In sickness, in health, in unemployment.
The name Chad Michael Murray is pretty much synonymous with One Tree Hill. The actor has appeared in 130 episodes of the CW drama since it first aired in 2003--but now it appears that number won't be going up.
In March, amateur footage caught Murray saying that The CW "doesn't want me…" and that his role was being shed due to budget issues. Now it seems Murray was telling the truth, and he isn't the only one being booted from the Hill.
According to EW.com, Murray, who plays Lucas Scott, and costar Hilarie Burton, who plays Peyton Sawyer, will not be back for the show's seventh season. Both actors have been on One Tree Hill since its debut in 2003, and their characters recently married. An official announcement is expected at next week's CW upfront presentation.
With their departures, EW says a new crop of characters will take Lucas and Peyton's place: an older sister for Haley, a model who becomes the face of Brooke's fashion line, and a sports agent whose client is Nathan.
There's no real way to sugarcoat this, One Tree Hill fans--it sounds like a real screw job. Let's hear your reactions below!
Comments (194)
This is real dumb. The hole point of the show is about nathan and lucas, the show is just boring now with out lucas. :(
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it is a shame you are no longer one one tree hill you made the show grate its an ok show but i know your fans will miss you alot and hope to see you back on the show sometime
I had no idea what was going on... I've watched OTH from the first episode on, but here in Holland they stopped airing it after season 3 (I think), so I watch it online. But the whole new episode kept me asking the question where they were. A sad Brook, no Leyton on Jamie's birthday? That's just not possible. Even though they might not get the money they wanted, the writers at least could have ended it the right way. Now it's just complete bs to everyone who loves the show. Two major characters just gone... thought that a series that has been on for quite a while could have done a better job. It doesn't stop me from watching it, but it's a real bummer...
what? are they INSANE? Come on... Lucas and Peyton who the main stars of the series! And they cut them out? I am sure One Tree Hill will lose all points possible. I seriously cant believe they were that stupid! I hated this episode because it doesnt have them... oh come on... HATE IT
I'm offically not watching One Tree Hill anymore! I thought Peyton was the friggen Producers fave! This is crazy! And I thought that Smallville was going to catch hell with it's ratings! One Tree Hill freaking sucks!! They made the damn show! Seriously are they out their minds!! Getting Rid of PEyton and Lucas from One Tree hill is like Getting Rid of Sam and Dean from Supernatural, Clark from Smallville, Chuck and Blair from Gossip Girl! You're not going to have a show without them! Who cares about Brookes fashion and love dilemma's? Mouth and Milli and there creepy realtionship? Haley and Nathan and their Occpational problems? This is ***ed and the CW is offically out their friggen mind! What's the damn point of bringing the show back? Hell they should have ended it last Season, that would have been remotely okay...Damn...I'm no longer a fan and will not be watching it any longer...I'm replacing it with 90210!moreless
oh and budget cuts were the reason?? you could have had nathan and haley move away so that he could do his basketball thing...but no you take away the two ppl who make the show!!! and if it was a budget cut then why are you getting three ppl to fill their place?? even 2.... there is no room in the budget apparently for the 2 most important ppl...so you get three ppl to come in... worst thing to do!!!! i seriously am upset and wont be watching it any longer!!!!!! and everyone below me is rite... the OC died b/c they took marrisa off... you cant just take away your lead guy and girl..you just cant. it wont survive!!!!!!!!!!!!!
getting rid of those two will be a big mistake... i personally wont be interested in the show once their gone. they made the show what it is... they were the show. i feel this is the biggest, worst mistake the director could have made and i dont understand. i was a huge OTH fan but once the new season comes out without them i wont be. why would you want to get rid of them? well i highly doubt the show will last too long... i give it a year of air time if even that. this sucks! i am really upset about this. this was my number one show... right abouve Greys
They are doing the same thing the O.C did when they gopt rid of Marissa Cooper. Which is why the series bombed the next year. OTH has a year maybe(5% chance) of having two more seasons. You don't get rid of one much less two of the main characters of the show. The new supoporting actors will fail to fill the shoes of Chad and Hilarie. So long one tree hill.
I don't even know if I will even try to watch it since they have took off 2 of best actor they had on the show.I really other acter to but it want be the same with out them.
i think the 7th season is so going to fail because of this...anyways...the 6th became boring in some way...its like they've already lost ideas "what could happen next"...the season final was enough to be the end of OTH...
