In one of the most satisfyingly screwball scenes in “Freakier Friday,” Jamie Lee Curtis crawls across a record store’s floor, as a flustered Chad Michael Murray tries desperately to assess if he has a shot with her.
“Is your husband still with us?” Jake (played by Murray) nervously asks Tess (Curtis). “How old is he?”
Their chemistry goes back 22 years, to the 2003 version of “Freaky Friday,” in which Jake developed a B-plot infatuation with Tess without realizing she had body swapped with her teen daughter, Anna (Lindsay Lohan). Now, Tess has traded places with her soon-to-be step-granddaughter, while Jake is once again oblivious to the mystical forces at work.
“I’ve got this unbelievable affection for ‘the grandma,’” Murray said. “Just make sure to note I’m doing air quotes because she’s in no way like ‘the grandma.’ She’s still hot to this day.”
In the new Disney sequel, Jake is likewise still dreamy. He’s given a hero’s entrance, complete with a motorcycle and slo-mo hair toss. But he’s become more unabashedly earnest and eager to please. The vibe is less brooding bad boy, more starry-eyed puppy dog.
These days, that’s Murray’s aura, too.
During a July video call from the lush backyard of his Los Angeles home, Murray radiated youth pastor positivity and “aw, shucks” humility. Clad in a white sweatshirt and fuchsia sweatpants, he was game to discuss his past, which began as one of five children raised by a single father in Buffalo, N.Y. At 18, Murray left home after a modeling agent encouraged him to move to Los Angeles. Success and fame almost instantly followed.
He landed parts on The WB’s “Gilmore Girls” (as Tristin, Rory’s prep school enemy-to-almost-lover), “Dawson’s Creek” (a 12-episode arc romancing both Joey and Jen) and “One Tree Hill” (starring as Lucas Scott for six seasons), as well as in the films “Freaky Friday” and “A Cinderella Story” (as Hilary Duff’s Prince Charming). By the mid-2000s, he had established himself as a go-to Hollywood heartthrob. Offscreen, he married and divorced his “One Tree Hill” co-star Sophia Bush and bounced between public romances. (Some of his early exes have implied he exhibited less-than-model-relationship behavior.)
“Growing up, I always heard ‘Nice guys finish last.’ I was a nice guy for a very long time, and I wouldn’t get the girl in high school, and I would get bullied,” he said. In Hollywood, “people started saying, ‘You’re cool,’ and then you are getting the girl. You’re like, all right, so this is what people want.”
He actively became a not-nice guy, he said, because that mentality had been drilled into him. But the 43-year-old Murray who sat for this interview is completely different from “that guy,” he insisted.
He’s been married to the actress Sarah Roemer since 2014, and they share three children. According to Murray, he begins each day by diligently reading the Bible app on his phone. He said he’s never done drugs, is gluten free and rarely drinks alcohol. He makes an exception on Christmas Eve, he said, when he indulges in some holiday cookies and bourbon while watching “It’s a Wonderful Life.”
His current work is equally wholesome. In addition to “Freakier,” Murray co-stars on the cozy Canadian series “Sullivan’s Crossing,” which became a belated hit on Netflix when the streamer acquired the first two seasons this summer.
“I know this sounds bizarre,” he said. “But I don’t feel like I’ve accomplished anything yet. I genuinely feel like I’m just getting started.”
These are edited excerpts from our conversation.
“Freakier Friday” leans into your chemistry with Jamie Lee Curtis. How did you two first develop that connection on “Freaky Friday”?
I have to give her all the credit. I was so new to this world, and I was just trying to keep my head above water. She’s Hollywood royalty, and she was so kind and so gracious. My first day of filming was the coffee shop sequence, and I remember her bringing a lot of playful energy to it off camera like, “We’re gonna flirt this up.” That broke the ice.
You’ve also told a story about her kissing you in a trailer to make Lindsay Lohan more comfortable about her first on-screen kiss.
My dad’s still jealous to this day. There was so much pressure on Lindsay, and her nerves were through the roof. Ultimately, Jamie was like, this is becoming too much of a thing. She said, “Chad, come here,” grabbed me behind the back of my head and gave me a big old kiss. She’s like, “Boom. See, it’s easy!” My head was spinning for a good few weeks in gratitude. She wasn’t being inappropriate. She was just trying to make Lindsay feel comfortable, and she and I had a very playful banter already set up.
When you first moved to L.A., everything happened very quickly for you. Did you feel prepared at all for that success?
I was not prepared for any of it. You’re put in a position of power where you can bring the whole house of cards down by making poor choices. But you’re not mature enough. You don’t know up from down.
