20 years later, The Scott Brothers have never really left each other

As the cult series turns 20 these days, James Lafferty confides in Première: “Friendship is one of those things that makes life worth living.”

Do you know the date of birth of Nathan and Lucas? If so, you know that September 23, 2023 marked a very special anniversary for The Scott brothers. Just 20 years ago fiction was launched One Tree Hill on American television, with its cast of young, beautiful and sexy people, and its opening credits I Don’t Want To Be (signed Gavin DeGraw). In the wake of Dawsonthe American teen drama has made its revolution and The Scott brothers will quickly become an institution.

For 9 seasons and 187 episodes, the two basketball brothers will make the whole world cry. And on April 4, 2012, the entire Tree Hill gang bowed out. But the stars of the casting will never really let go. The three heroines of the series, Sophia Bush, Hilarie Burton And Bethany Joy Lenzhave regularly shared their deep friendship on the networks, beyond the set. “We’re celebrating 20 years of the series today, but instead, I want to celebrate my 20 years of female friendships which are the ultimate love stories…” Bush wrote this weekend on his Instagram account.

The three actresses never stopped calling each other, until they found themselves on set from time to time, like when Hilarie Burton And Bethany Joy Lenz we’re joining Sophia Bush on an episode of his medical drama Good Samlast year.

James Laffertyhe continues to cross Chad Michael Murray in fan conventions and the two brothers of One Tree Hill always share a certain mutual affection.

Even more, the former Nathan Scott is very close to Stephen Colletti aka Chase Adams (from season 4). “We remained very friends with Stephen after One Tree Hill“, confides to us James Laffertywhich Première encountered during the last Monte-Carlo Television Festival. “We’re even quite close. We spend all our time together. We’re friends before being work colleagues…” Because the two former residents of North Carolina are once again roaming the sets together. They are starring in a new series, Everyone is doing great, which they wrote and created themselves. Broadcast on Hulu in the USA (not yet in France), it tells how two ex-teen drama stars try to rebuild themselves after the end of the show… Meta, but not only that.

“Fame fades, friendships remain. That’s the tagline of our show and I think it’s true. Friendship is one of those things that makes life worthwhile to be lived”insists James Lafferty.

His playmate confesses that afterOne Tree Hill was not easy:

“You have to know how to handle the ups and downs of this industry. One day you’re in a show like One Tree Hill and the next day it’s over. What happened when you couldn’t find another One Tree Hill ? I spent five years on this series, James spent 10 years there. We were in a form of comfort and serenity and when everything stops, we very quickly become vulnerable. How to manage these emotions? Quickly, we begin to question our whole life in fact…”

The duo therefore decided to create together Everyone is doing great, “like a cathartic experience. Just writing the first episode was already an incredible outlet.”

Their new drama has been renewed for a season 2, which will be released at the end of 2023. It remains to be seen if James Lafferty will one day succeed in no longer appearing in the eyes of the world as Nathan Scott, a role that still sticks to him, 20 years later One Tree Hill : “That’s a good question…and I have to say I don’t have a good answer“, smiles the actor. “I don’t think the Hollywood industry really sees actors that way. Afterwards, it certainly depends on the roles. But whatever it is, what I am sure of is that I am still so happy to have done The Scott brothers. I owe him everything.”