i love this show and chad and hilarie where two big reasons i loved the show the whole show is basically set around lucas now there not having hime in it i'm really mad about that i might not watch it anymore. and i do believe what other people say when they are putting all these stars in the show for 1 or 2 episodes is ridiculous and don't need to be in it save that money and give it to them. i really don't know what to say anymore i'm so mad
I cannot believe that "budget" caused OTH to fail to "renew" the contracts of both Chad Michael Murray (CMM) and Hilarie Burton (HB) for season 7 (and beyond?). CMM and HB are vital to a successful OTH show. OTH season 6 was "expensive" because they hired so many "extras" to staff the movie of Lucas' book. Every major character in OTH had a "double" for several episodes. Hiring James van Derbeek was not "cheap", and if "money" was the only issue, why not "shrink" the number of "extras" and concentrate on the story line around the five major actors (CMM, HB, James Lafferty, Bethany Joy Galeotti, and Sophia Bush). HB leaving is the "least understandable" of the two. Hilarie has her new production company based in Wilmington, NC, where Screen Gems Studios produces OTH; she lives in Wilmington, NC year round as do her whole family (mother, father, and three brothers); Hilarie is intelligent enough to know that a working actress in a successful TV series is much more likely to have "doors opened to her" than a "former actress" in a series which "died" after she left. If HB wants to concentrate on "production" rather than "acting", then she needs "continuous financing", and a steady salary on OTH S-7, even at reduced rates, is better than no salary at all. HB's partner in her production company, Kelly Tenney, has been an assistant producer on OTH since the beginning. Did he leave OTH too? If so, that is two of the three major partners in the new production company without a "steady income". HB must be aware of how another CW TV series, "The O.C.", "died" one season after star Mischa Barton was "killed off", in another contract "dispute". Every "dedicated" OTH fan, who has followed this series from the beginning, knows that the continuity of the OTH story line depends on the interaction of Lucas Scott (CMM) and Peyton Sawyer Scott (Hilarie Burton) with the other three major characters and the supporting cast. No "additional characters", regardless of who they are, will make up for the "losses" of Lucas and Peyton. If losing Lucas (CMM) and Peyton (HB) causes the OTH series to "fail", then CW will have killed the series ("the golden goose) for the sake of saving a few dollars on CMM and HB salaries. I just hope that CW, CMM, and HB, along with OTH creator, Mark Schwahn, have "thought through" the "ramifications" of such drastic cast changes on the fans of OTH. If OTH S-7 "ratings" "tank", then CW will have been proved to be "penny wise and pound foolish". No one can "replace" CMM or HB on OTH. Their "story line" IS OTH's "story line", and all the other characters "feed off" their continuity. Please CW, bring CMM and HB back.moreless
i think that peyton should have died and lucas is broken hearted so he takes off by himself for a while leaving the baby with brooke- the baby she had waited to adopt for so long. when he finally returns- he and brooke get back together and are happy, the way peyton would have wanted them both to be. hint: show writers, you can still fix this since CMM can be out at least 8 episodes! Hilarie wanted to leave but Chad was told he wouldnt be able to renew a contract apparently because of monetary issues. They both have confirmed these reasons themselves by posting videos online about the decisions/lack there of.
it totally sucks i thought the story follows 2 brothers who just share a last name so what will haley's sister and nathan's sports agent do much for the show? there is no way haley can be without her bset friend! its official i might be watching my last season of one tree hill! CW should re-negotiate Murray and Burton's contracts they could be the only reason why some of us are one tree hill fanatics.
This sucks!! its going to be so crap now
So sad, so sad, I love One Tree Hill, I really love it!! But if that is true, OTH is completely over for me. They're its heart and soul, how can a show exist without their heart and soul. IMPOSSIBLE. I wish we can do something to change this terrible mistake!!
Are you kidding??? I think this network needs to replace some execs. I cannot imagine this show without the two them. I think Ms. Ostroff will need to look for some of that magic that Lucas talked about in the finale of Season 6 or this show will be the next burial in the One Tree Hill Cemetery. And they think they can just add new characters to replace what Chad and Hilarie brought to the Hill? Please!!! One of them better be a miracle worker because they are going to need it! I hope that Chad and Hilarie know that the fans appreciate what they have given us for the past 6 seasons, even if the Network, in rewarding them with no new contract, does not. For me, One Tree Hill will always be about them!moreless
This sucks! There can't be One Tree Hill without Lucas and Peyton
Thats stupid.... there goes the show!!!!
I actually started watching this show for Chad Michael Murray. How is it that one of the best characters is getting the boot? Me, i don't care that much for Burton, but let's face it, it's not gonna be One Tree Hill without them.
It SUCK.
There cant be any One Tree Hill without Peyton And Lucas.
Think about it for a few seconds... Lucas and Peyton got married. They're happy and so their storyline is pretty much over. There's nothing really left for them to do. So I agree, goodbye Chad n' Hilarie.
