Chad Michael Murray Reflects on How 2000s Fame Changed His Perspective on Life

Chad Michael Murray in July 2025.
Credit :

Lia Toby/Getty

NEED TO KNOW

• Chad Michael Murray was “that guy” during the early 2000s
• The actor, 44, joined Pat Spinosa’s Like A Farmer podcast on January 7 to discuss his career
• While he has some regrets about his career, he expresses gratitude for many experiences

Chad Michael Murray, known for his influential career in the early 2000s, reflected on his journey as a guest on the Like A Farmer podcast.

During the episode, the 44-year-old actor expressed his gratitude for the lessons learned throughout his two decades in the industry. Host Pat Spinosa remarked on Murray’s status as a prominent heartthrob during his peak, specifically highlighting his roles in Gossip Girl, Dawson’s Creek, and A Cinderella Story.

When discussing the pressures of early success, Murray stated, “You’ll never know when you’re in it. And I think if you do, it’s a problem. If you know that you are the guy and you’re in the moment, it’s probably a problem because you’re getting your ego inflated to a certain degree, right?”

Chad Michael Murray, Bethany Joy Lenz, ‘One Tree Hill’.

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Murray also shared that he would not change any part of his past, emphasizing the importance of his family in his current fulfillment. “If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn’t change a thing… I probably wouldn’t have refound the Lord. I probably wouldn’t have been, like, as grateful as I am to go to work on a daily basis,” he noted.

The actor, who has three children with wife Sarah Roemer, said he was still “fresh off the boat from Buffalo” when he found success in Hollywood after moving to Los Angeles in 1999. By January 2000, he was signed with Warner Bros, landing a role in Gilmore Girls soon after. He acknowledged that there was “no book” on how to navigate the challenges of fame.

“I grabbed the bull by the horns and was like, ‘Let’s go. Let’s go have some fun.’ And we did. We had a lot of fun,” he reflected. However, he admitted that the excitement sometimes clouded his judgment, expressing relief that smartphones were not prevalent during that time.

“And do I look back and have a lot of regret? Of course. Like, what a crazy time,” he added. “Like, I’m so grateful there were no camera phones around.”

Alexis Bledel and Chad Michael Murray in ‘Gilmore Girls.’

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Murray reflected on the importance of learning from mistakes, stating, “I learned more from what I screwed up” and suggested that continuous success could have led to negative outcomes. “If I would have continued to keep winning, I think I probably would have destroyed myself,” he said, crediting a higher power for the necessary humbling experience.

After his departure from One Tree Hill in 2009, Murray’s career trajectory slowed. He acknowledged in a previous interview that he struggled with the scrutiny that came from the constant attention of the public eye during his formative years.

“There was a moment where I was quitting. I was done. I just couldn’t do it anymore,” he admitted. “These formidable years where you really cut your teeth on life experiences… it’s hard for me to see past those moments when you’re not adult enough to understand the scenarios that you’re in.”

Despite taking a step back in the 2010s, Murray has recently made a comeback, featuring in two Netflix films in 2024: Mother of the Bride and The Merry Gentlemen. He also reprised his role in Freaky Friday alongside Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan in the upcoming film Freakier Friday, set for release in 2025, and has been involved in the series Sullivan’s Crossing since 2023.