Image via Complex Original
For years, California native Ashley Benson has been relegated to playing the cheerleader or the pretty popular girl. But this year, she's breaking out in a big way: with director Harmony Korine's Spring Breakers. Alongside Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens and Rachel Korine, the 23-year-old actress takes part in the most epic spring break movie ever—one that involves everything from everything from knocking off a diner with toy guns to taking body shots off naked girls to dancing with automatic weapons.
Come Friday, when the film premieres in New York and L.A. (it opens nationwide on Mar. 22), we guarantee you that people will be wondering who the enchanting (natural) blonde is who basically owned the movie. Well, allow us to introduce you to her.
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After working mostly in commercials early in her career, Benson landed a regular role on Days of Our Lives.
In 2004, the age of 15, Benson signed a three-year contract with the daytime soap opera Days of Our Lives to play Abigail "Abby" Deveraux, the eldest daughter of power couple Jack Deveraux (Matthew Ashford) and Jennifer Horton (Melissa Reeves), whose storyline mainly focused on her budding romances. Despite her contract, she'd eventually leave the show early in order to star in film projects that the producers of the show wouldn't allow her to do.
Her big screen debut was in 13 Going on 30 (2004).
If you blinked, you would've missed her. In the Jennifer Garner-led rom com, Benson played one of the Six Chicks (code for the cool girls in school) who use Jenna Rink’s (Christa B. Allen) 13th birthday to invite the popular boys to a party, which ends up being the catalyst for the rest of the flick. When a “Seven Minutes in Heaven” game goes awry, Rink, desperate to escape the humiliation created by the Six Chicks, wishes to be one thing: 30 years old. Why not 21, you ask? Who knows. Eventually, Rink gets her wish, hilarity and romance ensue, and she realizes that life after high school isn't as drama-free as it seems.
A then-17-year-old Benson guest starred on The OC (2006).
The actress took a break from Days of Our Lives to guest star on season four of The O.C. In the episode titled "Summer Bummer," Summer Roberts (Rachel Bilson) gets kicked out of Brown thanks to the crazy antics of her friend Che (Chris Pratt). Meanwhile, back in Newport, Marissa Cooper’s little sister Kaitlin (Willa Holland), decides to throw a party at Summer's dad's epic mansion to get even with the popular girl Riley (Benson).
Benson gave people a reason to watch yet another Bring It On sequel with a role in Bring It On: In It to Win It (2007).
You know that project that made Benson terminate her contract with Days of Our Lives? It was this one. In the straight-to-DVD flick, Benson plays west coast cheerleading captain Carson, who goes toe to toe with the leader of the badass New York East High Jets at the Cheer Camp Nationals. No, the original Bring It On premise isn't rehashed. Instead, a fight between the two captains leave them both disqualified from the competition, forcing them to work together to win the coveted "Spirit Stick."
She played a yet another badass cheerleader in Fab Five: The Texas Cheerleader Scandal (2008).
Following her performance in Bring It On, Benson was cast as Brook Tippet in this Lifetime original television movie. Based on actual events that occurred in McKinney, Texas, the film recounts the misadventures of five high school cheerleaders, one of which is the principal's daughter, who revel in breaking school rules, drinking and screwing with the lives of their superiors without any consequence. Little did Benson know that this would be the perfect preparation for her Spring Breakers role.
Benson played the ultimate prom date in Bart Got a Room (2008).
Evidently, the actress has a knack for playing the HBIC in high school movies. In the film, Benson starred as the elusive Alice, a popular sophomore who becomes the object of obsession of nerdy high school senior Danny Stein (Steve Kaplan). Under the pressure of prom approaching, Danny embarks on his elaborate quest to not only land the girl, but ensure that the two have the ultimate prom experience, hotel room and everything. Yes, hence the title.
She was Rebecca Romijn's daughter on Eastwick (2009).
Benson’s next regular small screen role was on Eastwick as Mia Torcoletti, the daughter of single mother Roxanne Torcoletti (Rebecca Romijn). Eastwick tells the story of three women living in New England Roxanne (Romijn), Joanna Frankel (Lindsay Prince) and Katherine Gardener (Jamie Ray Newman) who wish for a little excitement in their small-town lives. Their prayers are answered when a seemingly new member of the community, Darryl Van Horne (Matt Dallas), arrives and reveals to them their magical powers.
Roxanne finds she has telepathic abilities, Katherine shows signs of healing powers and Joanna discovers she is telekinetic. However, the three women soon find that Darryl’s intention of showing them their abilities may not be for good. Although the show won a People’s Choice Award for Favorite New TV Drama, Eastwick did not have the power to make it through more than just a season and was cancelled in 2010.
In 2010's Christmas Cupid, Benson starred as Christina Milian's angel.
Right before landing Pretty Little Liars, Benson nabbed a role onthis ABC Family Original Movie. Christmas Cupid tells the story of public relations agent Sloane Spencer (Christina Milian) who is riding the road to success, when her top client Caitlin Quinn (Benson) suddenly dies. What transpires next is the most attractive version of A Christmas Carol you'll ever see: Caitlin takes Sloane through Christmas past, present and future, focusing on her relationships with former boyfriends and leading Sloane to realize that ther working habits will ultimately not lead her to her happy ending.
She plays Hanna Marin on the ABC Family hit Pretty Little Liars.
Ever wondered what the hell #PLL meant every time you saw it treading Twitter on Tuesday nights? Well, it's Benson's hit show, Pretty Little Liars, the series which Entertainment Weekly recently heralded as a social media phenomenon.
Based on the New York Times best-selling series by author Sara Shepard, the series follows Hanna, Spencer Hastings (Troian Bellisario), Aria Montgomery (Lucy Hale) and Emily Fields (Shay Mitchell) as four girls who must track down the mysterious cyberbully "A," who is threatening to destory their lives by revealing their secrets.
And what are Hanna’s secrets? A bout with bulimia, grand larceny, her mom's affair with a cop—you know, just your garden variety of stuff.
This year's Spring Breakers is Benson's most buzzed about film to date.
When Emma Roberts dropped out of the flick due to "creative differences," the search for Brit was left wide open, leading Benson to waltz in and quickly nab the leading role. And it looks like she couldn't have gotten any luckier.
Ever since its premiere at Venice Film Festival last year, the hype surrounding the film has been non-stop, with every outlet from Nylon to the New York Times clamoring for even the smallest nugget of the film to cover. After all, who wouldn't want a piece of the movie? Not only does it follow a group of bikini-clad girls who rob and pillage their way to an epic spring break, but it's also led by a cast of former Disney stars. Obviously, it's just too ripe not to bite into. With all eyes on the film, we'll definitely be seeing more of Benson in mainstream movies in the next couple of years.
