The O.C. - Cast and Characters

Cast and Characters

Further information: Characters of The O.C.

Peter Gallagher portrays Sandy Cohen, an idealistic public defender who takes in Ryan Atwood in the pilot episode, much to the dismay of his wife, Kirsten. He is the husband of Kirsten, the father of Seth Cohen, and the legal guardian of Ryan Atwood. Although he lives in a large upper class house, his politics are left-leaning and open-minded, causing friction between himself and the community. Peter Gallagher described the character as a "leftie Jewish guy from the Bronx".

Kelly Rowan portrays Kirsten Cohen. She is the wife of Sandy Cohen, the mother of Seth and former CFO of her father's (Caleb Nichol) real estate company, the Newport Group. Before she met Sandy she dated and grew up with Jimmy Cooper, with whom she remains friends. She has had trouble with alcohol and had an abortion early in her life. The character's politics and lifestyle are conservative, a contrast to her husband. Kelly Rowan described the character as seemingly more "together" than herself during an interview.

Benjamin McKenzie portrays Ryan Atwood, a troubled teenager from Chino who is thrust into the privileged community of Newport Beach, California after his mother, Dawn Atwood, throws him out of their family home. Ryan is subsequently taken in by his public defender, Sandy Cohen. He forms fast bonds with the entire Cohen family, especially Sandy's son Seth. Casting director Patrick Rush found the role of Ryan Atwood particularly hard to cast and only invited Benjamin McKenzie to an audition after Fox had made them aware of the young actor after his unsuccessful audition for a UPN sitcom. Rush said, "When Benjamin came in, he wasn't physically what Josh had envisioned, but he inhabited the character unlike anyone we had seen. I think that the character of Ryan is a kid that always seems a little lost and has a sense of mystery and danger; Benjamin has all those qualities." Chad Michael Murray was originally offered the role of Ryan Atwood but turned it down for the lead role of Lucas Scott on One Tree Hill.

Mischa Barton portrays Marissa Cooper. Throughout the series Marissa is frequently battling with drugs and alcohol. Marissa's relationships with her parents, boyfriends, and classmates are often tumultuous. She is Summer's best friend and Ryan's on and off love interest. Marissa is portrayed as a "spoiled girl who adjusts to being poor". The casting director referred to Marissa as "a girl stuck in the trappings of her life who seemed older than her actual age." Mischa Barton left the series at the end of season three when her character was subsequently written off by being killed in a car accident. Commenting on her departure, Barton said, "My character has been through so, so much and there's really nothing more left for her to do."

Adam Brody portrays Seth Cohen, the awkward adolescent son of Sandy and Kirsten Cohen. He is known for his quick quips and pop-culture references. He is also the love interest of Summer Roberts, on whom he had a crush on since third grade. Seth has been called a "Jewish nerd into obscure emo bands", who "starts dating a gorgeous, popular virgin." The New York Times characterized Seth as "eccentric and literate, Seth professes actual wanderlust (...) The show's press materials maintain that he's an existential hero along the lines of Holden Caulfield." Adam Brody's portrayal of Seth was well received and is considered one of the overall highlights of the series.

Rachel Bilson portrays Summer Roberts, a pretty and popular socialite who is the love interest of Seth and best friend to Marissa. Bilson's character was originally scheduled to appear in only a few episodes, but her character quickly became popular amongst viewers, and ended up being part of the main cast for the rest of the series. Summer's mother left when her parents divorced after her mother abandons them and she has had no contact with her since. Her stepmother, nicknamed the "step-monster," is a lazy woman with a suggested drug problem. Summer has been referred to as a "seemingly snotty, superficial rich girl who is revealed to have hidden depth when she warms to the charms of nerdy Seth." She is the daughter of Dr. Neil Roberts.

Melinda Clarke portrays Julie Cooper, the mother of Kaitlin Cooper and Marissa Cooper. At the beginning of the show she is married to financial planner Jimmy Cooper. She is often characterized as being devious, selfish, and shallow. However, she reveals a more vulnerable and empathetic part of herself a number of times during the series. Melinda Clarke summarized her character as being "clearly just such a money-digging whore. To me, it’s so funny now to see The Real Housewives of Orange County because you realize it exists and that’s what Julie was. Julie was obviously the original housewife." Melinda went on to commend the character's "incredible arc," saying that Julie started as "this woman who was so superficial but, of course, she’s not just one-dimensional, she’s multi-dimensional. Starting in her pink Juicy sweat suit outfit and then by the end she’s graduated from college and moving on with her life. She’s a survivor."

Tate Donovan portrays Jimmy Cooper, Marissa and Kaitlin's father (and Julie's ex-husband). He gets in trouble for embezzlement and must face the consequences of his actions and its effect on his reputation and personal life. He was a regular cast member for Season 1 and the beginning of Season 2. One interviewer characterized Jimmy as a "lovable deadbeat dad". Josh Schwartz has referred to the character as a "cat" in DVD Commentaries. The character is portrayed as flighty and perpetually in financial debt despite warm relationships with his daughters. The character was ranked eighth by Entertainment Weekly on a list of the worst dads in television history.

Chris Carmack portrays Luke Ward, Marissa's first boyfriend and regular cast member for most of the first season. Luke is initially the main antagonist of the series, coining the series famous "Welcome to the O.C., bitch!" line during a fight with Ryan in the premiere episode. However, he later becomes the main "comic punching bag" for the other characters. Josh Schwartz characterized the later Luke as "strumming a guitar being a goofball."

Alan Dale portrays Caleb Nichol, Kirsten's businessman father and later Julie Cooper's husband. His character recurs throughout the first season, and he becomes a regular during the second season. The Chicago Tribune characterized Caleb as a "gruff, uncompromising Newport Beach, Calif., real-estate developer". When asked by the Tribune about the character, Dale said, ""The thing that's lovely about this character is that there's so much to do with him. His relationships are so complicated, and once the marriage happened, everyone was related in the show. That means he's got all these people to relate to, and he relates so badly with everyone."

Autumn Reeser portrays Taylor Townsend, introduced in Season 3 as a neurotic perfectionist student. Her character's initial personality was referred to by many critics as similar to the character Tracy Flick from the film Election. Taylor begins the series as a recurring villain before eventually becoming the second female lead in the fourth season. Autumn Reeser's performance was critically acclaimed. She reflected back on the character during a 2010 interview, saying "I feel like there’s a lot of girls out there who could really relate to her, who hadn’t seen themselves on TV in that way. I loved that about her. I loved that she made no apologies for who she was even though she wasn’t what all the magazines said was OK. She was like, “I’m still valid. And I’m awesome. And I know I’m odd, and that’s OK.”

Willa Holland portrays Kaitlin Cooper. The role was originally played by Shailene Woodley in a recurring role during Season 1, Kaitlin spends much of the series at boarding school before returning on a recurring basis in season 3 (now played by Holland) and finally becoming a regular character in season 4. The daughter of Jimmy Cooper and Julie Cooper-Nichol and sister to Marissa Cooper. Her personality is more similar to her mother's rather than her father's, and she is portrayed as a regular pot smoker and occasional dealer. Holland observed that "no one can control her" but that her arc in Season 4 finds the character maturing. When asked about any disappointment over the recast, Shailene Woodley responded that, "I was 11 and I was on as a guest, recurring character, or whatever. My character went to boarding school and when they decided to bring her back, they actually re-auditioned me to bring her back. But I didn't go through puberty until late (...) So, there was no weirdness when Willa Holland got it because she was so obviously right for the role... and I was so obviously not ." In the series, Willa Holland's character dates a character played by the popular music star Chris Brown in the 4th season of the show.