One Tree Hill Cast Talks Reuniting in Lifetime's The Christmas Contract: 'It's Family'
It’s the best Christmas present we could’ve asked for: a One Tree Hill reunion!
Lifetime is giving Tree Hill Ravens fans a holiday season full of the beloved television show, with two movies starring former One Tree Hill cast members — and a reunion special.
One Tree Hill alums Hilarie Burton (Peyton Sawyer), Danneel Ackles (Rachel Gatina), Robert Buckley (Clay Evans) and Antwon Tanner (Antwon “Skills” Taylor) all reunite in Lifetime’s The Christmas Contract, while Stephen Colletti (Chase Adams) stars in Lifetime’s Hometown Christmas.
“When you do a three-week shoot, having to manufacture long-term relationships with people can be awkward and clunky,” Burton tells PEOPLE about filming the movie. “When you’re creating friendships or marriages or love interests, they say to fake it ’til you make it, but we’ve already made it! We already have those preexisting relationships and we work very well with each other.”
The reunion special, ‘Tis the Season: A One Tree Hill Cast Reunion, airs right after The Christmas Contract and brings together Burton, Ackles, Tanner, Colletti and Tyler Hilton, along with a few special guests that will delight One Tree Hill fans.
“It honestly feels like a high school reunion all the time. It’s so great. We’re just constantly playing catch-up and there’s always some new bit about life to catch up on,” says Hilton, who performs an original song in The Christmas Contract called “Don’t Feel Like Christmas.”
“It’s like family you want to hang out with!” Colletti adds.
The cast also reflected on the enduring popularity of One Tree Hill.
“Because of streaming services, the One Tree Hill fans continue on,” Hilton tells PEOPLE. “They stay the same age, 18 or 19 years old, and we just keep getting older and older! We’ll meet people in their mid-30s who say, ‘OMG, I grew up with your show’ and we’ll meet people in their late teens who are like, ‘All my friends and I love your show!’ It’s so wild.”
“I’ll post pictures of my kids and they’ll be like, ‘Skills has kids?’” Tanner adds, laughing. “I’m like, ‘They’re older than you!’”
“The reason the One Tree Hill cast has always been beloved is because everyone could tell we really loved our jobs,” Burton says. “We really loved each other. Not one of us thought we were too good for it. We really loved what we were creating with each other.”
The Christmas Contract premieres on Lifetime on Nov. 22 at 8 p.m., followed by the One Tree Hill reunion special at 10 p.m. Hometown Christmas airs Dec. 16 at 8 p.m.
