18 Women Of ‘One Tree Hill’ Just Accused The Showrunner Of Sexual Harassment

On November 11th, Audrey Wauchope, a former writer on the hit drama series ‘One Tree Hill accused the show’s creator and showrunner Mark Schwahn of sexual harassment on Twitter. A Variety exclusive article published a letter from 18 (18!) cast and crew members including Sophia Bush and Hilarie Burton echoing these accusations as well as their support for Wauchope.

(Arrest this man for his jacket audacity.)

The letter begins with, “All of the female cast members of One Tree Hill have chosen this forum to stand together in support of Audrey Wauchope and one another.” It also says that Schwahn’s behavior “was something of an ‘open secret'” and detailed just how unsafe and traumatic the set was;

“Many of us were, to varying degrees, manipulated psychologically and emotionally. More than one of us is still in treatment for post-traumatic stress. Many of us were put in uncomfortable positions and had to swiftly learn to fight back, sometimes physically, because it was made clear to us that the supervisors in the room were not the protectors they were supposed to be. Many of us were spoken to in ways that ran the spectrum from deeply upsetting, to traumatizing, to downright illegal. And a few of us were put in positions where we felt physically unsafe. More than one woman on our show had her career trajectory threatened.”

These accusations echo the same behaviors as Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Brett Ratner, and Louis C.K., just to name a few of the disgusting white guys who’ve thankfully (hopefully?) lost their Hollywood power positions. Having to physically fight back? Check. Spoken to inappropriately and illegally? Check. CAREERS THREATENED? Check, check annnnnd check.

“Many of us were told, during filming, that coming forward to talk about this culture would result in our show being canceled and hundreds of lovely, qualified, hard-working, and talented people losing their jobs.”

The letter goes on to detail the women’s “unwavering support of and faith in one another” and the ways in which they were forced to create their own safe spaces in the midst of treacherous conditions.

The letter, which is included in full at the end of this post, is meant to solidify as well as support the following sad confession written on Twitter by Audrey Wauchope: