Where Would 'The O.C.' Characters Be Today?

As Devastating as it may be hear, it's been ten years since The O.C. finished. If you're still as big a fan of the teen show as I am, then you've likely not quite ever gotten over that fact. As a result you may also frequently find yourself wondering where the characters from The O.C. would be today. And honestly? I get it. I too ponder such big questions as these. When you truly love a show, the characters have a habit of sneaking into your heart and pretty much staying there for all time. And though I think we all would love to see a revival of The O.C., realistically most fans know not to hold out for it.

Thankfully, however, the finale of The O.C. provided us with interesting insights to the futures of the main characters. And from there, it's pretty easy to speculate who these characters may have become and what they would be doing today.

Sure, I think I may have entered the slightly obsessive, wishful terrain of fan fiction with the following appraisals, but I'd also like to think that I'm pretty on the money with most of them. I'd also like to think that the majority of the characters would have built upon their charitable, community focused lifestyles to become the sort of people that the U.S totally needs right now. So let's dive into it!

Summer Roberts

At the end of The O.C., it was clear that Summer was beholden to two major passions: Animal rights activism and her long-term honey, Seth. And ten years on from the reaffirmation of those facts, it's easy to imagine that the two would still be happily (if eccentrically) married, and that Summer would still be at the forefront of progressive animal rights efforts. Likely the chairman and co-founder of several animal welfare charities, it's also easy to imagine Summer owning her own vegan boutique full of cruelty free fashion, skincare and cosmetics. And I would totally buy all of it.

Seth Cohen

In all likelihood celebrated for his neurotic passions and obsessive eye for detail, Seth would definitely be some kind of a self-made leader of a small media empire. As well as being the host of several critically acclaimed podcasts on the topics of music, comic books, video games and movies, Seth would also be the author of a successful graphic novels franchise. And, of course, a Hollywood adaptation would totally get optioned by Joss Whedon and Seth definitely would not shut up about that fact. Because you just know the man would still have exactly zero chill.

Ryan Atwood

After his architecture career really took off, and he started making some seriously decent bank, Ryan definitely went and invested as much money as he could in giving back to his community. It's likely that he worked with Sandy in developing a charitable organization with which to provide emotional and financial support to at-risk youth. With that in mind, Ryan probably spends a lot of his spare time mentoring young men who remind him of himself, and helping to provide stable, supportive and safe homes for them to live while they get their lives back on track. His love life is likely just as complicated and messy as ever.

Sandy Cohen

Though he could realistically retire, Sandy still thrives from being an asset to his community and hasn't slowed down at all. He's basically everyone's favorite law professor at the college that he teaches at, part time. The rest of his time, naturally, is spent treating his wife like an absolute Queen, or volunteering for a ludicrous number of charitable organizations that help low-income families in his community. He's a regular (and popular) guest on Seth's gaming podcast, Cohen Versus, despite the fact that he still doesn't know how the control pad works. His eyebrow game is still irrestistably strong.

Kirsten Cohen

As well as being a doting Mother to ten-year old Sophie Rose, Kirsten is also a prolific philanthropist back in Berkley, where she continues to live with her family. It's easy to imagine her running a local food bank, and leading initiatives to help home and support refugees, and at-risk youth (hey, supreme love and kindness is basically the Cohen family motto). She's still handling sobriety like an absolute champ too.

Taylor Townsend

Would it be any surprise that the supremely intelligent, multi-lingual and overly ambitious Taylor probably ended up in politics? I don't think so. She was likely a force to be reckoned with as an advisor on Hilary Clinton's team during the POTUS campaign trail, and probably wrote several scathing put-downs of the Trump administration for The New York Times ever since. Taylor may have put career before romance, and though her and Ryan didn't work out (sorry, guys), they've definitely remained friends. Taylor's proclivity for stalking crushes still stands, though. Something made all the easier in this modern age by the boom of social media.

Julie Cooper

Since successfully attending college and gaining a degree (in business, of course), Julie probably built a humble, but impressive, media marketing business. She was definitely named as one of Forbes top entrepreneurs in a recent article on the topic, and is undoubtedly absolutely killing it right now. It's easy to imagine that she's currently enjoying a polyamorous relationship with both Bullit and Frank, and is the first Real Housewife on TV to be engaged in such a relationship. It would obviously also be a point of much controversy in the media — something that Julie could not care less about.

Kaitlin Cooper

After successfully achieving her law degree (near the top of her class), Kaitlin was no doubt immediately snapped up by one of the most progressive and powerful law firms in California, where she probably specialized in family law. It's easy to imagine that after receiving solid advice from Sandy, and some financial investment from Bullit, that Kaitlin would have set up a mentoring program for young women — in her sister's name of course.

Oh, man. I miss these characters more than ever, you guys. Maybe if all of us just wish super hard, then one of these days the great, mighty powers of TV might bless us all with some form of revival. Until then, I'm just going to continue speculating wildly and maybe, possibly, entertain myself with some homemade fan fiction.