Other and promotional singles