Why Hilarie Burton Left One Tree Hill (2024)

The WB (and, later, The CW) drama One Tree Hill lasted for the better part of a decade. Set in the fictional town of Tree Hill, North Carolina, the series followed the lives of five main characters, who began as high school students, but later grew up and married their sweethearts. One of those characters was Peyton Sawyer, played by Hilarie Burton.

One Tree Hill was the teen drama for its generation, well before Euphoria or other similar shows. However, it suffered a major blow when Burton and her on-screen love interest, Chad Michael Murray, left in Season 6. What made Burton leave One Tree Hill behind?

Updated by Jordan Iacobucci on February 4, 2024: One Tree Hill remains one of the most popular television dramas of all time, even over two decades after its original premiere on The WB. To this day, the show's iconic cast — which includes Chad Michael Murray, Hilarie Burton, Sophia Bush, and more — remains beloved to viewers who first tuned into the show all those years ago. Despite its popularity, however, One Tree Hill couldn't hold on to its two main leads for its entire run. Both Murray and Burton departed several seasons before the series came to an end. Interestingly, the two actors' reasons for leaving are quite different. In the end, Burton revealed some behind-the-scenes misconduct that made working conditions on the series untenable.

Who Was Peyton Sawyer on One Tree Hill?

Peyton Sawyer was initially introduced as Nathan Scott's girlfriend. Lucas Scott, Nathan's half-brother, was recruited to the team after several players got suspended. When Peyton noted how terribly Nathan treated Lucas and decided Nathan was in their relationship for the wrong reasons, she broke up with him. Consequently, Peyton became romantically involved with Lucas and the infamous love triangle between Peyton, Lucas, and Brooke Davis (played by Sophia Bush before she starred in Chicago P.D.) began.

Season 2 and Season 3 were rough for Peyton. She started using cocaine and lost her biological mother, Ellie, to breast cancer after discovering she was adopted. If that wasn't enough trauma, a stray bullet hit Peyton during a school shooting, and she nearly died. In later seasons, a stalker kidnapped her before she and Lucas reunited and eventually tied the knot. After their wedding, Peyton suffered a difficult pregnancy and had to have an emergency cesarean section. She fell into a coma, but later woke up and met her daughter, Sawyer Brooke Scott. The Season 6 finale was the last time viewers saw Peyton as she, Lucas, and Sawyer left Tree Hill.

Burton's Allegations Against One Tree Hill Creator

In 2017, Burton and 17 other women of One Tree Hill cast and crew accused creator and showrunner Mark Schwahn of sexual harassment. On her podcast Drama Queens with former co-stars Bethany Joy Lenz and Sophia Bush in 2023, Burton detailed how she was assaulted by Schwahn before filming. She claimed that she "told all sorts of people" about the assault, and one person who stood up for the women was Chad Michael Murray. Murray reportedly confronted Schwahn about the misconduct because, as Bush puts it, "Chad didn't have anything to lose."

Burton never claims that this is a reason she left the series. It would be a good enough reason if Burton felt unsafe on set, and no one would blame her for leaving, considering many other women in the One Tree Hill community and the film industry supported the women speaking up. However, Burton claimed there was another reason why she ultimately decided to leave the series.

Why Did Hilarie Burton Leave One Tree Hill?

Burton and Murray both said their goodbyes in the One Tree Hill Season 6 finale. Murray returned for a one-episode cameo in Season 9, Episode 7, "Last Known Surroundings," but Burton was never seen on the show again. She told Entertainment Weekly her contract had expired, and she chose to leave, calling it "an emotional decision, and a professional decision as well." This would make it appear that her decision to leave the series was not entirely based on her experiences behind the scenes, but also on a desire to expand her career beyond a single popular role. Evidently, six years in the role of Peyton Sawyer was plenty for the One Tree Hill actress, though she remained on good terms with several cast members thereafter. Years later, Burton expounded on this sentiment on a 2020 podcast with Jana Kramer (who played Alex on One Tree Hill). During the interview, Burton stated plainly that she didn't regret her decision to leave and needed to "start something new."

Though hindsight afforded the actress the clarity to see that leaving One Tree Hill was the right decision, it clearly wasn't an easy choice for Hilarie Burton. According to her own words, Burton owes her decision to leave to co-star Moira Kelly, who played Karen Roe on the show. On an episode of Drama Queens, where Kelly was a guest star, Burton thanked Kelly for being the only person who told her it was okay to pursue other opportunities. Other people in Burton's circle were attempting to convince her to stay during the filming of the last episode, yet Kelly was the only one who reassured Burton of her decision, saying, "There's so many chapters in life and this is just one. This is just one."

Hilarie Burton's Career Post-One Tree Hill

Burton's career has been nothing but plentiful since leaving One Tree Hill. She had a recurring role as Sara Ellis on White Collar from 2010 to 2013 and portrayed plastic surgeon Dr. Lauren Boswell on Grey's Anatomy. Additionally, she's been seen in roles on Hostages, Extant and Lethal Weapon. She also appeared on The Walking Dead, opposite real-life husband Jeffrey Dean Morgan, as Negan's late wife Lucille in the Season 10 finale.

Burton also reunited with Bush and Bethany Joy Lenz in an episode of CBS's Good Sam. In 2022, Burton and Morgan hosted the true-crime series It Couldn't Happen Here for SundanceTV. Since 2021, Burton has co-hosted the Drama Queens podcast, reflecting back on her times on One Tree Hill, and has written two non-fiction books: The Rural Diaries: Love, Livestock, and Big Life Lessons Down on Mischief Farm and her 2023 memoir Grimoire Girl: A Memoir of Magic and Mischief.

One Tree Hill is available to stream on Max and Hulu.

One Tree Hill

TV-14

Half-brothers Lucas and Nathan Scott trade between kinship and rivalry both on the basketball court and in the hearts of their friends in the small, but not so quiet town of Tree Hill, North Carolina.

Release Date

September 23, 2003

Creator

Mark Schwahn

Cast

Chad Michael Murray , James Lafferty , Hilarie Burton , Bethany Joy Lenz

Main Genre

Drama