411mania Interviews One Tree Hill Creator and Executive Producer Mark Schwahn

Posted by Al Norton on 03.16.2009

411's Al Norton sits down for an exclusive interview with One Tree Hill creator and executive producer Mark Schwahn.




Mark Schwahn had already written several feature films (Coach Carter, The Perfect Score) when he created One Tree Hill back in 2003. 120+ episodes later the show has just been picked up by The CW for a 7th season. Schwahn continues to work as executive producer (as well as writing and directing) on the series, which has the kind of loyal and passionate fan base most shows would kill for.

Al Norton: So you were turned away from the US Air flight that ended up making the emergency landing in the Hudson River? How close were you to being on the plane? Where were you when you heard what had happened?

Mark Schwahn: I was essentially on standby. I was in NYC flying direct to Wilmington, but my flight was delayed so I ran to that US Air flight which was bound for Charlotte. I waited on standby but was turned away when the flight was full. So instead of waiting for my original flight, I decided to fly back to LA, but I had to take a taxi from LaGuardia to JFK. When I got to JFK, our production coordinator Kelly Tenney called me and told me what had happened. I think if people had been seriously or mortally injured it would have screwed me up, but instead I simply felt blessed and guided by angels. And of course, I took stock of the good things and people in my life – of which I have many.

Al Norton: This first half of the season seemed in some ways very much about violence and death - what Lucas might call "the things that darken our souls" - and I wondered how you came to the idea of contrasting the random, tragic violence of Q's shooting, the brutal attack on Brooke, and the more over-the-top, "Fatal Attraction meets Misery" reign of terror by Nanny Carrie.

Mark Schwahn: Sometimes coming to those ideas is a process of erosion. By that I mean that you become compelled by a certain scene or moment or theme and then you live with it and mold the clay of the idea and try to project what it will all look and feel like in its finished form. I felt that many of our characters could benefit from these startling situations. The Nanny Carrie storyline was originally a joke pitch in the writers' room by Mike Daniels. But it stayed with me and as we approached Season Five, I pitched it back to the room as a viable storyline and we were all into it. Quentin's death depressed me for a couple weeks. I knew I was going to miss Quentin – and my good friend Robbie Jones. Just as the loss of the character is irreversible to the fictional characters in Tree Hill, the story arc becomes irreversible, as well. So I try to use those feelings and emotions and give them to the characters. Because we have such a large ensemble, we tend to be a bit cyclical with our storylines. Meaning some characters are written heavier than others for a stretch, and then we transition to the next character's story. It was time for Sophia Bush to take Brooke to some heavier, darker places. And of course, as a writer, you're thankful for the talents and fearlessness of the actors when they go to those places for you.

Al Norton: Did trying to strike a balance with the three different stories going on making the writing and editing process more difficult? ?

Mark Schwahn: The challenge is always in balancing tone. It's hard to run comedy into drama into suspense into heightened soap and ultimately end up somewhere that feels human and somewhat authentic. And because of the way we like to use music or a song to score several scenes, that becomes a challenge as well. But I think that lighter storylines buy you the heavier ones, and soapy, heightened storylines appease the fans that watch the show for different reasons than the fans who appreciate the earnest moments. What's rewarding is when you arrive at the CODA – the final montage of a One Tree Hill episode – and it feels like a One Tree Hill episode. And most of the time it does feel that way – no matter where the storylines have taken us in that particular episode. At least, it does for me.

Al Norton: I was reminded on some level of True Romance, which sought to show the audience that acts of violence can provoke very different responses, from outrage to laughter to cheering. On some level were you purposely challenging the audience to find the unifying emotion in all of these acts, to move beyond the initial response and dig down deeper to see what it is that makes us feel this way when we see these things?

Mark Schwahn: I probably have to take the long way around to answer that question. First of all, we're a show that has a core group of fans. You're either fairly seriously invested in what we're doing, or you're completely unaware or disinterested in what we do. There's not a lot of middle ground with One Tree Hill. I always chuckle at the executives who ask us to recap storylines and themes for the "new viewers". We're in Season Six. We don't have any new viewers. And if we do – they'll figure it out. I mention that because I think that if you have a core audience like we do, you can challenge them within the structure of what we do each week. You can challenge them by putting one of the characters in peril, like we did with Brooke, or you can challenge them with the loss of a character, like we did with Quentin. But if you're watching One Tree Hill in Season Six, you're probably someone who innately understands the "unifying emotion in these acts". And if you're watching the show as a guilty pleasure, you probably won't care to find that emotion anyway.

Al Norton: Taking into account that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, what was your reaction when you first heard Desperate Housewives was going to take a five year jump into the future?

Mark Schwahn: I figured the press would say it was a great idea and completely dismiss that I thought of it first. And they pretty much did. Haha. Although I've heard that Marc Cherry has given us props, which is nice. It was the right thing to do for our show. It was a good idea. That's enough for me.



Al Norton: Adding a cast member in a show's 6th season can be tough but Austin Nichols has jelled really quickly. Did you know right away that he was going to work so well?

Mark Schwahn: The funny thing about Austin is that there was initially much resistance from the folks who have to OK our casting choices. Which is not rare, by the way. When that happens, I pick up the phone and try to rationalize with everyone, or pout or bitch or whine and eventually I get my way (and probably get called an ass****) and this leads to Austin Nicholls killing it as Julian, just as I suspected he would in the first place. This is not to say that there aren't good people and good allies working on my show at both the studio and network, just that the fans would be surprised at how things work behind the scenes. Remember too that Austin was not being hired as a series regular for One Tree Hill, but was coming off being the lead in John From Cincinnati on HBO. So first I had to meet with Austin and convince him that he was perfect for this part, and that I had a very clear vision of where I would take his character and how we would write his storyline. Then we had to work out all the financial stuff – which can be challenging. Then I had to fight for the right to hire him. But this is what producing is and this is why you follow your instincts and also humbly learn from those instincts when they're wrong. But to answer the question, yes, I knew that Austin was going to jell with this cast. I sincerely felt as though he was a perfect fit. And I think he's proven my instincts to be correct with his talent and professionalism and performance.

