Chad Michael Murray says he “one hundred percent” wanted to disappear from the spotlight after skyrocketing to fame for his portrayal of Lucas Scott on “One Tree Hill.”
“There was a moment where I was quitting. I was done. I just couldn’t do it anymore,” the actor, 43, told Interview magazine in a feature published Wednesday.
Murray said that he wanted to take a step back from his career right after he left the drama series in 2009 — but not because of “the fandom.”
“It was because, when you’re 18 to 25, these formidable years where you’re really cutting your teeth on life experiences and your brain isn’t fully developed, you make mistakes,” he shared. “I mean, gosh, we still screw up when we’re grown-ups.”
The “Freaky Friday” star continued, “But I think it’s hard for me to see past those moments when you’re not adult enough to understand the scenarios that you’re in.”
At the time, Murray said that he was struggling to live a normal life when all eyes were on his every move.
“That was hard for me because there are so many eyeballs on you. You go to the grocery store and someone points at you, ‘Oh, that’s the guy that’s on the tabloid,’ or ‘That’s the guy that did this,’” he explained.
“Even if they’re not talking about that, sometimes your head goes to a negative place, and I know mine really did. And so I just made a big pivot at that point in my life and said, ‘You know what? This is not what I want.’”
Murray may have been referring to his very public divorce from his “OTH” co-star Sophia Bush. The duo tied the knot in 2005 when they were both 23. However, they separated after just five months of marriage.
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Ten years later, the “Cinderella Story” star married Sarah Roemer, 40, in 2015. They share three kids: a 9-year-old son, a 6-year-old daughter and another daughter they welcomed in August 2023.
“My goal in life is to just be a great father, a great husband,” Murray gushed. “I love being an actor. But at the end of the day, the real grassroots thing for me was being a family man.
“I had to find the right partner for that. And I had to go through the right experiences and the wrong experiences to get there.”
The two have never publicly shared the names of their children and keep them relatively private from the public. However, Murray did give a slight glimpse into home life in his Interview feature.
“My 15-month-old daughter, whose diaper I just changed, she’ll keep me in check,” he told the outlet. “So will my 9-year-old, my wife, and my 7-year-old.”
He continued, “Fame is taking up zero percent of my time and focus. I love my job and I love meeting people. I’m the first guy to say, ‘Yeah, let’s take a photo.’ We’re spreading joy and happiness everywhere we go. That’s what it’s about for me. I became an actor because I wanted to make people happy.”