Bethany Joy Lenz has finally opened up about the swirling rumors of a feud with her One Tree Hill co-star, Hilarie Burton. Fans of the show have been speculating for months about whether tension between the two actresses had boiled over. On the Oct. 16 episode of the Call Her Daddy podcast, Lenz addressed the rumors head-on, sharing her side of the story and giving insight into the dynamics between her and her former co-stars.
Bethany Joy Lenz, 43, known for her role as Haley James Scott on One Tree Hill, made it clear that despite the speculation, she holds no ill will toward Hilarie Burton, who played Peyton Sawyer on the hit teen drama. Lenz, who started the Drama Queens podcast alongside Burton and fellow OTH alum Sophia Bush, set the record straight, stating that she has nothing but love for her former co-star.
“I love Hilarie. I have always and will always, and I don’t have any problem with her,” Lenz said during her interview on Call Her Daddy. She acknowledged that while there have been some strange misunderstandings between them, they haven’t tainted her feelings for Burton. “There have been some bizarre misunderstandings that I really hope we can figure out one day, but I love that girl.”
Her words dispelled the rumors of a feud, but the fact that these misunderstandings exist suggests that there’s more to their relationship than meets the eye.
While Lenz downplayed any issues with Hilarie Burton, she was much more candid about her struggles to connect with Sophia Bush, who played Brooke Davis on One Tree Hill. Their characters were best friends on screen, but off screen, their relationship was a bit more complicated. Lenz opened up about her difficulties in forming a real connection with Bush during the show’s nine-season run.
“I think we were both approaching life from a similar way, but from opposite perspectives,” Lenz explained. “Because the conclusions that we had come to about life and God and all those things were very different. There just was no space for listening. She would have been much more quick to listen to my perspective and hear me than I would have been at the time.”
Lenz’s honesty about her personal beliefs and how they affected her relationships with her co-stars is refreshing. She admitted that while they acted like close friends on screen, their real-life connection didn’t reflect the same warmth.
“We’re going through the motions of close friendship but not actually knowing how to connect,” Lenz admitted. “It’s hard.”
Lenz’s relationships with her One Tree Hill co-stars are an evolving process, and while the three women have reconnected on their Drama Queens podcast, there’s still work to be done. When asked if the podcast has helped them confront their past struggles, Lenz was honest about the fact that they still have a long way to go.
“A little bit, not as much as I would have liked,” she shared. “On Drama Queens, we definitely talked about our time back then and what was hard and how great it was to reconnect and the feelings of unraveling things that were so mysterious to us at the time. But no, it’s an ever-evolving journey. There are still plenty of people in my life that I… man, shame is a tough thing.”
It seems like the podcast has opened the door for some healing, but Lenz is clear that the journey is ongoing. As with many relationships formed in intense working environments, it takes time to fully work through past conflicts.
As nostalgic as fans are for One Tree Hill, Lenz isn’t necessarily ready to step back into the shoes of Haley James Scott. When asked about the possibility of returning to her iconic role in a potential Netflix revival of the series, Lenz admitted she’s not sure if she’s ready for that just yet.
“It’s way too early to talk about any of that,” she said, leaving fans to wonder if a return to Tree Hill could be in the cards down the line.
Speculation about a rift between Lenz and Burton started earlier this year when fans noticed that the podcast co-hosts had stopped following each other on social media. The rumors intensified when Burton left the Drama Queens podcast after they finished covering season six of One Tree Hill. Burton’s exit raised eyebrows, especially since she left just as the podcast was gearing up to cover the final three seasons of the show.
However, Burton was quick to explain her departure, attributing it to the natural end of her time with the show. “We have reached the end of my behind-the-scenes experience on the show, and so I really started to question what I brought to this, but also how we keep that storytelling alive and important,” Burton said on the podcast when she announced her decision to leave. “And so as we head into seasons seven through nine, it was important that we introduced a new queen who could take over for me.”
Robert Buckley, who played Clay Evans during the final three seasons, stepped in to replace Burton on the podcast. Burton made it clear that her departure wasn’t a sign of any behind-the-scenes drama, but rather a natural end to her involvement in the project.
As the rumors of a feud between Bethany Joy Lenz and Hilarie Burton continue to swirl, it’s clear that Lenz’s relationships with her One Tree Hill co-stars are still evolving. The Drama Queens podcast has given the trio an opportunity to reconnect and reflect on their time on the show, but as Lenz herself admitted, there’s still more healing to be done.
Fans of One Tree Hill may be eager to see a revival or reunion, but for now, Lenz is keeping her focus on the present and continuing to work through the complex dynamics of her past relationships. As for her feelings toward her co-stars? Despite the misunderstandings and struggles, Lenz’s message is clear: there’s still love there, even if it’s complicated.
