Half the Twilight Cast Had Cameos in The O.C.: Here's The List

written by Caleb Olson

September 2, 2023 7:30 am

Half the Twilight Cast Had Cameos in The O.C.: Here's The List — Image credit: FOX

It's time to rewatch The O.C. to spot the familiar Twilight faces.

Following a teenage delinquent who gets fostered by his attorney's family from Orange County, The O.C. debuted on Fox exactly 20 years ago, in August 2003, and ran for four stellar seasons until 2007.

The cast of the hit teen drama was large and varied, and you might be surprised to learn that some of the series' alums went on to star in The Twilight Saga after The O.C.

Cam Gigandet (Kevin Volchok) as James Witherdale

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James, the main antagonist of the first Twilight movie, was played by Cam Gidandet who had appeared in 15 out of 92 episodes of The O.C. In the Fox show, he portrayed Marissa Cooper's on-and-off surfer boyfriend Kevin Volchok in Seasons 3 and 4.

Jackson Rathbone (Justin Edwards) as Jasper Hale

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We watched Jackson Rathbone throughout the entire vampire saga as he portrayed Jasper Hale, a cutiepie vampire many viewers had a crush on. His role in The O.C. was not as big as Cam Gigandet's: Rathbone appeared in only two episodes in Season 4, playing Kaitlin's mysterious boyfriend from the boarding school.

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Nikki Reed (Sadie Campbell) as Rosalie Hale

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Jasper's adoptive sister in The Twilight Saga, Rosalie was portrayed by Nikki Reed. The actress had a recurring role in Season 3 of The O.C. where she played Ryan Atwood's fleeting love interest. Appearing in six episodes of the Fox series, Reed established herself as a talented performer, which later helped her land the iconic role in the hit vampire series.

If you think about it, it is not actually surprising that The O.C.'s three cast members were able to score starring roles in the Twilight franchise. While The O.C. was the most popular teen drama of the mid-2000s, Twilight essentially targeted the same young adult audience who probably grew up watching the Fox show.

It was only natural that the producers decided to cast the three stars, who transitioned from The O.C. to Twilight almost like they'd go from high school to college.