The show began about two brothers and now we are getting rid of one of them, how is that possible. The heart of the show was Peyton and Lucas and the struggles they faced. They are finally together and now they just leave. This will be another O.C. and the show won't make it much longer. This is a really big mistake. Even with budget cuts they should fight to keep two of its main characters and not worry about adding 4 new people to the full-time cast!
this is crap,the show will not survive without them
Exactly, next year will be the end for Smallville and Supernatural, unless they continue the first, which is possible, but I doubt Tom will go for another year. OTH, now without it's two main characters, can continue for many years to come since the basics they started with left the show. The CW is crazy for focusing on teenage girls. Sure they are the viewers who will hype like crazy, GG is a wordly known thing, yet, there are only 2 million people tuning in on tv. Broad your f-horizon CW!!! There are so many more groups you can aim your shows at, teenage girls won't save you!
once smallville, supernatural, and one tree hill are off the air, the cw is screwed and their airhead president will learn her mistake of only focusing on 90210 and gossip girl
the show won't be the same with out Lucas and Peyton just like the o.c wasn't the same after they cut of Marissa. It's a huge mistake for kicking them off the show. One Tree Hill is just gonna go down hill with out Leyton
they have ruined the show for me it will never ever be the same
I guess that expains the Season finale! I've been a fan of OTH for several years but this weeks season finale was just ridiculous. No cliff-hangers, no "un-happy endings", everything tied up in a nice little bow with all the characters getting exactly what they wanted and all happy-ever-after-ish. It was actually worse than the season finale of House, which I thought was pretty awful!
they were barely pulling the show off as it was, it probably should have ended after high school. now it has no chance, the other actors and characters are great but the show is peyton and lucas. they are the soul of the show, and not just together, the interaction with everyone is what makes them so important. i highly doubt i will watch it more than a few times next season. this is truely the day the music died for one tree hill.
absolutely love the show. NO PEYTON AND NO LUCAS??? NO SHOW!!! I'M OVER IT! HORRIBLE! SHOW SHOULD END! If they don't bring them back, I hope everyone tunes OUT!! BYEBYE! VERY UPSET!
Have to say, kinda surprised they wouldn't just end the series. I mean, they are getting rid of 2 of the main charcters. I think there would be other people you could get rid of for budget cuts. Not like it really matters, once OTH and Smallville is gone, CW will be nothing but 80's/90's shows remade.
one tree hill without Lucas and Peyton ?????? I don't think the creators are in their senses.. How will there be a Tree Hill without them ?? Lets hope they come to their sense in time... otherwise there will be many other fans like me -- BOOTING this show... and if that happens -- u will wish Peyton and Lucas were here.. TOO STUPID A DECISION >>> Budget cuts ?? C;mon -- like without them the show would survive in the first place -- first Karen is gone, then Whitey, Keith and Deb.. I think the creators wil soon play the characters themselves.. C'mon -- Bring the old TREE HILL back !!
leyton represented true love and chemistry form season 1 ... how they gnna replace such history>>?? and we waited 6 seasons for them to get together properly and they leave without even saying goodbye and with one line "lets take a road trip" ??? wat the hell >>>?? P&L = True Love Always .. i dnt know hw season 7 is gnna turn ut and at this point i dont want to know !they made the show for me ..!!!!GET them BACK !
http://newsroom.mtv.com/2009/05/19/one-tree-hill-finale-how-we-would-have-said-goodbye-to-leyton/
Season 7 is gonna be a fail, big time. There's no One Tree Hill without Lucas, or Peyton.
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So the show is about two brothers in Tree Hill, but they are getting rid of one... This is "Really smart"
After seeing the seasons finale i'm starting to have some doubts about the existence of a season 7,but i agree with everybody...why don't they kick Nathan and Haley too?The show is about the two brothers...it won't be the same.
Bad news for the show. It's like cutting off the head of the snake, it's body will stop functioning and die. Pardon me for the metaphor, too tired to think of others.
This is completely stupid! CMM & HB are an integral part of OTH. The show has always been about the Scott brothers (it's even called LES FRERES SCOTT in french). If you want to save money, get rid of the lesser characters or those that don't directly affect the main story (like Mouth & Millie, Chase & Mia). Don't get rid of your stars!! OTH won't recover from this. Lucas & Peyton are extremely popular. I don't understand the reasoning at all.
there is no One Tree Hill without Lucas Scott... period.
I really hope this statment is false. It just doesn't make sense for them to give them the boot...
I sure if they wrote out Peyton they could have kept the show going... I expected them to make her die at the end of this season finale... would have been a good out.
But take out Lucas too and you don't really have a show anymore.... He is what the show focused on from the beginning... Just doesn't make much sense...
I can't see this show lasting another season without him... Maybe not even till the end of another season... could end up cutting in the middle like October Road or Black Donnellys...
Yuk.. Worst mistake ever
this online report better be false.
if ur going to kick lucas and peyton out of the show, u might as well cancel and end it. they together with nathan, haley and brooke are the corner stones of the show, around which all the other characters revole. It has been that way since episode one.
this doesnt make any sense. geesh what has TV come to.
Due these are my favourite characters!!!! Wtf!!! I give OTH one last season (that we know won't be any good) before it gets shafted. I love this show and I'll give it a chance in the new season but I don't anticipate myself coming back for long. Chad and Hilarie will be ok though. Chad's already got an established film career so I don't see any problems for him in switching over. And Hilarie has totally come into her own since she started on OTH. Her performance in The Secret Life of Bees, though short was memorable and shows so much promise for her career in the future. Good luck guys!!!