One Tree Hill star Hilarie Burton says she wants a ‘do-over with a girl boss’
Series creator was accused of sexual harassment by 18 female cast and crew members in 2017
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Your support makes all the difference.One Tree Hill star Hilarie Burton has said she wants a “do-over” of the show with a “girl boss”.
The actor – who played Peyton Sawyer on the hit teen drama – made the request on Twitter, stating: “Teen girl sexuality was a cornerstone of #oth, so its gross to me that there were no women in positions of power there. No one we could turn to advocate for us.”
She added: “Men telling the stories of girl sexuality is a red flag. I want a do-over with a girl boss.”
One Tree Hill, which follows the fictional lives of a group of teenagers in North Carolina, ran for nine seasons between 2003 and 2012.
In 2017, the series’ creator and showrunner Mark Schwahn was accused of sexual misconduct in an open letter signed by 25 cast and crew members of his new show The Royals, as well as by 18 female cast and crew members from One Tree Hill, including Burton.
In addition to the letter, Burton alleged that Schwahn repeatedly targeted her, which included two attempts to force himself on her. This allegedly involved kissing her on the mouth against her will without warning and touching her inappropriately while in the presence of his wife.
Schwahn was fired from The Royals after the allegations emerged.
Co-star Sophia Bush – who portrayed Brooke Davis on One Tree Hill and also signed the open letter accusing Schwahn of sexual harassment – replied to Burton’s recent Twitter post, writing: “Co-sign.”
Kate Voegele, who guest starred on the programme, also added: “Me three. I’m breathing a sigh of relief just thinking about a woman making those wardrobe decisions!”
Burton’s new comments are in response to a fan who shared an old image of the actor and her co-star Chad Michael Murray in a psychology text-book about adolescence and sex.
Replying to the image, Burton said that she was “embarrassed by this”.
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