Mischa Barton

Mischa Anne Marsden Barton is a British and American film, television, and stage actress born on January 24, 1986, in London, England. Her family moved to New York City when she was five years old. Barton attended East Side Middle School and graduated from the Professional Children's School in Manhattan in 2004. In 2006, she completed a summer Acting Shakespeare course at The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and became a naturalized United States citizen while retaining her British citizenship.

Barton began her acting career on stage at age eight, co-starring in the off-Broadway play Slavs! in 1994, followed by a lead role in Twelve Dreams at Lincoln Center. She subsequently appeared in the off-Broadway productions Where the Truth Lies and One Flea Spare. She made her television debut with a guest role on All My Children in 1995 and voiced Betty Ann Bongo in the animated series KaBlam! from 1996 to 1997. Barton landed her first major film role as the protagonist in Lawn Dogs (1997) before appearing in the feature films Notting Hill, The Sixth Sense, and Pups in 1999.

In 2001, Barton starred in the Canadian drama Lost and Delirious, as well as the independent films Julie Johnson and Tart. She also guest-starred on the television series Once and Again from 2001 to 2002. Barton achieved mainstream fame playing Marissa Cooper in the Fox television series The O.C. from 2003 to 2006. For her role in the series, she won two Teen Choice Awards and was named the "It Girl" of 2003 by Entertainment Weekly.

Following her departure from The O.C., Barton appeared in feature films such as Closing the Ring (2007), St Trinian's (2007), Virgin Territory (2007), and Assassination of a High School President (2008). In 2009, she starred in the short-lived CW series The Beautiful Life. Over the next decade, she appeared in numerous independent drama, horror, and thriller films, including Walled In (2009), Homecoming (2009), Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain (2014), Starcrossed (2014), Deserted (2016), and The Cat and the Moon (2018). She returned to the stage in 2012 as Shelby in an Irish production of Steel Magnolias, and competed on season 22 of Dancing with the Stars in 2016.

Barton was cast in the first season of the MTV reality series The Hills: New Beginnings in 2019. She subsequently appeared in the film Spree (2020), the crime thriller Invitation to a Murder (2021), and played Reece Sinclair in the Australian soap opera Neighbours in 2023. Her upcoming projects include the films Sleepwalker and Bad News on the Doorstep, alongside her UK stage debut in a touring production of Double Indemnity.

In addition to acting, Barton has modeled in print and commercial campaigns for brands such as Calvin Klein, Aéropostale, bebe stores, Monsoon Accessorize, Dooney & Bourke, Morgan de Toi, Keds Sneakers, and Neutrogena, as well as endorsing jewelry lines for Chanel and Inspired Creations.