One Tree Hill was a popular CW show that lasted from 2003 to 2012 and had nine subsequent seasons — here’s what the original One Tree Hill cast is up to now. The teen drama genre’s popularity blew up in the early-2000s with the introduction of shows like Gilmore Girls and One Tree Hill, the latter of which lasted far longer than what viewers expected and ended almost a decade later. The series followed teenage half brothers Lucas (Chad Michael Murray) and Nathan (James Lafferty) Scott, who live in the fictional town of Tree Hill, North Carolina.
Full of drama, romance, and teenage angst, One Tree Hill saw the brothers’ contentious relationship shift over the course of the show. The One Tree Hill cast is fleshed out by fellow high schoolers and the Scott family, with a particular emphasis on Lucas and Nathan’s father Dan, who abandoned Lucas’ mother for Nathan’s. It’s now been over a decade since that show’s been over, too, and the large fanbase is wondering what became of the actors. Most of the One Tree Hill cast has moved on to doing bigger and better things, such as three of the actress’ helming the One Tree Hill podcast “Drama Queens.”
James Lafferty
James Lafferty played Nathan Scott in the One Tree Hill cast. Starting out as the antagonist of the show, James then transitioned into the deuteragonist, before eventually becoming the main character starting from Season 7. Since then, James hasn’t nabbed any leading roles in subsequent works. His film career has been one-offs, where he’s made appearances in the occasional film every few years, while his TV roles have comprised of the short-lived stint on Crisis in 2014, and a recurring role on The Haunting of Hill House.
James has made a good move into directing, though, helming a few episodes of the soap The Royals, as well as directing, writing, and producing a television film called Everyone is Doing Great. Lafferty had a stint on the television shows The Right Stuff, Everyone is Doing Great, and All American. He will soon appear in the action/thiller Red Right Hand as Lazarus. In terms of his career as a director, he recently helmed a few episodes of All American.
Danneel Ackles
Formerly known as Danneel Harris, Supernatural viewers must feel like Danneel is a part of their everyday lives, as the actress has been married to the series’ star Jensen Ackles for a decade, even taking on his surname. She’s remained on audiences’ radar due to her social media presence, where she promotes her business known as “Family Business Beer Co” founded by her husband and brother. Danneel Harris played Rachel Gatina in the One Tree Hill cast, going from a recurring character in season 3 to a main in season 4. She then slipped back down to a guest spot, and returned in a recurring capacity.
On the performing front, Ackles never managed to break into the big leagues, with her film career only known for her supporting role in the Harold & Kumar films, with her leading TV role in Friends with Benefits flopping after a single season. However, being a mom to three children and having a successful business means she’s still an enormous winner in life. Ackles can be seen frequenting TV movies, her most recent credits being Baby Bootcamp and The Christmas Contact. She even had a bit part on Supernatural alongside her husband, appearing in five episodes.
Austin Nichols
Austin Nichols played Julian Baker in the One Tree Hill cast, beginning his role in the series in season 6 and staying until the end. The latest generation of audiences aren’t aware of Nichols having been on One Tree Hill; instead, he’s known as the guy who gets stabbed in TV shows in gruesome ways. After his film career fizzled out once he stopped appearing in bit parts, Nichols turned toward recurring roles on TV. His three most significant roles were on Ray Donovan, Bates Motel, and The Walking Dead — the latter two were where his characters just couldn’t catch a break, as they were brutally stabbed to death,
However, his stint on The Walking Dead was sizeable, he played Spencer Monroe and made it through 27 episodes. Nichols appeared as Clint West on Walker and Billy Brunson in Minx. In addition, he had roles in the movies Masquerade and Match, and will soon be seen in the film Christmas Actually. Like his costar James Lafferty, he’s dabbled in directing and producing, helming several episodes of Walker and even One Tree Hill. As for his work as a producer, Nichols had a hand in The Locksmith.
Bethany Joy Lenz
Bethany Joy Lenz was Haley in the One Tree Hill cast, Lucas’ best friend who eventually falls for Nathan. A multi-talented woman, Lenz has as many careers as she has names, being an actress, singer, and business owner. She won’t be found anywhere on the film circuit, with her last release in cinema coming all the way back in 1996 – way before she’d even been on One Tree Hill. On TV, she’s hardly been notable either, with guest appearances on Dexter and Grey’s Anatomy arriving in the last few years — until she nabbed a lead role in the Suits spin-off titled Pearson, that is.
Unfortunately, Pearson only lasted a season, and Lenz has moved on to other projects. One of these is the new One Tree Hill rewatch podcast “Drama Queens” with costars Sophia Bush and Hilarie Burton. Lenz has appeared in an onslaught of TV movies, and will soon star in Harvest Moon and Ruthless. Her business pursuits have seen her begin her own line of jewelry, and she’s been a gracious philanthropist. She divorced her husband right around the time One Tree Hill ended, but her religious faith has her encouraged to raise her daughter in a happy environment.
Paul Johansson
The outright antagonist of One Tree Hill cast would be Dan Scott, who was dubbed as easily one of the worst fathers on film and TV back in the day. Actor Paul Johansson is obviously not a bad man in real life, and even has an Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing in a Children’s Special for The Incredible Mrs. Richie. Outside of One Tree Hill, he’s known for appearing as the first John Galt in Atlas Shrugged: Part I, The Boondock Saints 2: All Saints Day, and the Denzel Washington movie John Q. He also plays the role Ricky in Bruce Willis’ Detective Knight franchise.
