Beloved 2000s teen drama lands sequel series at Netflix with original cast
A One Tree Hill sequel series is reportedly in development at Netflix with several of its original cast members set to return.
Sophia Bush, who starred as Brooke Davis, Danneel Ackles, who played Rachel Gatina, and Hilarie Burton, who portrayed Peyton Sawyer, are said to have signed on as executive producers.
Bush and Burton are expected to reprise their roles in the reboot, according to Variety, while Ackles is also in talks to return.
The Independent has contacted Netflix for further comment.
It is not yet known if Bethany Joy Lenz, Chad Michael Murray or James Lafferty will also return. Lenz played Haley Scott, who ended up marrying Lafferty’s Nathan Scott, the half-brother of Murray’s Lucas Scott.
One Tree Hill was a popular coming-of-age drama that ran for nine seasons from 2003 to 2012. Its first three seasons debuted on The WB before it was acquired by The CW in 2006 amid the merger between The WB and The United Paramount Network.
The series followed the drama that ensued between half-brothers Lucas and Nathan in their romantic lives and on the basketball court in the fictional North Carolina town of Tree Hill.
The show’s original creator, Mark Schwahn, has no involvement in the reboot, Variety reported.
Schwahn was accused in 2017 of sexual misconduct by Burton and 17 other female One Tree Hill cast and crew members, as well as 25 cast and crew of The Royals, his E! Network four-season drama.
“More than one of us is still in treatment for post-traumatic stress,” the group of actors, writers and crew wrote in an open letter. “Many of us were put in uncomfortable positions and had to swiftly learn to fight back, sometimes physically, because it was made clear to us that the supervisors in the room were not the protectors they were supposed to be.”
After the allegations emerged, Schwahn was suspended from The Royals before he was eventually fired.
Together, Bush, Burton and Lenz used to co-host their One Tree Hill rewatch podcast Drama Queens. Burton, however, exited the weekly podcast in July and was replaced by Robert Buckley, who joined One Tree Hill as Clay Evans for the final three seasons.
Explaining the reason for her departure, Burton said that as they “reached the end of my behind-the-scenes experience on the show,” she “started to question what I brought to this, but also how we keep that storytelling alive and important.”
Burton left the teen drama after its sixth season in 2009.
“And so as we head into seasons 7 through 9, it was important that we introduced a new queen who could take over for me,” she shared on the podcast. She clarified that she’s “still gonna pop in here and there,” but they wanted to find a new host “who represented the same things that I’ve brought to this show.”
