California, here we come.

The O.C. cast, then and now: See what the stars of the popular 2000s teen drama are doing today

California, here we come.

By Sezin Devi Koehler

and Kevin Jacobsen

August 5, 2026 8:00 a.m. ET

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Melinda Clarke as Julie Cooper, Peter Gallagher as Sandy Cohen, Kelly Rowan as Kirsten Cohen, Ben McKenzie as Ryan Atwood, Mischa Barton as Marissa Cooper, Rachel Bilson as Summer Roberts, and Adam Brody as Seth Cohen on ‘The O.C.’. Credit:

WB/Courtesy Everett Collection

Southern California rarely looked as cool as it did on *The O.C.*, Fox’s seminal teen drama that premiered in 2003. Centering on troubled youth Ryan Atwood (Ben McKenzie) and his culture shock upon being taken in by a wealthy Newport Beach family, the series pierced the zeitgeist with its winning combination of radiant stars, sharp sense of humor, and irresistible character-driven storytelling.

The show’s young cast rocketed to superstardom, particularly Adam Brody (as pop culture obsessive Seth Cohen), Mischa Barton (as girl-next-door Marissa Cooper), and Rachel Bilson (as the popular Summer Roberts). While ultimately canceled after only four seasons, *The O.C.*’s impact has lingered as the cast continues to thrive in the industry. Now, on the 23rd anniversary of its series premiere, we’re taking a look at the cast of *The O.C.* and charting where their careers have gone since leaving Newport Beach.

Ben McKenzie (Ryan Atwood)

Ben McKenzie as Ryan Atwood on ‘The O.C.’; Ben McKenzie at the opening night of ‘Mother Play’ held at the Hayes Theater on April 25, 2024 in New York City.

FOX; Stephanie Augello/Variety via Getty

Ben McKenzie wasn’t the first choice to play troubled teen Ryan Atwood. Chad Michael Murray was up for the role before choosing the rival CW show *One Tree Hill*, and *O.C.* creator Josh Schwartz confirmed Garrett Hedlund was a contender as well.

By now it’s hard to imagine *The O.C. *without McKenzie, who has become a small-screen staple between *Southland *and his role as a young Commissioner Gordon on *Gotham*. McKenzie told PeopleTV’s *Couch Surfing** *in 2020* *that working on *The O.C. *“was a rocket ship...and I think we all kind of hung on for dear life.”

Recent years have taken him to the Broadway stage, while he’s also become a vocal cryptocurrency critic. He co-wrote a 2023 book on the subject with reporter Jacob Silverman — *Easy Money: Cryptocurrency, Casino Capitalism, and the Golden Age of Fraud* — and directed a documentary called *Everyone Is Lying to You for Money*, which was released in 2026*.*

McKenzie married actress Morena Baccarin in 2017. They have two children, and he is stepfather to her son from a previous marriage. Though they started dating after appearing together on *Gotham*, the pair first met on the set of *The O.C.*,* *a detail Baccarin shared on *Couch Surfing*.

Adam Brody (Seth Cohen)

Adam Brody as Seth Cohen on ‘The O.C.’; Adam Brody poses in the IMDb Portrait Studio at the 2023 Independent Spirit Awards on March 4, 2023, in Santa Monica, Calif.

WB/Courtesy Everett; Michael Rowe/Getty

While Seth Cohen wasn’t Adam Brody’s breakout role — that would be heartthrob Dave Rygalski on *Gilmore Girls *— it’s certainly the role that defined his career.

He told *GQ** *in 2023 that he finally rewatched a few episodes after 20 years: “It’s like looking through a high school yearbook and all the nostalgia that comes with it that wasn’t there, you know, even probably five years ago, let alone 10.”

