Sophia Bush calls 'action' on 'One Tree Hill'

Actress Sophia Bush has been playing the role of Brooke Davis on the hit show 'One Tree Hill' for seven years. Monday night she got to play a new role on the very same show; the role of director. The 27-year-old actress took her turn to sit behind the directors chair this fall to direct the episode "Now You Lift Your Eyes to the Sun" for the seventh season of the veteran drama. 

Even with a long history with the show that gave Bush her big break, directing it she said was a whole other story. "It's really different", said Bush, when I caught up with her just two days before she officially began shooting the episode. “It requires so much preparation and planning”, she said. Bush told me she had to decline her invitations to New York's Fall Fashion week this year in order to give herself enough time to prepare for her directorial debut. “It's a lot of work”, said Bush

Looks like Bush's decision to opt out of Fashion week and attend a Saturday production meeting instead payed off for her as the only issues found in the episode were those in the characters' lives. And this most definitely was an hour of drama for Tree Hill residents.

The episode kicked off a series of conflicts with the majority of the show's characters. And Bush's role was no exception.

Her character experiences a false pregnancy alert that only leads her to a great deal of disappointment by the news of her not expecting, meanwhile, only to contribute to Brooke's dismay is the character of Alex Dupree, played by Jana Kramer, who has lately been occupying the time of Brooke's boyfriend Julian(Austin Nichols) more than Brooke herself. By the end of Monday's episode it was clear that the Brooke and Julian relationship was headed for trouble.

One thing that is certainly not heading for trouble is 'One Tree Hill'. At a time when television shows are being premiered and canceled every week it seems, 'One Tree Hill' has maintained its' prime time spot, even with a network move and a number of switched air times.

And a number of story lines is what Bush directed her cast mates in. From romance, to comedy, to problems involving friendships and low self-esteem matters, Bush tackled it all in her episode. It was one that did a complete 360 when it came to presenting each of the actors with their spotlight within the hour as many past plot lines all collided in this episode.

It is no wonder Bush had to work during her weekend to prepare for the episode; it was definitely a heavy one and one any director would feel pressure to present in the best way possible.

It is safe to say Bush succeeded and showed her viewers, co-stars, and production team that she can do much more than just act.

Bush is the sixth cast member of 'One Tree Hill' to contribute more than just her acting skills to the show. James Lafferty, Bethany Joy Galeotti,Paul Johannson, Moira Kelly, and former cast member Chad Michael Murray, have all taken their turns at directing.

To see Sophia Bush's directorial debut online go to www.cwtv.com

To read who the next 'One Tree Hill' cast mate to direct may be: One Tree Hill Examiner

To read more interviews from Sophia Bush-Sophia Bush-Examiner