The Lying Game | |
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Genre | |
Based on | The Lying Game by Sara Shepard |
Developed by | Charles Pratt, Jr. |
Starring | |
Opening theme | "Gun for a Tongue" by Butterfly Boucher |
Composers | Pieter A. Schlosser Brian Adler (pilot) |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 30 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producers |
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Producers |
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Camera setup | Red Two; single-camera |
Running time | 42 minutes |
Production companies |
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Original release | |
Network | ABC Family |
Release | August 15, 2011 – March 12, 2013 |
The Lying Game is an American teen drama mystery television series developed by Charles Pratt Jr. It premiered on ABC Family on August 15, 2011, and ended on March 12, 2013. The series was produced by Pratt Enterprises, Alloy Entertainment, and Warner Horizon Television and is loosely based on a series of books of the same name by Sara Shepard. It stars Alexandra Chando, playing as the twin sisters Sutton Mercer and Emma Becker. On July 15, 2013, Chando confirmed the series was canceled by the network after two seasons. [1] [2]
The series follows Emma Becker, a kind-hearted foster child in Vegas who learns she has an identical twin sister named Sutton Mercer in Phoenix. Sutton, unlike Emma, was adopted by wealthy parents and is seemingly living an ideal life. Emma runs away from Vegas to Phoenix to meet Sutton after wrongful accusations about her were made. [3] After their initial meeting, Sutton talks Emma into stepping into her life for a few days while she pursues a lead on the mysterious identity of their birth mother. After Sutton inexplicably fails to return to the girls’ designated meeting place, Emma must decide whether to come clean about her identity and risk her own safety in the hope of uncovering her twin sister's whereabouts, along with the truth about why they were separated in the first place.
While the television series shares many of the same characters as the book series of the same name, there are important differences (chief among them that Sutton is deceased in the books): [4]
ABC Family green-lit a pilot for The Lying Game, which was written and executive produced by Charles Pratt Jr. and which was based upon the then upcoming novel by Pretty Little Liars author Sara Shepard, in October 2010. [7] [8] Alexandra Chando was cast in the dual lead role in November 2010. [9] ABC Family ordered The Lying Game to series in February 2011. [10] [11] It premiered on Monday, August 15, 2011, after an episode of The Secret Life of the American Teenager , [12] drawing 1.4 million viewers. [13] ABC back-ordered an additional 10 episodes of season 1 in September 2011, [14] [15] which premiered in January 2012 [16] drawing a series high 1.8 million viewers. [17]
The Lying Game was renewed for a second season by ABC Family in April 2012, with production to take place during summer 2012 for a winter premiere. [18] Charisma Carpenter, who had been recurring in season 1, was promoted to the main cast for season 2 in July 2012. [19] [20] Season 2 premiered on January 8, 2013, [21] drawing 1.55 million viewers; [22] the final episode of season 2 aired in March 2013. ABC Family took an unusually long time to decide whether or not to renew The Lying Game beyond season 2, and the cast's contract options lapsed in April 2013 with only Chando signing a new option. [23] ABC Family finally confirmed the cancellation of The Lying Game in July 2013, [1] after Chando had herself announced the news on Twitter and Instagram. [2] [24]
The series is available to stream on The CW's free digital-only network, CW Seed. [25] [26]
TV Fanatic writer Leigh Raines rated the pilot episode five out of five stars. She went on to say "If the mark of a good show is when it leaves you wanting more, The Lying Game definitely accomplished that goal." [27] Melody Simpson of Buzz Focus, also reviewed the pilot and stated, "While this is not exactly a series one would watch with the entire family, the older audiences will surely enjoy this series as much as the younger audiences." [28] Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's writer Rob Owen compared the show as a "lighter, better executed version of the fall CW pilot Ringer ."
Season | Time slot (ET) | # Ep. | Premiered | Ended | TV season | Viewers (in millions) | ||
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Date | Premiere Viewers (in millions) | Date | Finale Viewers (in millions) | |||||
1 | Monday 9:00 pm | 20 | August 15, 2011 | 1.39 [29] | March 5, 2012 | 1.24 [30] | 2011–12 | 1.38 [31] |
2 | Tuesday 9:00 pm | 10 | January 8, 2013 | 1.55 [32] | March 12, 2013 | 1.11 [33] | 2013 | 1.27 [34] |
Alexandra Chando is an American actress and director. She is known for her role as Maddie Coleman in the CBS soap opera, As the World Turns and for her dual role as identical twins, Emma Becker and Sutton Mercer in the ABC Family drama series, The Lying Game.
Sara Shepard is an American author. She is known for the bestselling Pretty Little Liars and The Lying Game book series, both of which have been turned into television shows on Freeform.
Alyssa Gonino is an American actress and singer. She is known for her regular role as Laurel Mercer in The Lying Game and her recurring role as Michelle in 10 Things I Hate About You, both of which were ABC Family series. Gonino was a member of the American girl group the Stunners between 2007 and 2011. Gonino is currently in the band the Good Mad, who were featured in The Lying Game, in which Gonino also starred.
Hanna Olivia Marin is a fictional character created by Sara Shepard for the Pretty Little Liars book series, and later developed for the Freeform television series adaptation by I. Marlene King. The character has also appeared in the spin-off series Ravenswood.
The Lying Game is a series of books by Sara Shepard published by HarperTeen. The first book in the series, The Lying Game, was released in hardcover on December 7, 2010. A television series adaptation was loosely based on the books debuted on ABC Family in 2011.
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The first season of The Lying Game, based on the book series of the same name by Sara Shepard. The series premiered on August 15, 2011 and concluded on March 5, 2012 on ABC Family. It follows long-lost twins Emma Becker and Sutton Mercer. Separated under mysterious circumstances, Sutton was adopted by the wealthy Mercer family in Phoenix, while Emma grew up in the foster system. When the twins reunite as teenagers, they keep it a secret. While Sutton goes in search of the truth, Emma takes over her life and discovers more secrets and lies than she could have imagined.
The second and final season of The Lying Game, based on the book series of the same name by Sara Shepard, premiered on January 8 and concluded on March 12, 2013 on ABC Family. As the twins' saga continues in season two, there are more surprises, secrets and lies. The girls' recently revealed birth mother Rebecca lures Sutton into her plans for the Mercer family. Emma grows closer to Thayer, while still being drawn to Ethan, who has started to reconnect with Sutton. Kristin feels betrayed after Ted came clean about his long ago affair with Rebecca, but Ted might be hiding even more shocking revelations. And Mads connects with a mysterious new guy in town who brings a whole new level of secrets with him.
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To date, CW Seed had added more than 350 hours of content including the complete seasons of the... teen mystery drama THE LYING GAME