He fortified his horror bona fides in *Jennifer’s Body *(2009) and *Scream 4 *(2011), then starred opposite Greta Gerwig in the acclaimed *Damsels in Distress *(2011). In recent years, he’s booked key supporting roles in *Shazam!* (2019), the horror-comedy hit *Ready or Not* (2019), and the vengeful feminist satire *Promising Young Woman* (2020). The actor now stars alongside Kristen Bell on Netflix’s rom-com series *Nobody Wants This*, for which he earned his first Emmy nomination.

Brody met *Gossip Girl *actress Leighton Meester on the set of *The Oranges *in 2011. They married in 2014 and have two children together. He was previously in a relationship with *O.C. *costar Rachel Bilson.

Mischa Barton (Marissa Cooper)

Mischa Barton as Marissa Cooper on ‘The O.C.’; Mischa Barton attends a screening of ‘The Outrun’ at Crosby Street Hotel on Sept. 30, 2024, in New York City.

FOX; Jamie McCarthy/Getty

Mischa Barton played Marissa, who had a steamy romance with presumptive bad boy Ryan Atwood. She departed the show in a terrible blaze in the season 3 finale, with Marissa’s storyline ending in Ryan’s heartbroken arms.

It was a breakthrough performance for Barton, who earned a pair of Teen Choice awards for her performance. After leaving *The O.C.*, the British-American actress had a string of lower-profile movies before starring on the short-lived teen soap *The Beautiful Life*. She worked with Martin Sheen in *Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain* (2014) and recurred on the revival of Australian soap *Neighbours* in 2023.

Barton told PEOPLE in 2024* *that she had a clandestine relationship with costar Ben McKenzie during filming of *The O.C. *when she was 17 and he was 25. Barton confessed she had “no idea what I was doing, really. So I felt like I needed to catch up, I think, a lot of the time.”

Rachel Bilson (Summer Roberts)

Rachel Bilson as Summer Roberts on ‘The O.C.’; Rachel Bilson attends the ‘Accused’ screening during SCAD TVfest 2023 on Feb. 9, 2023, in Atlanta, Ga.

FOX; Jason Kempin/Getty

Rachel Bilson’s quippy Summer Roberts was originally written into only a handful of episodes. But after audiences fell hard for her, Summer quickly became an essential ingredient in *The O.C. *mix.

While Bilson found major big-screen roles in Zach Braff’s *The Last Kiss *(2006) and the Hayden Christensen teleportation thriller *Jumper *(2008), television has remained her primary home. She took on the lead role of Zoe Hart on the rom-com series *Hart of Dixie* and landed a memorable guest arc on *Nashville*.

The actress has since expanded into podcasting. She and costar Melinda Clarke created *Welcome to the O.C., Bitches!*, in which they rewatch episodes and tell behind-the-scenes stories. Bilson spoke with *Cosmopolitan** *on *The O.C.*’s* *21st anniversary when she and Josh Schwartz teamed up for a Summer-themed tequila from the 21 Seeds brand. If Summer Roberts were a drink, Bilson says, she’d be a “spicy marg.”

Bilson dated her *O.C. *costar Adam Brody between 2003 and 2006. She later had an on-again, off-again relationship with Christensen that officially ended in 2017. The actors co-parent their daughter, Briar Rose.

Peter Gallagher (Sandy Cohen)

Peter Gallagher as Sandy Cohen on ‘The O.C.’; Peter Gallagher at the Broadway opening night of ‘Left on Tenth’ at the James Earl Jones Theatre on Oct. 23, 2024, in New York City.

FOX; Kristina Bumphrey/Variety via Getty

As the owner of Sandy Cohen’s iconic eyebrows, Peter Gallagher was clearly made for the spotlight.

The veteran actor has remained a familiar face on TV over the years, including regular gigs on *Covert Affairs*, *Law & Order: Special Victims Unit*, Netflix’s buddy comedy *Grace and Frankie*, and NBC’s musical-comedy *Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist*. A past Tony award nominee, he’s also enjoyed a healthy theater career, most recently appearing on Broadway in the Delia Ephron play *Left on Tenth* from 2024 to 2025.

