Sasha Pieterse


Sasha Pieterse-Sheaffer is a South African-born American actress, singer and songwriter. She is known for her role as Alison DiLaurentis in the Freeform series Pretty Little Liars. Upon the success of Pretty Little Liars, Pieterse earned a supporting role as Amy Loubalu in the 2011 Disney Channel film Geek Charming.
In 2013, she starred in the teen comedy film G.B.F.. In 2017, Pieterse participated in the 25th season of Dancing with the Stars and finished in 10th place.

Early life and career

Pieterse was born in Johannesburg, South Africa on February 17, 1996. Moving to the United States in 2001, she was raised in Las Vegas, before moving to Los Angeles. She became accustomed to a career in entertainment at an early age, as her parents were a professional acrobatic dance team who performed internationally. Pieterse was homeschooled and graduated at 14.

Modeling

Pieterse was featured on the cover of BELLO magazine "Young Hollywood", December 2014 issue. Pieterse appeared on the cover of the 2015 issue of TeenProm magazine.

Acting

At six years old, Pieterse got her start in television, co-starring in 2002 as Buffy on The WB's remake of the CBS sitcom Family Affair. She guest starred in the Stargate SG-1 episode “Grace” with Amanda Tapping as a little girl named Grace. In 2005, she appeared on an episode of House titled "Autopsy", portraying Andie, a young girl with terminal cancer. That same year, she made her film debut in The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D as Marissa, the Ice Princess, and also appeared as Millie Rose for two episodes of the short-lived TNT series Wanted, alongside her former Family Affair co-star, Gary Cole.
Pieterse appeared in the 2007 film Good Luck Chuck, playing a young goth girl who places a curse on the titular character. She played the younger version of Sarah Michelle Gellar's character in the 2007 film The Air I Breathe, along with such co-stars as Kevin Bacon, Forest Whitaker, and Emile Hirsch. She also played a leading character in the Hallmark original film Claire, also released in 2007.
In December 2009, Pieterse was cast in the ABC Family series Pretty Little Liars as Alison DiLaurentis, the former "queen bee" of her high school clique. She had a regular role in the series from the first four seasons, until later became a main role in the fifth season, with one of the five girls. Pieterse reprised her role as Alison, in the spin-off series titled ' on Freeform in 2019.
Other roles Pieterse has had include a 2009 appearance in Without a Trace, and a recurring role as Amanda Strazzulla, an abandoned daughter, in Heroes. In 2011, she appeared as Amy Loubalu in the Disney Channel Original Movie Geek Charming, and also as a teenage girl in the film '. More recently, Pieterse has appeared in the film G.B.F. and in an episode of Hawaii Five-0 as a terrorist pupil named Dawn Hatfield. Pieterse played Japonica Fenway, a young lady involved with cocaine, in the film Inherent Vice, based on the novel of the same name by Thomas Pynchon.

Music

Pieterse describes her music as "country with southern rock". Her debut single "This Country is Bad Ass" was released on April 12, 2013. Pieterse described the patriotism behind the song: "I just love this country so much and I would never have been able to be where I am if I wasn't in America, so we decided to come up with this ." Her second single, "R.P.M", was released on June 13, 2013.
Her third single, "I Can't Fix You", was released on July 12, 2013. On December 10, 2013, she released her fourth single "No", an upbeat track about "standing strong in your convictions" and saying no when an unfaithful, lying ex-boyfriend asks for a second chance.

''Dancing with the Stars''

In September 2017, Pieterse was announced as one of the celebrities to compete on the Dancing with the Stars – season 25. She was paired with professional dancer Gleb Savchenko. They were the 4th couple eliminated, on October 16, 2017, finishing in 10th place.

Personal life

On December 22, 2015, Pieterse became engaged to her longterm boyfriend Hudson Sheaffer. They were married on May 27, 2018 at Castle Leslie in Glaslough, Ireland. At the start of season 25 of Dancing with the Stars, she revealed that she was diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome, which contributed to her weight gain. On May 27, 2020, Pieterse announced that she and Sheaffer are expecting their first child, due in October.

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

Awards and nominations

YearAssociationCategoryWorkResult
2003Young Artist AwardsBest Performance in a TV Series – Young Actress Age Ten or YoungerFamily Affair
2003Young Artist AwardsBest Ensemble in a TV Series
Family Affair
2011ShoWest AwardsBreakthrough Performer of the YearPretty Little Liars
2014Teen Choice AwardsChoice TV Female Breakout StarPretty Little Liars
2015Independent Spirit AwardsRobert Altman Award Inherent Vice
2015MTV Fandom AwardsShip of the Year Pretty Little Liars
2015Teen Choice AwardsChoice TV: Scene StealerPretty Little Liars
2016Teen Choice AwardsChoice TV: Scene StealerPretty Little Liars
2017Teen Choice AwardsChoice TV Actress: DramaPretty Little Liars
2017Teen Choice AwardsChoice TV Ship Pretty Little Liars

Publications