‘Pretty Little Liars’ Star Ashley Benson Apologizes for Cecil the Lion Photo, Blames Management

‘Pretty Little Liars’ Star Ashley Benson Apologizes for Cecil the Lion Photo, Blames Management

“Pretty Little Liars” star Ashley Benson has issued an apology after posting a photo to Instagram of herself in what was described as a “Cecil the Lion costume.”

“Yesterday’s post was in poor taste and I absolutely regret all of the hurt that photo caused,” Benson wrote on Instagram. “The caption that was posted was incorrect and my costume was not Cecil the Lion, when I saw that I contact my management who handled the post and had it immediately changed.”

“I recognize that I am responsible for everything posted on my social accounts and this was an unfortunate oversight,” she continued. Benson also said she would be making a donation to the World Wildlife Fund.

The photo had depicted her in a gold-colored dress with a furry hoodie on her head and shoulder resembling a lion’s mane.

Also Read: 'Pretty Little Liars' Star Ashley Benson Ripped for Posting Cecil The Lion Costume Photo

Cecil was the name of a lion in Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe that was shot and killed in July by Minnesota dentist Walt Palmer. Palmer paid two local guides $50,000 to help him track and kill the lion apparently unaware that it was part of a study being conducted by Oxford University.

It was wearing a GPS tracking collar, which helped authorities determine who the guides were, and eventually led them to Palmer.