Gallagher has been married to Paula Harwood since 1983. They have a son and daughter together.

Kelly Rowan (Kirsten Cohen)

Kelly Rowan as Kirsten Cohen on ‘The O.C.’; Kelly Rowan attends the 2nd annual Canadian Arts and Fashion Awards held at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel on Jan. 31, 2015, in Toronto, Canada.

FOX; George Pimentel/WireImage

As the conservative foil to liberal do-gooder Sandy, his wife Kirsten Cohen (played by Kelly Rowan) was a better representation of the upper-crust Newport Beach population in many ways.

After *The O.C. *ended, the Ottawa native was a series regular on the crime procedural *Perception*. Her last onscreen role was in the 2016 TV movie *Tulips in Spring*.

In 2021, Rowan appeared on Rachel Bilson’s *Broad Ideas *podcast along with Melinda Clarke and discussed rewatching the show: “I was pleasantly surprised because it does hold,” she said. “When we all got this show, we had no idea that people would still be talking about it in 2021. And I think what’s nice about it is whenever you encounter somebody, they always get a big smile on their face, and they always say, ‘Oh my God, I just love that show!’ So it’s nice looking back on it, to have been part of something that made an impact.”

Rowan has a daughter with her former partner, billionaire David Thomson.

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Melinda Clarke (Julie Cooper)

Melinda Clarke as Julie Cooper on ‘The O.C.’; Melinda Clarke attends the ‘Unauthorized O.C. Musical’ one-night-only event presented by Original Penguin at the Montalban on August 30, 2015, in Hollywood, Calif.

FOX; Joshua Blanchard/Getty

As the beautiful and cruel Julie Cooper, Melinda Clarke brought bite to this juicy, oft-villainous role, whom ** named as one of the top 21 TV bitches.

“Julie started as this very superficial woman, but ultimately, we find that she’s not one-dimensional,” Clarke told Refinery29 in 2021. “She’s a human being on a journey of discovery, which takes her through so many different aspects of what’s important in life. When she loses a child, we really do end up seeing the humanity in her. The character was super rewarding.”

The long-time TV veteran maintained a recurring part as dominatrix Lady Heather in six episodes of *CSI* from 2001 to 2011 and later booked another meaty antagonistic role on *Nikita*. The actress also had a memorable guest turn on *The Vampire Diaries* and reunited with Ben McKenzie for a diabolical three-episode run on *Gotham*.

Clarke has been married to Adam Farmer since 2015. The actress has cohosted two podcasts about *The O.C.*: *Welcome to the O.C., Bitches!* with Rachel Bilson, and *Beyond the O.C.* with her daughter from a previous marriage*.*

Tate Donovan (Jimmy Cooper)

Tate Donovan as Jimmy Cooper on ‘The O.C.’; Tate Donovan attends Cirque du Soleil’s ‘KOOZA’ red carpet premiere at Santa Monica Pier on Oct. 24, 2024, in Santa Monica, Calif.

FOX; Jerod Harris/Getty

Named one of TV’s 24 worst dads by EW, Tate Donovan’s Jimmy Cooper spends most of his time on *The O.C. *in financial straits. Despite his loving relationship with his daughters, the man just cannot pull himself together.

“I dug the character,” Donovan told *Vulture** *in 2013* *about first joining the show. “I thought it was interesting to show a guy who was not the most savory of characters. He’s lost all of his money. He was the greedy guy who’d been handed everything his whole life and now had lost it.”

After his time on *The O.C. *was up, he landed starring roles on *Damages* alongside Glenn Close*, *and the event series *24: Live Another Day*. In recent years, he’s appeared on *The Man in the High Castle *and *MacGyver*, and in the films *The Holdovers *(2023) and *Crime 101* (2026).

