The first season of "One Tree Hill" is arguably the best teen drama ever made. It's the perfect confluence of high school melodrama, a small town setting, young hot actors, and writing perfectly tailored to the sensibilities of the angsty teen audiences that flocked to the show. In many ways, it was the proto-"The Summer I Turned Pretty" (which is now coming to an end), featuring two brothers who compete for everything, from basketball to winning the heart of a sensitive and conflicted girl. An entire
generation grew up on "One Tree Hill," and while it quickly transformed into a sillier series as it went on, that first season will always be a gold standard for so many fans (it's also a good alternative for "The Summer I Turned Pretty" fans).
Of course, there are plenty of viewers who remained in love with the show throughout its 2003 to 2012 run. Created by Mark Schwahn, the show was set in the fictional Tree Hill, North Carolina and ran for nine seasons, during which time we saw the original cast go from high schoolers to adults, with original characters leaving the show and new ones arriving. Initially following two half-brothers, Lucas (Chad Michael Murray) and Nathan (James Lafferty), the series expanded as it went on, ultimately allowing the entire ensemble to shine.
Now it seems we'll be returning to that same small town for a reboot series that's being spearheaded by former stars Sophia Bush and Hillarie Burton Morgan, who previously played Brooke Davis and Peyton Sawyer, respectively. In 2024, Variety reported that a sequel series was in the works at Netflix, which surely caught the attention of millennials the world over. While it's still early days, some details have been confirmed about the upcoming show. Here's everything we know so far.
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Original Creator Mark Schwahn Is Not Involved In The One Tree Hill Reboot
"One Tree Hill" was created by Mark Schwahn, who had a handful of screenwriting credits and went on to create the E! scripted series "The Royals." "One Tree Hill" remains his biggest claim to fame, but it also represents a dark time for several former female stars and crew members, who, in 2017, accused Schwahn of assault and harassment.
It began with TV writer Audrey Wauchope, who, alongside her writing partner Rachel Specter, wrote on "One Tree Hill." Wauchope took to X (then Twitter) to recount her experience, claiming to have left her job on the show "demoralized and confused" after ongoing harassment that allegedly included, among many other things, unwanted touching by Schwahn. Several female cast members, including Sophia Bush and Hilarie Burton Morgan, came out in support of Wauchope and made their own claims of sexual harassment, alongside multiple male stars who released statements of support. Much like "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" after the revelation that show creator Joss Whedon was running a toxic set, "One Tree Hill" has a complicated legacy.
Schwahn has since basically disappeared from the industry, and will have absolutely no involvement in the "One Tree Hill" reboot. Instead, "Virgin River" and "Firefly Lane" producer Becky Hartman Edwards is said to be executive producing and writing the upcoming series, with Burton Morgan referring to Edwards as the "showrunner" in an interview with People. The actor said she was "so excited" to have Edwards onboard due to her talent for "female friendships and multi-generational shows." Warner Bros. Television, which produced the original series, is also on board for the revival.
The New One Tree Hill Is A Sequel Series, Not A Full Reboot
When news of a "One Tree Hill" reboot first broke, Deadline reported that the show would be a sequel series rather than a reimagining. That didn't work out too well for the recent "Frasier" revival, which was neither disappointing nor remarkable, but that was a multi-camera sitcom which felt like somewhat of an anachronism in the 2020s. Teen drama, on the other hand, remains as big as it ever was. Deadline also stated that the new show will take place 20 years after the original series ended, and would follow best friends Brooke (Sophia Bush) and Peyton (Hillarie Burton Morgan) as parents with teen children. It still sounds as though there will be plenty of drama, though, as Brooke and Peyton will reportedly face "challenges not unfamiliar to what they tackled in the original series like love, insecurities, and grief."
On the original show, Brooke and her husband Julian Baker (Austin Nichols) had twin boys, Davis and Jude, while Peyton left Tree Hill with her husband Lucas Scott after giving birth to a daughter named Sawyer Brooke Scott. In the new series, then, it seems we'll be catching back up with both Brooke and Peyton and seeing teen versions of their kids, who will no doubt navigate all the tumult and melodrama that characterized their parents' high school years.
At the time the reboot was made public, both Bush and Burton Morgan posted on Instagram and gave insight into their effort to "reclaim" the series following their horrific behind-the-scenes experiences on the original series. "What if you really can go back home?" they wrote. "If there's an opportunity to team with brilliant creatives and build a space where all our friends can show off their talents? Own our history? Reclaim our turf? Honor our fans? Sign us up." It followed the pair co-hosting the "One Tree Hill" rewatch podcast "Drama Queens," alongside former co-star Bethany Joy Lenz, during which they often discussed remaking the show without the toxic former showrunner's involvement.