Al Norton: Are you as amazed as I am at how incredible a talent Jackson Brundage is? You may have the only cast on TV that shouldn't/wouldn't be insulted if someone said, "that 8 year old can act rings around you."

Mark Schwahn: Jackson Brundage is a rock star. He's such a great kid and we all feel blessed to have him in our lives. Some credit for his performances has to go to his parents, especially his mom Jodi who works with him on his preparation and understanding of the more complex material, but Jackson is very gifted and very sweet. And the cast is at their best around him. I was directing the midseason finale this year during Halloween, and Jackson came to set dressed in a mime costume. So I tried to mime his direction for the scene he had to shoot. Then James Lafferty came to set in a Stormtrooper costume – which thrilled Jackson almost as much as it thrilled James. I had to smile at the two boys who were excited about their Halloween costumes – fifteen years apart in age.

Al Norton: Coach Durham has been noticeable for his absence at some major events recently. Was Barry Corbin not available or was there a decision made to phase the character out?

Mark Schwahn: Whitey was often good counsel to Lucas and his world, but when we jumped the show ahead, it was time for Lucas and his world to find their own way. While we all love Barry (and writing for Whitey), sometimes you have to borrow from Peter to pay Paul. Or in our case, our younger characters got older, new characters joined the world, and there's simply not enough story time or money in the budget to tell stories about everyone. Barry also works quite a bit because he's talented and in demand. I decided to focus the majority of our story time on the twenty-something characters, and the rest of the time on Jamie and Dan. But I do plan on seeing Whitey again and I hope it works out with Barry's schedule.

Al Norton: How does getting picked up for next season affect your writing? Obviously you know you have a bigger canvas but are you at all handcuffed by not knowing officially who will be back and who won't?

Mark Schwahn: The pickup didn't have any impact on the finale. I was writing the finale about a month ago and I had decided to chart a certain course for the end of this season that didn't depend on a seventh season or even who might or might not participate. The last two episodes of the season are very different from each other tonally, which is interesting to me because they are both very much One Tree Hill episodes, but they really expose what we can do on this show, from comedy to drama to romance and all the other colors of what the show can be.

Al Norton: How much does what you have in your head resemble what you had in mind six years ago when you created the show?

Mark Schwahn:When I created the show, I had the first hour in mind and not much else. Remember, I was a feature writer who was used to telling a story that had a beginning, middle and end in 90 minutes or so. But once I started to navigate a full season…and then a second and third season, etc…I did spend time thinking about how I ultimately wanted to end things. At least tonally. Mostly I thought about where I wanted the characters to be emotionally. And most of that is still intact. But to be honest, originally I thought that Lucas, Keith and Karen would ultimately be the family they never were but always should have been. That's the most significant change from what I imagined back in Season One.

Al Norton: How in the world do you write an ending for Dan?

Mark Schwahn: If you do in fact write an ending for Dan, you write it big and important and complex and challenging and maybe even noble, because that's what Paul Johansson deserves after his many years of talented service.

Al Norton: I know the talks for you to write the Melrose Place re-boot didn't work out but do you have other new projects in the works? Are there other, non-OTH stories you have to tell?

Mark Schwahn: Sure. I'm excited to tell other tales and I think my friends at CBS-Paramount are excited for me to travel other roads, as well. As far as Melrose goes, some knucklehead reported that there were contract complications. That's not true. I simply wanted to stay with One Tree Hill next year if it returns, and if it doesn't return, there are other ideas that I'm excited to develop, and I feel like my energy and focus should be in developing those ideas sooner than later. That said, I hope Melrose is an enormous success for my network and new studio.

Al Norton: Do you think the shows success after the time jump will make it easier for you to pitch a series about adults? Do you think the industry has a tendency to pigeonhole people, that before you might have been the "high school series guy?"

Mark Schwahn: I think I'm still the "high school series guy". Or at least, the "young ensemble" guy. And that's OK because first of all, it's nice to be known as any kind of guy considering I spent many years trying to get a foot in the door of this industry. Besides, my first studio film was a comedy. So when Coach Carter came along, they thought I couldn't do drama. When One Tree Hill came along, I was a feature guy who couldn't do television. It's simply the nature of the beast. We all have doubt and doubters and detractors in our lives. What diminishes that is the work we do. The proof is in the pudding. Or as Joe Perry once said, "Let the music do the talking."

Al Norton: Can you give me a preview of the rest of the One Tree Hill season?

Mark Schwahn: I could, but what fun would that be? Ha. I can tell you that the rest of the season is full of all the things you've hopefully come to expect and love from a One Tree Hill episode. Surprises. Heartache. Magic. Confrontation. The benefit of having good friends and family. And the quiet notion that there is still right and wrong and good and bad, and it's best to stay on the positive side of things. As we head down the stretch we'll probably focus more on the core characters. And whether or not our journey continues beyond this season, it will not affect the way we approach the end of this season. The fans deserve a show that is true to itself no matter what external factors are at play, and that's what we plan to give them. Hopefully, they'll enjoy it. And hopefully you will, too. Thanks for your time and support, Al.

Don't miss One Tree Hill Mondays at 9 pm on The CW