Mischa Barton Reflects on “Healing” 20 Years After O.C.’s Debut

15. While Fox tried to tease the major death in the season three finale, the victim herself, Barton, spoiled Marissa’s passing in an interview just before the episode aired. “My character has been through so, so much, and there’s really nothing more left for her to do,” she told Access Hollywood. Oops!

For Schwartz, he called the decision to kill her off a difficult one. “It was born out of a number of issues,” he told The Daily Beast, “creative, cast chemistry, ratings.”

16. So did Barton want off the show? “Mischa didn’t want off the show any more than any of the other kids wanted off the show,” Schwartz admitted with a laugh. “It was a complicated chemistry with the cast…but she certainly wasn’t actively seeking to leave the show.”

He then added, “I think they had mixed feelings about their fame emanating from a teen drama on Fox. It wasn’t how they sort of imagined their careers going, so that was challenging for sure. There was a lot of studying of how Johnny Depp got fired off of 21 Jump Street.”