The O.C. was once a pop culture phenomenon — and Rachel Bilson experienced the pandemonium firsthand during an appearance on TRL.
In Alan Sepinwall’s new book, Welcome to the O.C.: The Oral History, Bilson, 42, recalled being “swarmed by a mass mob” of fans who wanted to meet her costar and then-boyfriend, Adam Brody, after they taped an episode of the MTV show. She managed to escape with help from two unlikely sources: Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.
“The Olsen twins rescued me and threw me in their car,” Bilson recalled in the book, which was coauthored with The O.C. creator Josh Schwartz and executive producer Stephanie Savage. “I left Brody behind because I was so nervous and didn’t know what to do. And they were like, ‘Don’t you need to get your boyfriend?’ And I was like, ‘Oh, yeah, we’ve got to go get him.’ He was being mobbed.”
Brody, 43, claimed in the book that he didn’t recall having “many Beatles moments” during the height of his fame, but Bilson was happy to remind him of the TRL incident “I don’t want to say he’s lying because he may not remember,” she said. “He stands corrected.”
Adam Brody. Mike Coppola/Getty Images for Tribeca TV
While he didn’t initially remember the “mass mob” incident, Brody admitted that he realized his life had changed when a woman grabbed him and “[hooked] up” with him before saying, “Welcome to Hollywood.” He described the encounter as an “acknowledgment of a stature change,” noting that he remembers the moment as “innocent and joyful” even if others might think it was “gross.”
Brody and Bilson — who played high school sweethearts Seth Cohen and Summer Roberts, respectively — dated in real life from 2003 to 2006 while filming the teen drama. While the duo called it quits before the show ended for good in 2007, Bilson later said that the romance helped her adjust to the fame that The O.C. brought her and her castmates.
Welcome to The O.C.! Adam Brody, Rachel Bilson, Ben McKenzie and more young actors got their starts on the teen drama — but there were even more faces that would soon become familiar in the background. The O.C. followed Ryan Atwood (McKenzie), who experiences a culture shock after moving in with Seth Cohen (Brody) and […]
“Because of what the show was and how young we all were, going through it with someone experiencing the same thing and having that kind of support was really awesome,” Bilson told Nylon in April 2021. “I’m actually grateful that I did have it. It was definitely a unique experience and I don’t think anyone else could have really understood it had they not been in it.”
Bilson added that the relationship was “super helpful and supportive” for her as she got accustomed to life in the spotlight. “I have total gratitude for the whole experience,” she added.
After splitting from Bilson, Brody married Leighton Meester in 2014. The duo share daughter Arlo, 8, and a son, 3, whose name they haven’t publicly shared.
Bilson, meanwhile, dated Hayden Christensen from 2007 to 2017. The former couple are the parents of daughter Briar Rose, 9.
Welcome to the O.C.: The Oral History is available now.