Equally troubling was the reaction of other characters to Marissa and Alex’s relationship. The Hills premieres Monday, June 24 on MTV. She admits that the writers toyed around with just having Marissa move away from the O.C. But why was Barton looking to leave the show in the first place? Marissa survives sexual assault. In fact, she was staunchly against the idea of a happy ending for Marissa. She had been dating bad boy Kevin Volchok and it just wasn't going to end well. As it should. Marissa’s death is definitely one of the most polarizing plot twists among fans of the Fox drama, which returned for a fourth and final season after Barton's exit before wrapping in 2007. There are few TV characters who were as polarizing as But, whether you loved her or hated her, her death during the Season 3 finale of Mischa Barton, who played Marissa, recently spoke out about the decision. She’s one of those burnout characters where I don’t know how much more we could have done with her anyway.” the 33-year-old proclaimed. And it's comforting to know that Coop's death … Marissa's mother, Julie, acknowledges “experimenting” in her wild days, and Kirsten Cohen reassures her that Marissa's queerness must be “a phase” for someone like her. The beginning of this relationship sees its first end when Marissa feels that Ryan has overreacted to Marissa and Oliver Trask'sfriendship. The beautiful but chronically damaged "O.C." “I’m so happy to see how far we’ve come as a society when I think about how sensational it was to play a queer woman on TV back then and now it seems almost quaint and young people are rejecting labels altogether and that is why they shall rule the earth and save us all.”None of us can rewrite Marissa’s fate, but I like to think that a version of her on television today might have at least had the vocabulary to educate her peers about queerness, and a few more queer friends (Imagine Marissa and Taylor Townsend dating!). Ryan Atwood is Marissa's second boyfriend on The O.C. Marissa is painted as never being able to “catch a break,” and her deviant sexuality is described as part of this bad luck.Sometimes this feels like a rule for queerness or queer people in general. The moment when Marissa firmly tells her mother that Alex is not her friend who’s a girl, but her “girlfriend,” was among her most assertive.Although Marissa and Alex didn’t last, (and neither did I and the girl who inspired me to revisit By the 10th episode of the first season, the couple officially began their romantic relationship. As for Barton, well she truly gives new meaning to the lyrics of The O.C.
Following the death of her character, rumors flew about Barton’s real decision to leave the show. Although extremely on-and-off-again throughout the show's course - their relationship originated as a platonic friendship in the pilot episode, which later escalated into romantic feelings.
This phenomenon has disproportionately favored queer women of late. leading lady Marissa Cooper died in a car crash in the Season 3 finale.
Show creator Josh Schwartz The fact that Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction impacted Marissa and Alex living their truth not only makes me want to roll my eyes like Summer at Seth’s stupider antics, it illustrates the erasure of queer storylines to appease the often patriarchal preferences of network executives. Although much of Marissa’s experience comes across as prime time soap opera hyperbole, her character experiences a disproportionate amount of trauma than any other on the show. There was a lot of speculation about whether Barton was difficult to work with and had been fired, or if she truly just hated the role and her costars. This would have left the door open for Marissa to reappear in later seasons.
“I fought tooth and nail for that to not happen, because I just don’t think that’s Marissa Cooper. Marissa’s death in a fiery car crash took the world of a show meant to portray the polished struggles of life in Newport Beach, California to a darker place than most fans expected. Summer, Marissa's best friend, asks if sharing a hug as friends “turns her on.” Seth sees Marissa staying over at Alex’s apartment and tells them to “keep doing what they’re doing.”Marissa's queerness wasn't explicitly tied to her death, but it is a definite element of her character not being allowed a happy ending, or happiness in general.