Sophia Bush and Hilarie Burton Excited for ‘One Tree Hill’ Netflix Reboot to ‘Honor Our Fans’
More than ten years after the last episode of “One Tree Hill” aired, Sophia Bush and Hilarie Burton are preparing to return to the beloved series.
On Friday, both Deadline and Variety announced that a sequel series for “One Tree Hill” is on the way at Netflix, with Bush and Burton set to reprise their characters, Brooke Davis and Peyton Sawyer.
Following the news of the reboot, Bush and Burton shared a photo on Instagram alongside former co-stars Danneel Ackles (Rachel Gatina) and Bevin Prince (Bevin Mirskey), appearing to confirm the update.
Their caption read: “What if you really can go back home? If there’s an opportunity to collaborate with brilliant creatives and create a space where all our friends can exhibit their talents? Own our history? Reclaim our space? Honor our fans? Count us in.”
“There’s only one Tree Hill, after all,” the posts continued. “And you — the #OTHfam — have shown us that it’s more than just an idea. It truly is the place where ‘everything’s better and everything’s safe.’
Bush further confirmed the reboot in the comments, saying, “We can’t (wait) either?! (Though it took 3 years for this to get leaked so I guess we are actually very good at waiting),” she added.
Created by Mark Schwahn, “One Tree Hill” aired for nine seasons on The WB and later on The CW. The coming-of-age drama featured actors like Chad Michael Murray, James Lafferty, Bethany Joy Lenz, and Paul Johansson. (In 2017, Schwahn faced allegations of assault and harassment from Burton and Bush.)
Bush, Burton, and Ackles will serve as executive producers for the new series, as reported by Variety and Deadline. No other cast members have been confirmed yet, but Deadline indicates that Murray — who was briefly married to Bush in 2005 — has “no plans to return for the follow-up.”
Murray, known for his role as Lucas Scott, has been busy with filming “Freaky Friday 2” alongside Lindsay Lohan, which is set to release in 2025.
This isn’t the first reunion for the cast of “One Tree Hill.”
Bush, Burton, and Lenz have co-hosted the rewatch podcast “Drama Queens,” inviting several special guests from the show, such as Jana Kramer, Daphne Zuniga, and Paul Johansson. Recently, Burton stepped down from her co-hosting role after Season 6, which is when Peyton departed from Tree Hill.
“As my behind-the-scenes experience with the show concluded, I began to question my contributions and how we maintain the significance of the storytelling,” Burton expressed in one of her last podcast episodes. “As we approached seasons seven through nine, introducing a new queen to take my place became essential.”
Robert Buckley, who joined in Season 7, has taken over the podcast hosting duties along with Bush and Lenz.