HomeTVPretty Little Liars: Who is Charles?

Pretty Little Liars: Who is Charles?

Pretty Little Liars unveiled A in the season 5 finale last weekā€¦kind ofā€¦

If you havenā€™t seen the season 5 finale of Pretty Little Liars and donā€™t want any spoilers then we suggest you stop reading now. If you have seen it and want to read some theories about the real identity of A then keep reading.

PLL fans were divided right down the middle when A was revealed to be Charles in the season finale, Welcome to the Dollhouse. After kidnapping Aria (Lucy Hale), Spencer (Troian Bellisario), Hanna (Ashley Benson) and Emily (Shay Mitchell) it was revealed that Mona (Janel Parrish) was alive and well, and that their tormentor was a masked man named Charles.

The reveal was well-received by some PLL fans whilst others expressed disappointment that A was a ā€˜newā€™ character. Show runner I. Marlene King promises that A is someone weā€™ve seen before and that heā€™s been in the show from the very beginning which has led to many fan theories.

So who exactly is Charles? We look at some optionsā€¦

Charles DiLaurentis

Pretty Little Liars season 5 episode 15
Credit: ABC Family

This seems the most likely of the theories going around, not least because Spencer found a video of Mrs D (Andrea Parker) cradling a baby ā€“ presumably Alison ā€“ with two young twin boys running around her. We assume that the boys are Jason (Drew Van Acker) and Charles but knowing the world of PLL thatā€™s far too straightforward.

A few episodes back the girls found some cryptic phrases hidden in Monaā€™s dresser mirror all of which could be an anagram of Charles DiLaurentis giving further weight to the theory. Surely though if Mona had cracked the mystery of A, she might have mentioned that before the big reveal as she had plenty of time with the liars.

If Charles is indeed Jasonā€™s identical twin, could it be possible that itā€™s been Charles infront of our eyes pretending to be Jason for the past five seasons? If they were identical itā€™s a plausible enough theory but you would have thought the DiLaurentis family would be able to tell the difference between their own children?

Andrew Campbell

Pretty Little Liars - Andrew Campbell
Credit: ABC Family

Charles could be going by another name so he can fit in seamlessly in Rosewood. Some fans think that Andrew is really Charles and the fact Mrs D was outside of the Campbell family barn in the video adds some weight to that. One issue though is that Andrew is (supposed to be) younger than Jason, which means thereā€™s no way they could be twins. At a stretch Andrew could be lying about his age, if he is lying about his identity, but why doesnā€™t Jason know who he is? Also weā€™d rather not think about the fact that he and Spencer have kissed as if he is Charles that would make them related.

Bethany Young

Pretty Little Liars - Bethany Young
Credit: ABC Family

The mystery of Bethany Young has never been fully resolved and weā€™re assured that itā€™ll be addressed in season 6A. Could Bethany be alive and is she really Alisonā€™s (Sasha Pieterse) twin? Again itā€™s another plausible theory but the remains were allegedly confirmed as Bethanyā€™s, unless A has been faking results to cover up what really happened. Thereā€™s a lot to be resolved around Bethanyā€™s ā€˜murderā€™ but anything can happen in Rosewood.

Lucas Gottesman

Pretty Little Liars -  Lucas Gottesman
Credit: ABC Family

Another theory floating around is that Charles is really Lucas (Brendan Robinson). The cryptic phrases found in Monaā€™s mirror are also an anagram of ā€˜Nerd Lucas is the Liarā€™. Lucas has kept a relatively low profile in season 5 of the show but that doesnā€™t mean he might not be behind the liarsā€™ torment. We know he has a deep-rooted hatred of Ali but if he is Charles that blows out the theory that he could be Jasonā€™s twin as heā€™s too young.

Who else could it be?

Pretty Little Liars -  CeCe Drake
Credit: ABC Family

This is PLL so pretty much everyone is under suspicion. CeCe Drake (Vanessa Ray) has the same initial as Charles DiLaurentis and we know sheā€™s capable of looking like Ali when she wants to. Could she be something to do with it all? Our gut is that Charles is definitely male but as you can see from the theories floating around it really could be anyone.

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Pip Ellwood-Hughes
Pip Ellwood-Hughes
Pip is the owner and Editor of Entertainment Focus, and the Managing Director of PiƱata Media. With over 19 years of journalism experience, Pip has interviewed some of the biggest stars in the entertainment world. He is also a qualified digital marketing expert with over 20 years of experience.

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