After high-profile relationships with his *Love Potion No. 9 *(1992) costar Sandra Bullock and *Friends *costar Jennifer Aniston, he married Corinne Kingsbury in 2005. They divorced in 2008, and he wed Corry Scheuerman in 2015.

Alan Dale (Caleb Nichol)

Alan Dale as Caleb Nichol on ‘The O.C.’; Alan Dale attends the 2017 CW Upfront on May 18, 2017, in New York City.

FOX; Monica Schipper/WireImage

As Kirsten Cohen’s stern taskmaster of a father, Alan Dale was only supposed to have a brief appearance on *The O.C*. Instead, Caleb Nichol’s commanding presence took on even more importance as the series went on, including his eventual marriage to Julie Cooper after she divorced Jimmy.

A longtime acting veteran, Dale has also been ubiquitous on American TV screens for years, appearing on everything from *The X-Files* to *24*. He’s had something of a habit of playing domineering fathers, doing so on *Ugly Betty* and as Charles Widmore on *Lost*.

Dale’s film career includes *Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull* (2008), David Fincher*’*s *The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo* (2011), and *Captain America: The Winter Soldier *(2014). He is also an accomplished stage actor, having starred in several West End productions, including *Spamalot*.

Dale has been married to Tracey Pearson (a former Miss Australia) since 1990, and they share two sons. Dale also has two sons from a previous marriage.

Autumn Reeser (Taylor Townsend)

Autumn Reeser as Taylor Townsend on ‘The O.C.’; Autumn Reeser attends Hallmark Media’s cocktail reception during the Summer 2024 Television Critics Association Press Tour at the Langham Huntington on July 11, 2024, in Pasadena, Calif.

Michael Levine/WB/Courtesy Everett; Phillip Faraone/Getty

The third season of *The O.C. *introduced us to quirky would-be villain Taylor Townsend, played to sly perfection by Autumn Reeser.

After a string of major or recurring television roles, including *Entourage*, *No Ordinary Family*, and *Hawaii Five-0*, Reeser found a foothold with the Hallmark Channel, starring in a number of its signature romantic movies — including *The Wedding Veil *franchise, which has six installments and counting.

Reeser married Jesse Warren in 2009 and filed for divorce in 2014. They share two children.

Chris Carmack (Luke Ward)

Chris Carmack as Luke Ward on ‘The O.C.’; Chris Carmack at the People’s Choice Awards held at Barker Hangar on Feb. 18, 2024, in Santa Monica, Calif.

FOX; Michael Buckner/WWD via Getty

Luke Ward may have only been on the show for season 1 and the season 2 premiere, but he’s responsible for the now-iconic catchphrase, “Welcome to the O.C., bitch!”

Actor Chris Carmack has continued to make his mark on television since his exit from *The O.C.*, taking on a major role in *Nashville *and providing *Grey’s Anatomy* with another dreamy doctor in Atticus “Link” Lincoln.

Carmack has been married to Erin Slaver since 2018. They have two daughters together.

Willa Holland (Kaitlin Cooper)

Willa Holland as Kaitlin Cooper on ‘The O.C.’; Willa Holland attends the Los Angeles premiere of ‘Next Goal Wins’ at AMC The Grove 14 on Nov. 14, 2023, in Los Angeles, Calif.

FOX; Amy Sussman/Getty

While Shailene Woodley originally played Kaitlin Cooper in six episodes of season 1 of *The O.C.*, Willa Holland carried the role in seasons 3 and 4. As Marissa’s precocious sister, she took on particular importance in the final season after Marissa’s death.

A child of the industry, Holland’s stepfather is legendary director Brian De Palma. After *The O.C. *wrapped, Holland went on to land a longstanding role on the vigilante superhero series *Arrow* while voicing Aqua in the *Kingdom Hearts* video game series. Her film credits include *Legion *(2010), the remake of *Straw Dogs *(2011), and the supernatural horror movie *The Mortuary Assistant* (2026).

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