The OC was a phenomenon that took the FOX Network by storm and became an instant hit. You had Ryan, a boy from the wrong side of the tracks. He was taken in by a wealthy family in Orange County, and it was all he could to fit in. Ryan quickly fell in love with the girl next door, Marissa Cooper.
It was this love that would shape the show and become the turning point for much of Ryan’s character growth. Their love affair was so consuming, it may have overshadowed many of the guest roles making us totally forget! Never fear OC lovers! We’re here to take you back to California and remind you what, or who, you might have missed!
1. Paul Wesley
Before he was the Ripper of Monterey, A.K.A. Stefan Salvatore on The Vampire Diaries, he was tearing up the streets of The OC as Ryan’s co-worker at The Crab Shack. Wesley’s character, Donnie, is also from a rough neighborhood. His friendship with Ryan and Seth was short lived because he pulled a gun on Luke at a party.
2. Bella Thorne
Before Bella was Famous in Love she played a young Taylor Townsend in Elementary school on The OC. She was only on our screens for a couple of minutes but it was long enough for us to get a glimpse of those famous red locks and know that she was going to be a huge star one day.
3. Olivia Wilde
She may have been #13 to House but she was Orange County’s “IT” girl for a while, dating both Seth and Marissa. Wilde’s character, Alex, is the manager of The Bait Shop and a bit of a bad girl. This was her first big reoccurring role and, initially, what she became known for before she blew up.
4. Janel Parrish
Seems as though before Mona was taking up residence in Rosewood, she could be found in Orange County. Janel Parrish played Leah, a classmate of Marissa’s sister Kaitlin. Much like Janel’s character on Pretty Little Liars, the one thing Leah wants more than anything is to be popular.
5. Ashley Benson
Calling Hanna Marin! Oops, wrong show! Ashley played, Riley, resident mean girl who would stop at nothing to be popular, including belittling her own friends to do her bidding. Unfortunately, Kaitlyn was better at the game than she was and it’s Kaitlyn that came out on top in the game of “Who rules the school.”
6. Lucy Hale
Here is another one of our Pretty Little Liars with a cameo on The OC. Lucy played Hadley, Kaitlyn’s quirky but fun roommate at boarding school. Hadley called everyone who was anyone “bitch” and never stopped talking. Well unless she didn’t like you, then she just wouldn’t talk to you at all. Sounds like a pretty foolproof system, right?
7. Shailene Woodley
The OC went through a pretty dramatic time jump and when it did so they had to make sure they aged Kaitlyn Cooper with the jump. The baby-faced Shailene couldn’t keep playing her after the jump, so instead, they moved on to a mature looking teen. Shailene moved on to other projects but we will always remember her days in Orange County.
8. Nicholas Gonzalez
We’re labeling Nicholas Gonzalez as our star to watch.He’s been all over the place as of late. Currently you can find him in Rosewood trying to catch “A.D.”, however, he was once in Orange County working as a landscaper and dating Marissa Cooper. He didn’t quite make it to the “meet the parents and sister” step because Marissa was afraid of them and what they would think of her dating the gardener, so she didn’t tell them.
9. Nikki Reed
That’s right ladies and gents! Before she was Mrs. Ian Somerhalder she was a resident of Orange County, for a short while. Nikki played Sadie, cousin to Danny, the surfer who fell off a cliff at the beach while professing his love to Marissa. Sadie came to town to help Danny’s mom try and pack up the house and get things in order but ended up staying longer than planned when she fell for Ryan. Ultimately, things didn’t work out and Sadie went back to Oregon and Ryan went to Berkeley.
10. Chris Pratt
Even movie stars have to start somewhere, right? Before he was in the prehistoric era he was either at Brown or chillin’ in Orange County helping Summer with Seth or vice versa. Trouble seemed to always follow those two around. They always had good intentions but it was others that seemed to get caught in their crossfire.
There you have it! Our list of 10 people you may have forgotten had guest roles on The OC. What do you think? Is it a complete list? Did we leave anyone out? Is there someone on the list that shouldn’t be? Tweet us and let us know at @pure_fandom or you can tweet me directly at @ndintelman34!
Featured image courtesy of Fox Entertainment.