There is a vocal Team Tristin army of “Gilmore Girls” fans who wish Rory had ended up with your character. You left that show to do “Dawson’s,” but there had been plans for Tristin to play a bigger role.
In no way, shape or form did [the series creator] Amy Sherman-Palladino ever come to me and say, “Hey, you’re endgame.” However, they offered me a six-year deal and wanted to bring me on as a season regular. This kid from Buffalo who didn’t know anything thought, well, let’s go do something else. Looking back, I’m like, oh my gosh, what an ignorant choice. But I knew it was always going to be “Gilmore Girls.” It was never going to be “Gilmore Girls and Tristin.”
Around that time, you also started being nominated for things like Choice Hottie and one of TV’s Sexiest Guys. How does that affect your ego and your psyche when you’re in your early 20s?
I’ll be completely honest with you, it’s downright terrible. You haven’t lived enough life to truly understand what any of this means. So, being agoraphobic, being anxiety-ridden, I tried to hide all the insecurity with cool. I didn’t want to smile for photos because I didn’t like my teeth. I was so insecure about my nose.
I was very obsessive compulsive, and that extended all the way back to high school. I used to be late for school almost every single day — and my brother would beat the crap out of me — because I had to drink water in the count of four and have a positive thought on the last sip of the glass, and if it didn’t happen, I had to start over.
[Eventually,] I started going to therapy, and I finally found a guy who taught me the simplest gesture: He gave me a rubber band that I put around my wrist, and any time a compulsive thought or anxiety would cross my brain, I’d snap it. I started rooting myself in faith and going to church, started snapping that rubber band, started painting. I isolated myself from everybody in the “One Tree Hill” cast, moved out to another part of town, and I started my rubber band [art] series — I call it that in jest, but when a rubber band would break, I would stick it in this acrylic artwork.
In recent years, there have been allegations of sexual harassment made against the “One Tree Hill” showrunner Marc Schwahn by many of the women who worked on the series. What was that environment like for you?
It was incredibly difficult. We did not have appropriate leadership. I remember [the actress] Hilarie [Burton Morgan] grabbing on to me one night and asking me to be her buddy and get her home. It was after something really bad happened to her from somebody — you can read between the lines, you already said their name — and I just grabbed her, and I knew. I could see it in her eyes, and I got her out of it. It was from Day 1. He hated me. He told me right to my face, “I never wanted you on this show,” which makes you feel like crap.
I had a couple of movie offers, where there was like a two-week overlap with production. He said, “Sorry, I can’t give you those two weeks,” and the following year at the wrap party, he said to me, “It’s a good thing I didn’t let you do those movies. Your head would have gotten too big.” I was so angry at that. How could you not be?
So, I controlled my own actions. I said, I just want to be happy. I can walk away from this. When I got off the show, it was time to leave. I couldn’t handle all that anymore.
[Schwahn could not be reached for comment and has not publicly responded to the allegations.]
I don’t know if it’s the same incident you’re referring to, but Hilarie has spoken about how you defended her during a confrontation.
Always. Always would. I’m not perfect. I’ve never, ever claimed to be, but one thing I really care about is people’s safety in these scenarios. Because I wasn’t afraid. What are you going to do, beat me up? What you’re doing is wrong.
So many people are shocked that all this stuff happened. But back then, things were very different. I remember Hilarie and I sat down with the powers that be, and they said, “They were drunk. They made a mistake. Don’t rock the boat. If you get off the ship, you may not get on another one, and you’ll sink.” That was the advice we were given.
And we had no power. There was no social media. There was no place to express your feelings. So, you grow a thick skin, and you learn bad habits from all the people above you.
But you know what’s cool? We made a show with so many people that we do love. It’s affected millions of people all over the world and brought us all together. What a blessing to have that as the outcome.
There is a “One Tree Hill” sequel series reportedly in the works at Netflix (without Schwahn’s involvement). You’ve previously said you’re not part of it and weren’t asked to be. Is that still the case?
Yeah, as far as I know. I hope that if they do make it that 1) they set it up like “Riverdale” where you put [veteran actors] in place that are responsible and can teach the young ones to not let it go to their heads and to set the tone for work ethic, and 2) I hope that it focuses on a new generation dealing with all the trials and tribulations that go into being adolescents now.
What is your relationship like with fame now?
There’s that adage “much is given, much is required.” I don’t particularly believe in the pedestal or the hierarchy, but I do understand the importance of human connection. So, if something I’ve done has affected someone to the point where it brings them joy or nostalgia, and I get the opportunity to sign a piece of paper or take a photo with someone, I’m there. For me, my job is to spread joy, and I love my job.
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