Ashley Benson

Ashley Victoria Benson was born on December 18, 1989, in Anaheim Hills, California. She began dancing competitively at the age of two, demonstrating early talent in hip hop, jazz, ballet, tap, and lyrical styles. Her early career also included modeling, starting at age five for dance catalogs, and subsequently signing with The Ford Modeling Agency at eight years old. At ten, she shifted her focus to acting, quickly securing roles in 35 commercials and theatrical productions. This early dedication laid the groundwork for her eventual breakthrough into television and film.

Benson gained initial recognition for her role as Abigail Deveraux in the daytime soap opera “Days of Our Lives” from 2004 to 2007. Following this, she made her film debut with a small part in the 2004 comedy “13 Going on 30” and later starred as Carson in “Bring It On: In It to Win It” (2007). A significant turning point in her career came in 2009 when she was cast as Hanna Marin in the ABC Family (now Freeform) mystery-thriller series “Pretty Little Liars.” The show, based on Sara Shepard’s novel series, premiered to considerable viewership and critical acclaim, establishing Benson as a prominent young actress. She portrayed Hanna Marin for 160 episodes from 2010 to 2017, earning multiple awards and nominations, including four Teen Choice Awards.

During and after her time on “Pretty Little Liars,” Benson expanded her filmography with diverse roles. She co-starred in the crime comedy “Spring Breakers” (2012), the psychological horror film “Ratter” (2015), and the comedy-drama “Chronically Metropolitan” (2016). In 2018, she took on the role of Roxie Rotten in the music drama film “Her Smell,” where she performed her own vocals for the soundtrack. More recently, she has appeared in films such as “Private Property” (2022), “Mob Land” (2023), and “McVeigh” (2024), demonstrating her continued presence in the industry. She also ventured into music more formally in 2020, collaborating with G-Eazy on a cover of Radiohead’s “Creep.”