‘One Tree Hill’ sequel series in the works at Netflix

Los Angeles, Aug 31 (PTI) A potential sequel to popular American series “One Tree Hill” is in the early stages of development at streaming service Netflix.

According to entertainment news outlet Deadline, Sophia Bush and Hilarie Burton, the stars of the original series, have signed on to executive produce and reprise their roles of Brooke Davis and Peyton Sawyer, respectively, in the new show.

Actor Danneel Ackles will executive produce as well under her Chaos Machine banner along with her husband, Jensen Ackles. She is in talks to reprise her role of Rachel Gatina.

The project comes from writer-executive producer Becky Hartman Edwards and Warner Bros. Television.

Created by Mark Schwahn, “One Tree Hill” premiered in 2003 and ran for nine seasons on The WB network and its successor the CW. It also starred Chad Michael Murray, James Lafferty, Bethany Joy Lenz, Austin Nichols, Antwon Tanner and Paul Johansson, among others.

Set in a fictional North Carolina town, “One Tree Hill” followed the story of two half-brothers, Lucas (Murray) and Nathan (Lafferty), whose strained relationship forces them to navigate high school together, ultimately leading their social circles to intersect.

As the series unfolded over the course of its nine seasons, it explored the friendships, romances, heartbreaks, and family tensions in Tree Hill through the eyes of the teens.

Key characters such as Brooke Davis, Peyton Sawyer, and Haley James Scott (Lenz) frequently serve as central figures in the storyline.

The sequel is said to take place 20 years later following best friends Brooke and Peyton who are now parents to teens and facing challenges not unfamiliar to what they tackled in the original series like love, insecurities and grief.

If finalised, the “One Tree Hill” sequel will be the second project that Netflix would have revived from Warner Bros Television. The streamer earlier brought back another signature series — “Gilmore Girls”, which also featured Murray.