Gossip Girl may not appear very similar on the surface. One show focuses on the young characters maneuvering the ups and downs of small-town life, while the other exposes the glitz and glamour of being a wealthy teen on the Upper East Side. However, these teen dramas have a lot more in common than one would think.
Both shows feature typical tropes of the genre, such as love triangles and popular kids being bullies, as well as deeper plotlines and a lot of character growth. It is here that fans can look at the two shows and realize that many of the characters are practically the same person. For instance, Brooke and Blair are both stereotypical popular girls who put up fronts to hide their more vulnerable sides. But what other One Tree Hill characters have a Gossip Girl counterpart?
Karen Roe: Rufus Humphrey
Karen and Rugfus start as single parents raising teenage boys (and a girl for Rufus). But Karen may as well be raising three teen girls with all the she gives Peyton, Brooke, and Haley. Rufus is also the parent most often turned to by kids who aren't his own, and both characters start as outsiders among the rest of the parents: Karen was so young when she had Lucas, and Rufus is not an Upper East Sider. Both also experienced high-school romances with one of the other leading parents on the show.
The best trait that Karen and Rufus share is their warm and welcoming natures. Their kindness allows the kids to feel open and comfortable with them. And despite being outsiders, both parents remain strong, independent and true to themselves. They each find romance but not out of a necessity to be with someone but simply out of love.
Dan Scott: Bart Bass
Dan coaches Nathan to follow in his footsteps and fulfill his failed basketball dreams. Similarly, Time and time again, Dan never learns his lesson, emotionally abusing Nathan, ostracizing Lucas, and killing his brother, and lying about it. However, Dan redeems himself in the end in many ways, mainly by taking a bullet for Nathan. Meanwhile, Bart wants Chuck to clean up his act so he can learn the ropes of Bass Industries. But unlike Dan, Bart goes from bad to worse, ending with a physical altercation with Chuck that results in him falling to his death.
Dan Scott and Bart Bass are powerful, proud men who lean heavily on their family names. They're emotionally manipulative fathers that equally diminish their sons. Dan overworks Nathan, while Bart continually tells Chuck he's not good enough. Both men try and fail in the love department due to their controlling natures. Each also has awful ethics, committing multiple illegal acts that lead them to scheme and lie.
Chris Keller: Carter Baizen
Chris Keller comes to One Tree Hill in season 2 as a musician and develops an unexpected friendship with Haley. This stirs up trouble between Haley and Nate, almost ruining their marriage. Carter also enters into Gossip Girl as a troublemaker. He tries to break Chuck by winning over his best friend and girlfriend. When he can't, Carter turns to Serena, and they indulge in a toxic on-off relationship.
Both boys are charming and arrogant. They rely heavily on their looks, managing to take advantage of multiple young women. Neither one of them is above lying and manipulating to get what they want.
Rachel Gatina: Georgina Sparks
Rachel and Georgina also appear to stir things up. Upon her introduction in season 3, Rachel acts as Brooke's rival, threatening her cheerleader captainship and flirting relentlessly with Lucas. Despite this, Rachel develops a fan-favorite friendship with Brooke. Georgina also tends to shake things up with major revelations. She outs Eric for being gay, reveals Lily and Rufus' lovechild, and claims to be pregnant with Dan's child.
Rachel often self-sabotages the good things in her life, while Georgina is a continual schemer. But in the end, the latter makes amends with the main group of characters. Both characters possess a thirst for mischief and scandal that deep down is an act to protect themselves from getting hurt.
Millicent Huxtable: Jenny Humphrey
As Brooke's adorable geeky assistant, Millicent is a great One Tree Hill character introduced later in the show. She sinks into the intense modeling world and buckles under pressure, leading her to drug addiction. Similarly, Jenny Humphrey, Dan's little sister, transforms from sweet and naive to wannabe Queen B on a mean-girl warpath. Both end up recovered and happy by the end of each series.
Both characters are outsiders who desperately want to fit in, and when they finally do, they're not ready for it. They spiral down dark paths that turn them into people they're not.
Haley James Scott: Vanessa Abrams
Haley and Vanessa both have guy best friends. Platonic friendships between a teenage boy and girl were rarely seen in teen dramas until these two shows came out. Though Vanessa briefly reveals feelings for Dan, they quickly fade, and the two continue to share a special bond as friends. Meanwhile, Haley never, for a moment, shows a romantic inclination toward Lucas.
Being a guy's best friend isn't the only thing Haley and Vanessa have in common, though. They're both comfortable in their own skin and are good, caring people. Each also has a ion for the arts that they pursue, Haley's being singing and Vanessa's filmmaking.
Peyton Sawyer: Serena van der Woodsen
Peyton and Serena are the female protagonists of their shows, and both are pitted against their best friends due to love triangles. However, each friendship is everlasting and quick to recover. Aside from this, they are both popular girls who defy the norm. Peyton is a cheerleader who loves alternative music and making art. Meanwhile, Serena seemingly lives life in the moment, acting on a whim and befriending nearly anyone.
One of the best characters on One Tree Hill, Peyton Sawyer, is the angsty rebel heroine of the show. Similarly, Serena plays the effortlessly cool girl on Gossip Girl. Both are introduced as troubled yet charming girls whom everyone wants to date. They are fiercely independent with guarded hearts and magnetic personalities, and they tend to see the good in people.
Nathan Scott: Chuck Bass
Nathan and Chuck are antagonists turned protagonists. Each starts as a hot-headed boy with bad behavior and relationships problems with their father. Though these problems never really go away, both boys turn over new leaves thanks to romance.
The boys receive deservedly bad reps upon first introductions. They both act out or put up fronts to mask their true emotions. Haley and Blair bring out the softer, sweeter versions of these two that are rare for anyone else to see.
Lucas Scott: Dan Humphrey
Lucas Scott and Dan Humphrey are the male protagonists of each show. They share a love for classic literature, eventually writing their own books in the later seasons — both happen to be thinly-veiled memoirs based on their actual lives. The protagonists also share the plotline of being an outsider entering the inner circle.
The two possess many similar traits, such as their kind-hearted moralistic character. Despite the popularity bump each receives, they each care a lot for the ones they love and are down-to-earth guys — even if Dan did cause a lot of drama as Gossip Girl. They aren't afraid to stay true to themselves and their roots.
Brooke Davis: Blair Waldorf
Brooke and Blair probably have the most similarities out of all the characters. They both begin their shows as not the greatest of people, Brooke obsessed with boys and popularity and Blair selfish and manipulative. Each features a redeemable arc where they're revealed to be deeper than shown on the surface.
They're strong, ambitious women who pursue careers in fashion to win over their mothers' respect and end up earning their own instead. Brooke takes in Millie as her assistant and unintentionally leads her astray. Similarly, Blair is a sort of mentor for Jenny — for a bit.