One Tree Hill star Bethany Joy Lenz reveals she was ‘in a cult for 10 years’

Actor starred as Haley James Scott in the Noughties teen drama

One Tree Hill star Bethany Joy Lenz has revealed she was “in a cult for 10 years” of her life and hopes to someday write a book about her experience.

The actor, 42, is best known for her role as Haley James Scott on the hit Noughties teen drama, starring alongside Sophia Bush, Hilarie Burton, James Laferty and Chad Michael Murray. The series ran for nine seasons, from 2003 to 2012.

During the latest episode of Bush, 41, and Lenz’s co-hosted Drama Queens podcast, the two were joined by former One Tree Hill co-star Michaela McManus, 40, who asked the multihyphenates if they were interested in adding “author” to their list of achievements.

Lenz responded, saying she “for sure” would like to write a book someday.

“I was in a cult for 10 years,” she said. “That would be a really valuable experience to write about, and the recovery – 10 years of recovery after that. So there’s a lot to tell.”

“I would love to write about my experience,” Lenz said, adding that she already has “lots of essays and lots of chapters written”.

“I think the ADHD has made it really difficult over the years to ... really commit to putting it all together,” she said.

Lenz acknowledged that there’s a “pressure of getting it right and everything having to be exactly real and all the people that are involved”.

“Also, I don’t know how much I can say because there are still people and legal things in place that make it more complicated for the timing of that,” she said. “But I do write. I write all the time.”

Hilarie Burton, Bethany Joy Lenz, and Sophia Bush arrive at the 2022 iHeartRadio Music Festival at T-Mobile Arena on September 23, 2022 (Getty Images)

The Bring It On Again actor is not shy about publicly sharing her personal experiences. In 2018, she told chat show host Steve Harvey that her guest-starring role on Grey’s Anatomy’s was based on her personal history of abuse.

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“I got a call from Krista Vernoff, who’s the showrunner of Grey’s Anatomy,” Lenz disclosed. “She knew a bit about my personal history. I’ve been in an abusive relationship before.

“I wasn’t physically abused, but it was very emotionally, psychologically and spiritually abusive in a lot of ways,” she clarified.

Lenz played Jenny, the fiancée of Jo Wilson’s (Camilla Luddington) estranged abusive husband, Paul Stadler (Matthew Morrison), on the 14th season of the long-running medical drama.

Of her portrayal, Lenz said at the time that she wanted “to share with an audience in that way – to see a woman who is really smart and successful and charismatic being abused – I hoped that people would relate to that and maybe some women who relate to that situation without even knowing it would find a relief … and then have a way to start to get out”.

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic abuse, you can call the 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline, run by Refuge, on 0808 2000 247, or visit their website here.