On the occasion of the online publication of the complete “Newport Beach” on Salto, focus on the career of Mischa Barton, alias Marissa Cooper, who had left the series at the end of season 3. What has become of her since the end of the adventure in 2007?
Since January 1, Salto subscribers can (re) discover Newport Beach, the complete four seasons and 92 episodes of which have been uploaded to the platform. To the delight of fans and nostalgic teenagers from the 2000s.
Created by Josh Schwartz (Gossip Girl, Chuck), Newport Beach (The OC in VO) tells the daily life of Ryan Atwood (Ben McKenzie), a teenager from underprivileged neighborhoods in Los Angeles who, after going through prison, is hosted by his court-appointed lawyer, Sandy Cohen (Peter Gallagher), who lives in a huge house in upscale Orange County.
A universe in which Ryan will have to find his place, with the support of Seth (Adam Brody), the Cohen’s son, but also of Marissa Cooper (Mischa Barton), his new charming neighbor, for whom he will quickly develop feelings.
And among all the twists and memorable moments that the series gave us, it is certainly the death of Marissa, which occurred at the very end of season 3, that fans still remember today. A rebound linked to the tensions behind the scenes between the production and the actress which obviously precipitated the departure of Mischa Barton who, since, has never really found outstanding roles.
A (big) serial failure, reality TV, and minor movies
Although they did not become stars, Ben McKenzie (Southland, Gotham), Adam Brody (StartUp, Wedding Nightmare), Rachel Bilson (Hart of Dixie), or even Chris Carmack (Nashville, Grey’s Anatomy) all did quite well. rebounded from the Newport Beach shutdown in February 2007, at the end of its fourth season.
This is not the case with Mischa Barton who may have paid the price for her reputation as a diva, or her rather questionable acting skills.
During the years following her departure from Newport Beach, we find her in the credits of some films released for the most part directly on DVD, such as Medieval Pie with Hayden Christensen, St Trinian’s, Assassination of a President with Bruce Willis, You and I , Les Emmuré by Gilles Paquet-Brenner, or Sex, revenge and seduction.
In 2009, Mischa Barton hopes to make her comeback on television thanks to the series The Beautiful Life, launched with great fanfare on The CW, which then seeks to ride on the success of Gossip Girl. But this drama with Sara Paxton (Summerland), Corbin Bleu (High School Musical), and Nico Tortorella (Younger) is ultimately a resounding failure.
The CW / Katalyst Films
Mischa Barton in The Beautiful Life in 2009
After only two episodes aired, the series, which follows the adventures of a gang of models in New York, is canceled due to catastrophic audiences.
The interpreter of Marissa still continues to tour a lot afterwards, but between feature films and TV films that have gone (almost all) unnoticed, from Don’t Fade Away to Ouija House, including I Will Follow You Into the Dark , and a guest in the short Freeform Recovery Road series, she doesn’t really get people talking about her anymore. On the fiction side at least.
In 2016, Mischa Barton took part in season 22 of Dancing With the Stars, the American version of Dancing with the stars, alongside Jodie Sweetin (La Fête à la maison). A nice return to the light for the actress, even if she was eliminated in the third week of competition.
Three years later, she is one of the new faces on MTV of The Hills: New Beginnings, a spin-off of the reality show Laguna Beach: The Hills, which sees returning former notable members of the program such as Heidi Montag, Audrina Patridge, and Brody Jenner. Mischa Barton does not, however, return to season 2, broadcast in 2021, and has since been quite discreet.
Backgrid USA / Bestimage
Mischa Barton at the 2019 Flaunt It Awards
Last year, the now 35-year-old actress spoke, for the first time without any filters, about her departure from Newport Beach and the reasons that had prompted her at the time to say farewell to her Marissa Cooper character.
At the microphone of E! News, she then declared: “In season 2, when we started doubling the number of episodes and the shooting intensified, it was too much for me. I didn’t understand where my character was going. It’s still a good time in my life. life, but there are things that were handled very badly by some people. I couldn’t see myself continuing. “.
“People were mean to me sometimes on this shoot. It wasn’t the best work environment for a sensitive young woman like me.”. Not sure, therefore, that Mischa Barton will be invited to a casting meeting if a Newport Beach revival emerges in the years to come.
The cult credits of Newport Beach: