Ashley Benson

A vivacious and talented ingénue, actress Ashley Benson spent her formative years as a daytime soap actress before her career took off after starring on the provocative teen series, "Pretty Little Liars" (ABC Family, 2010- ). Prior to her breakout performance on that series, Benson spent three years playing Abby Deveraux on "Days of Our Lives" (NBC, 1965- ) while making guest appearances on shows like "7th Heaven" (The WB/The CW, 1996-2007), "The O.C." (Fox, 2003-07), "CSI: Miami" (CBS, 2002-2012) and "Supernatural" (The WB/The CW, 2005- ).

Though a regular on the short-lived "Eastwick" (ABC, 2009-2010), that show's cancellation allowed Benson to land "Pretty Little Liars," leading the young actress to become one of Hollywood's newest sensations. Capitalizing on her newfound stardom, Benson co-starred in the teen thriller "Spring Breakers" (2013), which underscored her bravery and honesty in every role she played.

Born on Dec. 18, 1989 in Anaheim, CA, Benson entered the world two months premature and weighed only two pounds, eight ounces. Her parents, Jeff and Shannon, were told she would need heart surgery on Christmas Day, but at the last minute her heart closed up and she deemed healthy enough to skip the procedure. The future star began performing at the age of two, competing in various dance competitions and modeled for dance catalogs when she was five, leading to her signing with the Ford Modeling Agency three years later.

By the time she was 10, Benson had booked numerous print ads, but she decided to pursue a full-time acting career. With little time left for dancing and modeling, she quickly secured minor appearances on television, including the comedy series "Nikki" (The WB, 2000-02) and the award-winning drama "The West Wing" (NBC, 1999-2006). She went on to make her feature debut in "13 Going On 30" (2004) as a member of the "Six Chicks," a group of junior high girls who tease the film's gangly protagonist (Jennifer Garner).

That same year, Benson landed a role on the long-running daytime series "Days of our Lives" (NBC, 1965- ), where for three years she played Abby Deveraux, the daughter of the show's power couple Jack and Jennifer Deveraux (Matthew Ashford and Melissa Reeves). "DOOL" viewers considered Benson's character, who was also paired up with racecar driver Max Brady (Darin Brooks), as the show's leading young heroine during her time on the daytime soap. During her "Days" tenure, Benson also landed guest work on shows like "7th Heaven" (The WB/The CW, 1996-2007) and "The O.C." (Fox, 2003-07), before departing the daytime drama in 2007.

Moving on, she starred in "Bring It On: In It to Win It" (2007) as an all-star cheerleader who attends a national camp and clashes with a rival team, a direct-to-DVD release that was part of the "Bring It On" (2000) teen franchise. After guest appearances on "CSI: Miami" (CBS, 2002-2012) and "Supernatural" (The WB/The CW, 2005- ), she returned to television as a regular to play the daughter of a suburban mom with witchlike powers (Rebecca Romijn) on the short-lived "Eastwick" (ABC, 2009-2010).

In 2010, Benson landed a starring role on ABC Family's "Pretty Little Liars," a mystery drama series based on Sara Shepard's 2006 novel of the same name. The show followed four friends whose lives begin to unravel following the mysterious disappearance of their clique's queen bee. Benson played Hanna, a once-chubby girl with a shoplifting past whose popularity soars after her group leader's disappearance. Described as a teen version of "Desperate Housewives" (ABC, 2004-2012), the series struck a chord with viewers and critics for taking on real-world issues like body image and homophobia, while giving young women hope and courage to confront their own problems.

"Liars" also turned Benson and her co-stars Troian Bellisario, Shay Mitchell and Lucy Hale into Hollywood "It" girls, gracing the covers of magazines and attending major events. While still on the show, Benson co-starred in the much-ballyhooed teen thriller, "Spring Breakers" (2013), Harmony Kornine's unabashedly violent and hyper-sexualized look at four college girls - the other three played by Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens and Rachel Kornine - who rob a convenience store for money to go on spring break, only to find themselves involved with a seductive, but bizarre drug dealer (James Franco).