Bush And Burton Morgan Are The Only Confirmed Returning Cast Members — But There Could Be More
When "One Tree Hill" debuted, Chad Michael Murray and James Lafferty were the series leads, playing estranged half-brothers Lucas and Nathan Scott, respectively. The first season focused heavily on the brothers competing with one another to become the star of Tree Hill High School's basketball team, and their romantic entanglements with both Brooke Davis and Peyton Sawyer. But as the show went on, the focus broadened to include more and more of the supporting cast, until it was written more as an ensemble show. Still, fans will always remember the early years of "One Tree Hill" as a golden era, which means they'll be keen to know who from those original episodes will actually be returning.
We know that Sophia Bush and Hilarie Burton Morgan are confirmed for the reboot, and they'll co-produce in addition to reprising their acting roles. Danneel Ackles, who previously played Rachel Gatina in the original "One Tree Hill," is also set to executive produce through her company Chaos Machine, alongside husband Jensen Ackles, who plays Soldier Boy on "The Boys." When news of the revival first broke, Ackles was also said to be "in talks" to return as Rachel, but that's yet to be confirmed. Otherwise, no other former stars have been confirmed for the reboot.
Originally, Deadline reported that Murray (who, prior to "One Tree Hill," played Tristan on "Gilmore Girls") had no plans to return following his controversial season 6 exit that arguably ruined the popular TV show. But in August 2025, Murray spoke to Bustle about the upcoming reboot and didn't outright deny any involvement. In a video posted to Instagram, the actor said, "I don't have any updates on anything from that world. I hope if they make it, that they make it for this new generation. You know, I hope that it's about a young group of kids, so that this generation of youth can see themselves in the characters." While it's far from confirmation that Murray will be back, it's also not an outright denial, and vaguely hints that he might soon get some "updates" from "that world."
Meanwhile, Lafferty appears to be committed to his Prime Video show "Everyone Is Doing Great," with the actor telling Variety in 2024, "Professionally, I'm completely focused on finding 'Everyone is Doing Great' season 2 the right home. Until then, consider me grateful for this moment and cheering everyone on!" The other big question mark is Bethany Joy Lenz, who played Nathan's wife, Haley James Scott. The actress also told Variety that she was "absolutely open to being a part of a revisiting to Tree Hill," but stopped short of confirming her return, adding, "It's so early."
There's No Confirmed Release Date For The One Tree Hill Sequel Show Yet
At the time of writing, nobody involved with the "One Tree Hill" sequel show has confirmed a release date for the new series. While it has been a full year since the revival was made official, it's still relatively early days, and it's not entirely clear exactly what phase of development or production the show is in at this point. In January 2025, Hilarie Burton Morgan spoke to People, telling the outlet, "When it was kind of leaked, it was very, very, very early in the game. So we're in the process of presenting things to Netflix, and they will get to decide whether or not it's greenlit." A few months later, in another interview with People, the actress provided a promising update. "We're at the phase right now where I can't say anything," she said. "There's lots of good things cooking right now, and it's really smart, caring people working on it. And that's always a fun thing to be a part of."
That all sounds positive, but Burton Morgan also made sure to temper expectations. "All I can really say is now people, I think, are beginning to understand how incredibly long and arduous the development process is," she added. "Filming is really the best part. The pre-production stuff is tricky, but development is going very well. We'll see where we wind up."
Meanwhile, when asked about the new show by People in July 2025, Austin Nichols, who played Brooke's husband Julian Baker in the original series, said, "I don't have all the answers. I know that they've been working on it for a long time. They made a deal with Netflix and they're working on the scripts. I think Netflix has to approve some scripts before they give it a green light. I know there's been some notes going back and forth, so it's in a really good place. It's in a healthy place."
With all that in mind, it seems things are still at quite an early stage and it might be a while before we get a confirmed release date or even confirmation that the show has been fully greenlit by Netflix. Making things more confusing is that the August 2024 Instagram message posted by Sophia Bush and Burton Morgan contained a recent photo of the actors posing alongside with Danneel Ackles and Bebin Mirskey actor Bevin Prince in front of a wall covered in Tree Hill flyers, leading some outlets to speculate that filming might have already commenced. That seems impossible given the comments we've heard from those involved thus far, but it added to the hype nonetheless.
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Read the original article on SlashFilm.
