Lying Game Boss on the Emma/Sutton Sister Act, More Mama Drama and Twisty Love 'Quadrangles'
After a nearly year-long hiatus, ABC Family’s The Lying Game kicks off its second season this Tuesday at 9/8c. On the show, however, hardly any time has passed since we last encountered the addictive drama’s devious players — which means that all of that twin-tinged drama is still in full effect the moment we return.
Here, Lying Game boss Chuck Pratt, Jr. chats with TVLine about the journey ahead for sisters-at-odds Sutton and Emma, mystery mom Rebecca and all of those juicy love triangles.
TVLINE | What’s the dynamic between Sutton and Emma this season?
It’s back and forth as each of them begins to realize that they’re changing. Sutton will find herself looking at Emma and wishing she could be more like her. At the same time, you’ve got Emma realizing that she’s slipped so easily into Sutton’s shoes: Is she becoming more dishonest [and] devious? But ultimately both of them are forced to work together as the season goes on to uncover the secrets of what happened to Derek and all of that.
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TVLINE | Is there a plan in place to keep Sutton and Rebecca likable, given their increasingly devious nature?
There [won't be] too much moustache-twirling. What we’ve tried to do is explore the concept of what it’s like to find your birth mother and then the sudden realization that maybe she’s not all she’s been cracking herself up to be. At the same time, there’s the question of will Emma find out — or does Sutton need to bring Emma into the mystery? And what happens when Emma needs to confront the woman who gave her up? We do, as the season goes on, explore a woman giving her child up for adoption. We’ll also get into Rebecca’s obvious desire for revenge, because the twins were separated and that’s not something she ever wanted. She’s out to make whoever did this pay.
TVLINE | Is Alec perhaps not the bad guy in all of this?
Yes. He doesn’t ever prove to be a good guy because he’s done some things that will be revealed that are pretty awful — and I’m not sure even redeemable. But in a strange way, we’ll understand that out of loyalty [to] his friend Ted — years ago and today — he’s done a lot of seedy things, but all with a firm belief of holding his family together.
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TVLINE | Can we expect to delve deeper into the parents’ backstories?
We’ll peel back the romances going back to [the parents] in high school: What did happen between Alec and Ted and Kristen and Rebecca? That’s a lot of fun because you’ll start to see that there are some parallels there with what’s going on in the present between our protagonists/kids. Are the sins of the father being revisited on our children? … There are also exciting reveals about Alec and Ted; you’ll find things out about both the good dad and the bad dad, mixed with the very human dad.
TVLINE | Is there any hope for Emma and Ethan? Or is the plan to explore Emma and Thayer this year?
It’s a classic quadrangle. This season there are two good triangles going on: One is Sutton and Emma both vying for Ethan, and the other is Emma between Ethan and Thayer. I personally have always loved the concept of Thayer as the [girls'] safe choice and Ethan as their dangerous choice — who’s to say which is better and which is worse?
TVLINE | Any other romances to report?
It’s never going to take over, but [Ryan Rottman]‘s Jordan is going to be quickly smitten with Mads, and she with him.
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