All About Stephen Colletti's Career, From One Tree Hill to The Traitors
The former MTV reality star is going full circle with The Traitors.
A wise strategy on Peacock's The Traitors observed over previous seasons is choosing to play under the radar until competition starts to get thinned out by "Murders" and Banishments.
As evidenced in the first three episodes of Season 4 (now streaming), contestant Stephen Colletti has embraced that approach, selflessly giving up two shields to others or working hard to save a fellow player from his cage in the third challenge. He's also been working with the majority when it comes to Roundtable votes.
But don't let his quiet play fool you. Stephen is a social game veteran, having come up in the 2000's MTV era of reality television as a cast member of Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County and guest starring on The Hills. The man knows how to swim amongst big personalities, and on The Traitors, he's tapped into those instincts.
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Below we take a look at his legacy with reality TV, his acting career on One Tree Hill, and what he's doing now.
What you should know about Stephen Colletti
Born and raised in Orange County, California, Stephen Colletti grew up amongst the affluent families of Newport Beach and Laguna Beach. He was just 18-years-old and finishing high school when he was cast on Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County. The show launched several SoCal reality TV careers including Lauren Conrad, Kristin Cavallari, and Lo Bosworth.
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Colletti aged out of the show by the end of the second season and briefly attended San Francisco State University, but returned to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career instead. He stayed softly attached to the MTV ecosphere, appearing as himself in an episode of The Hills, hosting three episodes of Total Request Live, and starring in an episode of Celebrity Undercover. In 2007, Stephen appeared in his first feature film, Normal Adolescent Behavior.
How long was Stephen Colletti on One Tree Hill?
In 2007, Stephen was also cast in his first scripted television role on The CW's One Tree Hill as Chase Adams. It was recurring character role that had him appearing on the season intermittently from Season 4 to Season 8. He was then upgrade to a series regular for the final two seasons.
Chase entered the series as the tutoree who became the boyfriend of primary character Brooke Davis (Sophia Bush). His character leaves One Tree Hill and then returns, eventually becoming the owner of the town bar, TRIC. Stephen's tenure on the series lasted on and off for six years.
What else is Stephen Colletti known for?
When One Tree Hill ended in 2013, Stephen was cast as Teddy Reynolds in the VH1 sports drama, Hit the Floor. In 2023, he co-created his own Hulu series Everyone is Doing Great. He played the semi-autobiographical role of actor Seth Stewart who can't attain the same level of fame or work after his hit TV show ends. The well-reviewed series lasted for two seasons.
In 2022, he started a podcast with Kristin Cavallari about their Orange County reality television days called Back to the Beach with Kristin and Stephen. And fun fact! In 2009, Stephen played the love interest in Taylor Swift's music video for "White Horse."
Watch new episodes of The Traitors Season 4 every Thursday exclusively on Peacock!
