The Real Reason Adam Brody And Rachel Bilson Broke Up

Young love can be complicated when it blossoms between a pair of co-stars, but that didn't prevent "The O.C." stars Rachel Bilson and Adam Brody from striking up a relationship. Bilson and Brody played love interests on the hit WB series with chemistry so explosive, it's no wonder a romance continued off screen. 

Having all eyes on them wasn't always easy. In Alan Sepinwall's oral history about the show, "Welcome to the O.C." (via E! News), Bilson remembered accidentally ditching Brody at MTV's "Total Request Live" to fend for himself when the pair were flocked by fans. "I left Brody behind because I was so nervous and didn't know what to do," Bilson recalled. Superstars Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen welcomed Bilson into their car before noting she abandoned her then-boyfriend in the chaos. 

Looking back, Bilson realized she underestimated the world's interest in their romance, but she appreciated having someone in her corner who also knew what it was like to become a household name in a blink of an eye. "We were so young; I don't think we really thought about it much," she told USA Today years later. "I know people always say 'Don't date your co-star,' but in that sense, it was nice to go on this ride with someone experiencing it at the same time." The relationship lasted three years before they broke things off in 2006. After news of their split first surfaced, a source offered the reason for the breakup to People. "They've been on and off for a while now," they said. "It was a typical romance and they just grew apart."

Fans' obsession with the cast of "The O.C." is still strong all of these years later, and so too is the bond between the co-stars and former lovers. Social media was abuzz back in 2019 when Bilson took to Instagram to share a selfie she took with Brody at an airport. "Ran into my ol buddy from JFK to LAX," she wrote. A year later, an online frenzy occurred when InStyle posted a throwback image of the two as a part of a series titled "Breakups that Broke Us" and Bilson adorably commented, "I'M SORRY!!!! He fared really well" (via Glamour). Fans were even treated to a deep conversion between the formal couple when Brody made an appearance on Bilson's podcast "Welcome to the O.C. B*tches" in 2021.

After both "The O.C." and her showmance drew to an end, Bilson moved in on her personal life and professional life. She went on to star in the series "Hart of Dixie," and in 2022, she launched the podcast "Broad Ideas" with her longtime friend Olivia Allen. She's also been in relationships with fellow actors Bill Hader and Hayden Christensen, the latter of whom she shares a daughter with. 

The real-life Seth Cohen has stayed busy, too. In 2024, Brody and Kristen Bell's series "Nobody Wants This" premiered on Netflix and wasted no time in becoming a hit. A decade before that, he married "Gossip Girl" star Leighton Meester. The couple have two children together, a girl born in 2015 and a boy born in 2020. Everyone fared really well, indeed.