Chad Michael Murray is apparently feeling very nostalgic when it comes to Gilmore Girls.
Gilmore Girl fans will remember Chad as Tristan, the bad boy from Chilton who crushed hard on Rory. Chad’s entire story arc lasted 11 episodes before Tristan was sent off to military school.
According to Chad, it was his first reoccurring TV role, and a formative one at that. He told TODAY,
“I believe that was my first recurring role on television. And so, you know, for me, I was really just getting accustomed to the world. And so, I was just kind of holding on for dear life.”
He added,
“I was so excited every day to drive on to that Warner Brothers lot and to go see Stars Hollow and to to be in it, and Scott Patterson would take us under his wing.”
One of Chad’s favorite parts of playing Tristan was his interactions with Dean, played by Jared Padalecki.
He recalled,
“These fight sequences where you’re such a jerk, and Jared is like, the sweetest guy in the whole wide world. We get along so well. And we’re having it out.”
He added,
“And it was always fun for me to be on set and for us to have these scenes where we absolutely despise each other, but yet, behind closed doors, you know, off set, we’re just palling around and two big goofy kids.”
Chad also gushed about star Alexis Bledel, who he praised for both her acting skills and her professionalism. He said,
“She just was so committed to Rory. Alexis was awesome. She was on it. She’s the one who added to the majority of my scenes what’s right. So we would talk things out, always, to make sure that everybody’s comfortable in every scene.”
As most fans know, Chad left Gilmore Girls before the end of season 2 so he could go star in One Tree Hill as Lucas Scott.
But despite his short stint on the series, Chad insists that he formed lifelong friendships. Back in 2016, he told InStyle,
“I created great long-term friendships with Jared Padalecki and Milo Ventimiglia back in the day. And they’re still friends of mine today.”
(It’s worth noting that Chad left the show in season 2 before Milo joined in season 3)
Since leaving Gilmore Girls in 2001, he’s starred in teen movies Freaky Friday (2003) with Lindsay Lohan and A Cinderella Story (2004) with Hilary Duff. He’s also appeared on shows like Southland, Riverdale, and Star.
Chad Michael Murray’s latest project is the Hallmark movie Sand Dollar Cove, in which he stars opposite Aly Michalka (iZombie). The movie debuts on August 8, 2021.
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