Johansson will soon be headlining as Mike Topper in the Kevin McNamara production Topper. While he’s also had a couple of one-offs in popular shows like NCIS, Once Upon a Time, and Mad Men, Johansson’s passion seems to lie in the art of directing, and he’d directed fourteen One Tree Hill episodes, which helped him nab the director role for the film Atlas Shrugged: Part 1. In 2016, he got back into regular TV when cast in Val Helsing, another show where he’s landed the director chair for himself. His next directorial project is a horror film called Sacrifice, which is in pre-production.
Antwon Tanner
Actor Antwon Tanner played Antwon “Skills” Taylor, and is one of the few One Tree Hill cast members to be on the series from start to finish. He got his nickname for being one of the best basketball players in the school. Outside of the teen drama series, Tanner is known for playing Worm in Coach Carter and Blue in Never Die Alone. Other than these notable projects, Tanner usually sticks to indie films and TV movies, and has appeared in one-offs on a number of impressive television shows like CSI, NYPD Blue, and Lucifer.
Tanner finally got some mainstream work in recent times, with recurring roles on Get Shorty and Unsolved. He appeared in the action/thriller Divided We Fall and the drama Packz. His next project is the war drama Primary Position, focusing on the struggles between Russia and Ukraine, where he will be playing Sgt. Sammy Washington. However, a regular part has eluded him since being a part of the One Tree Hill cast, with Antwon finding himself in prison in 2010 for fraud while One Tree Hill was still on.
Moira Kelly
Moira Kelly played Karen Roe in the One Tree Hill cast, Lucas’ mother who was abandoned by his father Dan. Many noted how Kelly hardly looked like she could be the mother of Chad Michael Murray, and they would be right, because the actress was only a little over a decade older than her onscreen son. What many probably don’t know is that Kelly voiced Nala in 1994’s The Lion King as well as its sequels and ancillary material, and appeared as Donna Hayward in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me and The Missing Pieces. She’s also known for portraying Kate in The Cutting Edge.
Her most recent credits include a stint on Citadel as Joe, the TV movie My Southern Family Christmas, and the TV show To Have & to Hold as Annie. Like a number of her costars, Kelly also got the chance to direct two episodes of One Tree Hill. A devout Christian, Moira is known for consulting a priest before accepting jobs where characters have to be explicit, with examples being her roles in Twin Peaks and Daybreak. Kelly has been married for the last nineteen years to her husband and raising two children.
Hilarie Burton
Actress Hilarie Burton played Peyton in the One Tree Hill cast, Nathan’s girlfriend and best friend of Brooke. She co-hosts the “Drama Queens” podcast with costars Sophia Bush and Bethany Joy Lenz. Like Danneel Ackles, Burton hasn’t had a significant time onscreen since being in the One Tree Hill cast, outside of playing Deborah in The Secret Life of Bees, and like Ackles, Burton is also married to a Supernatural star. She’s been with Jeffrey Dean Morgan (The Walking Dead‘s Negan) for over a decade, becoming a mother to a son and a daughter.
The 2020s have seen a steady stream of TV movies and small television appearances for Burton, and she even cameoed on The Walking Dead as Negan’s wife Lucille. She’s also served as a producer on a handful of TV movies and shows such as Friday Night in with the Morgans and True Crime Story: It Couldn’t Happen Here. Her most notable roles have been on White Collar and Grey’s Anatomy, but it seems motherhood has changed her mind in favor of prioritizing family rather than her career, with the actress living on a truly huge farm with her family, whose adventures are detailed on social media for viewers to enjoy.
Sophia Bush
Actress Sophia Bush is one of the most recognizable names from the One Tree Hill cast, in which she played Brooke Davis, Peyton’s best friend. Bush is currently co-hosting the “Drama Queens” One Tree Hill podcast with co-stars Hilarie Burton and Bethany Joy Lenz. She received a lot of media attention back in the day for being a very attractive celebrity, as well as being involved with not one, not two, but three of her former One Tree Hill co-stars. People might not be aware that Bush was at one point married to Chad Michael Murray.
Her career has seen an upswing as of late, with Bush being part of Incredibles 2 and having just left a successful stint in the Chicago series after a nice run. She had a one-off appearance on This Is Us, and also had roles in False Positive, Good Sam, and Love, Victor. Her next two projects are Junction and Freedom Hair. The thing keeping her in the news, however, is her extensive social media presence where she’s a very involved activist. Sophia Bush is a founding member of the “Time’s Up” movement, with over $20 million raised by the group.
Chad Michael Murray
Chad Michael Murray arguably got his big break as playing protagonist Lucas Scott in the One Tree Hill cast before departing from the series in season 7 and making a special guest appearance in the final season. The mid-2000s was really Murray’s time to shine, as he’s also known for Freaky Friday, A Cinderella Story, and House of Wax. He was also seen in films like Left Behind, but also featured in Fruitvale Station as well. Currently, Murray has been in a string of TV movies. Though, his next three projects are Mother of the Bride, Fortress 3, and Bad Men Must Bleed.
On TV beyond One Tree Hill he’s had varying success. Murray had a regular role for a couple of years on Chosen, before moving on to Agent Carter, followed by Sun Records and Star. In addition, he had a brief stint on Dawson’s Creek as Charlie Todd. The one area he’s been very happy in has been his personal life, as Chad got married to Sarah Roemer in 2015 and has two children. He can now be seen on Riverdale in a recurring capacity and has executive-produced several of the TV movies that he stars in.