In the opening moments of tonight’s “One Tree Hill” season premiere, the audience immediately realizes that our favorite characters are in for a harrowing, heartbreaking thirteen episodes. Still, Nathan, Haley, Brooke, and the rest of the gang have been through hell before — so we were pretty confident that they can handle whatever is thrown at them at this point.

That is, until we met up with series star James Lafferty at the Zap2it offices this morning and he warned us, “It’s by far Nathan’s worst year. Absolutely.” After car accidents, school shootings, traumatic injuries, and really bad hair, that’s saying something.

Certainly the arrival of Dan (Paul Johansson), Nathan’s dad, doesn’t exactly signal harmony in the Scott household. Lafferty tells us that the contentious relationship between the father and son will shift significantly this year.

“The nature of their relationship this season is far different from anything we’ve seen so far,” he says, acknowledging the possibility of some forgiveness. “There are going to be some things that they go through that we haven’t seen them tackle before. It’s very very different, and very high-stakes and I think there’s going to be a great payoff there for two of them.”

As for Nathan and Haley, Lafferty promises that there’s still spark in the romance that has become the center of the show. “They’re a rock solid unit as they always have been, and they’re going to be tested this season, of course, but I think the fans can definitely look forward to some classic Naley moments,” he teases.

With all the turbulent ups and downs of this shortened season, we’re a little nervous about the way it’ll all end — particularly given the fact that there are only 13 episodes for the characters to come out on the other side of the trauma they’re about to endure. After playing Nathan for nine years, though, Lafferty feels satisfied by where he left the character. “I think all of our characters have a lot of things we go through this season, and as actors, we had a lot of work to do in that capacity,” he says. “But like I said, the payoff is really there at the end, for the fans, and for us as actors playing these roles.”

This November, we followed along with the cast as they said goodbye, one by one, to Tree Hill, Wilmington, and each other. Given the fact that we shed a few tears from thousands of miles away, we can’t imagine the emotional toll that week took on the actors who had brought the characters to life for close to a decade.

“I think that the saying goodbye to everybody, crew and cast, that experience had been undermined by saying goodbye to everybody like three times before,” Lafferty says, referring to the several other years when the show was on the brink of cancellation. “Everybody was so sick of saying goodbye. It was saying goodbye to the world that really affected me. On my very last day of shooting, I wrapped and I said goodbye to everybody, and it didn’t really hit me until I walked into my trailer. I shut the door to my trailer and I changed for the last time, and I was in this trailer for the last time that I’d spent so many years in — basically my entire adult life — and I was never going to be in that trailer again or have the same experience with the same people again. It was a quiet, private moment, but it was there.”

Now, with a few months between him and his last day in Tree Hill, Lafferty is ready to move on to his next project. Though some of his co-stars are hoping to avoid TV for the time being — Bethany Joy Galeotti, for example, tells us that she’s looking forward to playing a variety of characters as opposed to committing to another long-term role — Lafferty says that he is open to doing another television series.

“It just depends on what the project is,” he says. “Working so long on the show I’ve realized that I don’t want to go too long without working. It’s just kind of part of me now to constantly have something to do and to constantly be on a set. I want to keep that going. I think it’s given me purpose in life and it’s going to continue to be my purpose.”

Source: Carina Adley MacKenzie @ Zap2it

It’s the question on everyone’s mind beginning next Wednesday in a game-changing episode of One Tree Hill: Where is Nathan Scott?

The CW soap’s longtime leading man has seemingly vanished and, in a strange turn of events, it’s his former foe Chris Keller who attempts to get to the bottom of the mysterious disappearance.

Keller accompanies Haley to the police station to file a missing person’s report. Unfortunately, she gets the runaround and turns to the the aforementioned third-person pro for help.

As for what the heck happened to Nate, James Lafferty hints, “This season has one of the more out-there things Nathan’s had to deal with. It’s a story about him losing control over his fate for the first time… He’s really in jeopardy [and] it’s a frustrating time for him.”

