Nathan Scott

The writers originally wanted Chad Michael Murray to play Nathan, but he chose to portray Lucas as his mother had abandoned him, which helped him relate to the character. James Lafferty was subsequently cast, as he was a talented basketball player.{{cite video | title = The Making of "One Tree Hill" | medium = Documentary | location = One Tree Hill: The Complete First Season | publisher = Warner Brothers Home Entertainment}}

In the beginning, the character of "Nathan" was described as "cocky and an academically challenged high school junior". In an interview Lafferty mentioned his thoughts on Nathan and Haley's unlikely relationship, "I think, to start with, the likelihood of the situation, of Nathan and Haley coming together, was so small. In our first few episodes, the characters were worlds apart. It didn't seem like it would be a good fit. But sort of against all odds, they continued to make it work over the years and they fought through adversity. I think they've become a couple that you don't take for granted because they've been up against so much. So you root for them."{{cite web|url=http://teendramawhore.com/2010/04/25/exclusive-james-lafferty-on-the-past-present-and-future-of-one-tree-hill/|title=James Lafferty on the past present and future of One Tree Hill|date=April 25, 2010|work=TeenDramaWhore|access-date=September 28, 2011}} "Nathan and Haley's fan base is so strong, and there's a reason for that. That couple is gold as far as I'm concerned, and I've felt that way since the very beginning", said Mark Schwahn on the couple.{{cite web|url=http://www.buddytv.com/articles/one-tree-hill/exclusive-interview-one-tree-h-22265.aspx|title=Exclusive Interview: 'One Tree Hill' Creator Mark Schwahn, Part 2 |date=August 25, 2008|work=BuddyTV|access-date=September 28, 2011}} At the end of season three, James Lafferty has said he enjoys playing the rebellious Nathan, which he believes is due to his upbringing and having a father like Dan. He said it's a personality trait he can relate to from his own personality and it's fun to bring it through to Nathan.{{cite web|url=http://onetreehillweb.net/media/jlafferty.html|title=OTHWEB.net EXCLUSIVE!! Interview with James Lafferty|date=May 9, 2006|work=OTHWeb.net|access-date=September 27, 2011}}

Lafferty has said it has been gratifying to play a good family man.[http://blog.zap2it.com/korbitv/2010/04/one-tree-hill-james-lafferty-talks-nathan-and-haley-season-8.html One Tree Hill James Lafferty talks Nathan and Haley Season 8] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100720092836/http://blog.zap2it.com/korbitv/2010/04/one-tree-hill-james-lafferty-talks-nathan-and-haley-season-8.html |date=2010-07-20 }} Retrieved: 2010-07-04. "There was definitely a time when Nathan was a villain on the show. I remember not really knowing what the future of the character was going to be, because it seems like on television shows in general, the villain doesn't usually stick around for that long. They're around for as long as it takes the hero to overcome him or defeat him. I was a little bit insecure about what my future on the show would be, but [series creator Mark] Schwahn sort of comforted me. I never could've imagined that it would come to this, that he would be so settled down, and sort of the one present character on the show that's been married for years and has these two children, and such a strong family unit. It's pretty cool to be able to see how far the character has come," said Lafferty regarding the development of Nathan. He also said that if the series wasn't picked up for a ninth season he was happy with how his character's story was wrapped up.{{cite web|url=http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/04/one-tree-hills-james-lafferty-talks-season-9-naley-and-his-mortifying-musical-moment.html|title='One Tree Hill's' James Lafferty talks Season 9, Naley, and his 'mortifying' musical moment|last=MacKenzie|first=Carina|date=April 25, 2011|work=Zap2it|access-date=September 27, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929171404/http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/04/one-tree-hills-james-lafferty-talks-season-9-naley-and-his-mortifying-musical-moment.html|archive-date=September 29, 2011}} Lafferty opted out of returning for the ninth, and final, season as a full-time cast member.{{cite web|url=http://uk.eonline.com/news/watch_with_kristin/spoiler_chat_get_scoop_on_greys_anatomy/263356|title=Spoiler Chat: Get Scoop on Grey's Anatomy, Glee, Nikita and More!|last=Dos Santos|first=Kristin|date=September 12, 2011|work=E! Online|access-date=September 27, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171017035434/http://uk.eonline.com/news/watch_with_kristin/spoiler_chat_get_scoop_on_greys_anatomy/263356|archive-date=2017-10-17|url-status=dead}} Instead, he appeared in 7 out of the thirteen episodes picked up,{{cite web|url=http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/08/one-tree-hill-chad-michael-murray-returns-for-season-9.html|title='One Tree Hill': Chad Michael Murray returns for Season 9|last=MacKenzie|first=Carina|date=August 29, 2011|work=Zap2it|access-date=September 27, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110924050648/http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/08/one-tree-hill-chad-michael-murray-returns-for-season-9.html|archive-date=September 24, 2011}} but continued as a series regular.{{cite web|url=http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/07/one-tree-hill-james-laffertys-reduced-role-in-season-9.html|title='One Tree Hill': James Lafferty's reduced role in Season 9|last=MacKenzie|first=Carina|date=July 19, 2011|work=Zap2it|access-date=September 27, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110920183436/http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/07/one-tree-hill-james-laffertys-reduced-role-in-season-9.html|archive-date=September 20, 2011}} After some time of speculation, James Lafferty signed on for one extra episode, which was the series finale.{{cite web|url=http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/10/one-tree-hill-season-9-exclusive-james-lafferty-returns-for-series-finale.html|title='One Tree Hill' Season 9 exclusive: James Lafferty returns for series finale|last=MacKenzie|first=Carina|date=October 24, 2011|work=Zap2it|access-date=November 13, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111111040313/http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/10/one-tree-hill-season-9-exclusive-james-lafferty-returns-for-series-finale.html|archive-date=November 11, 2011}}

Lafferty has revealed that his favorite episode was "4 Years, 6 Months, 2 Days." He said, "When we came back four years later in the characters' lives and Nathan and Haley had Jamie, it was an exciting atmosphere not really knowing where my character would go. He was in such a dark place and not knowing how the family unit was going to stay together, and then also being able to work with Jackson for the first time — I'll always have fond memories of that."{{cite web|url=http://www.tvguide.com/special/winter-preview/PhotoGallery/Tree-Hill-Casts-1040455|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120108033041/http://www.tvguide.com/special/winter-preview/PhotoGallery/Tree-Hill-Casts-1040455|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 8, 2012|title=One Tree Hill: The Cast's Favorite Episodes|work=TV Guide|access-date=January 8, 2012}}

BuddyTV ranked him #12 in its list of the "15 TV's Hottest Dads" but was described as not the best father for initially ignoring his family after his accident, though he does redeem himself afterwards.{{cite web|last=Kubicek|first=John|title=15 Hottest TV Dads: #12 - Nathan Scott, One Tree Hill|url=http://www.buddytv.com/articles/one-tree-hill/hottest-tv-dads-nathan-scott-o-17570.aspx|publisher=BuddyTV|access-date=September 16, 2012|date=June 12, 2008}}

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