Lafferty adds that while it’s a trying time for Nate and his Tree Hill fam, it ultimately results in “one of the most amazing examples of storyline resolution we’ve had on our show.”

Source: Megan Masters @ TVLine.com

Very short appearance of James in last night’s episode of One Tree Hill.

Gallery link:
Projects > One Tree Hill > Season 9 > Screen Captures > 04. Don’t You Want to Share the Guilt?

It does not contain any scenes with James but it involves the storyline about his character Nathan.

The final season of the compelling drama series One Tree Hill is available on DVD with ultraviolet digital copy from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group April 10, 2012.

Three-Disc DVD set includes all 13 episodes from the series’ ninth season.

DVD features over two hours of extra content, including five all-new featurettes, a full-length audio commentary, unaired scenes and a gag reel.

BURBANK, CA (January 30, 2012) – Fans of One Tree Hill will have a chance to wrap up nine years of excitement, romance, drama and laughter when Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group releases the show’s ninth and final season on DVD April 10, 2012. Titled One Tree Hill: The Complete Ninth and Final Season, this collection will feature all 13 episodes from Season Nine, plus over two hours of never-before-seen bonus material. One Tree Hill: The Complete Ninth and Final Season will retail for $39.98 SRP.

The final season of One Tree Hill welcomes new hopes, challenges and dangers. Now parents of twin boys, Brooke and Julian are excited for the future. But while Brooke works on rekindling an old relationship, will Julian be able to juggle the demands of fatherhood as well as a new business venture? Though Clay and Quinn came through their past struggles stronger than ever, a different kind of demon now threatens their relationship. On “Mouth and Millie in the Morning,” our favorite talk show hosts are excited to report Tree Hill’s latest, only this time there is an elephant in the room. And after welcoming baby Lydia, will Nathan and Haley be able to keep their family intact when they are faced with their greatest threat yet, especially when Dan Scott returns? Here we go again, into the challenges that come with the quest for happiness, in a place called Tree Hill.

“Though it’s sad to see the highly popular One Tree Hill come to a close, we’re pleased to offer the show’s final season to consumers. Now fans can own the entire series from start to finish,” said Rosemary Markson, WHV Vice President, TV and Special Interest Marketing. She added, “For nine seasons, One Tree Hill has managed to remain a successful and popular franchise thanks to its loyal and devoted fan base. It’s a series that surely will be missed.”

“We’re excited to be able to share the final season and never-before-seen bonus material with our incredibly loyal fans,” said One Tree Hill creator/executive producer Mark Schwahn. “Knowing this was to be our last year, we made sure to document it, which made for some excellent behind-the-scenes footage that we’ve included here, along with our last, explosive, emotional season of One Tree Hill.”

One Tree Hill: The Complete Ninth and Final Season will include an UltraViolet Digital Copy, which allows consumers to download and stream via Wi-Fi all 13 episodes to their computers and compatible iOS and Android devices.*

One Tree Hill originally premiered September 23, 2003 on The WB and has continued to be a successful and popular franchise. Through nine seasons, the show has been nominated for a number of Teen Choice Awards and has spawned books, soundtracks, a clothing line and more.

*One Tree Hill UltraViolet Digital Copy is a limited time offer. Restrictions and limitations apply. Does not include iTunes Digital Copy file. Go to ultraviolet.flixster.com/info for details.

DVD Special Features Include:
Featurettes:
An Evening With One Tree Hill
The Story of One Tree Hill
The Music of One Tree Hill
The Fans of One Tree Hill
Crew Cameras with Sophia
Full-Length Audio Commentary on the first episode by creator and executive producer Mark Schwahn and key cast members
Unaired Scenes
Gag Reel
13 One-Hour Episodes

Source: b3rt4 @ SpoilerTV

Some You Give Away (season 4)
James: “There was so much payoff for the ravens basketball team, for Whitey and for Nathan as everybody’s storyline converged on this one event. It was a blast to shoot, a blast to watch and I’ll always remember it.”

Source: TV Guide