Ryan Atwood

Ryan Francis Atwood (born March 19, 1988) is a fictional character on the Fox television series The O.C., portrayed by Ben McKenzie. Atwood is an outcast and troubled teenager from Chino, California, who is given a second chance when the wealthy Cohen family takes him in.

Concept and creation

Casting

The O.C.'s casting director Patrick Rush found the role of Ryan particularly hard to cast.

In season 4, it is stated that Ryan had not seen Frank in eight years.[9] Regarding Ryan's biological family, a major recurring theme revolved around abandonment.^[10] His mother abandoned him twice, his brother left for Las Vegas without telling him and his father left the brothers and their mom "with nothing" after serving his prison sentence.^[11] This is contrasted by the character's adopted family—the Cohens—who stood by Ryan despite his juvenile record, vocal criticisms and disdain from the other "Newpsies" about his adoption and his multiple attempts to run away from them. Although he does not address Mr. and Mrs. Cohen (Sandy and Kirsten respectively) as Dad or Mom, he makes it clear that he considers them to be his parents.^[9]

Ryan generally dislikes speaking about his biological family and hints during Christmas and Thanksgiving that the holidays bring up painful memories for him. During his first Chrismukkah in Newport Beach, he tells the Cohens that his holidays mainly consisted of him "getting [his] ass kicked" and sums up his Christmas memories in three words: drinking, crying and cops.^[12]

Personality

Ryan was born to and then raised in a working class family, as such he knew the lifestyle and attitudes of people from his neighborhood of Chino, California, as well as the dangers that occurred in cases where outsiders are influenced by its environment. His abusive past enabled him to develop an extremely high pain threshold,^[13] and he displays an impassive expression after being physically abused. He is tough, cynical and quick-tempered,^[6] yet compassionate and empathetic toward people in trouble and those less fortunate than himself.

During his first months in Newport, he expressed his anger physically after incessant teasing from his schoolmates, which led them to intentionally goad him more. Ryan gradually calmed, after a lecture from Sandy and a stint at an anger management counseling session. He at times appears burdened by an almost compulsive need to rescue others at the expense of his own well-being, and as a result, is overly protective of

Ryan's personality is the opposite of the socially awkward, sheltered and sometimes naïve adopted brother Seth, and Ryan frequently uses his street-savvy skills to get Seth out of trouble. Seth often jokes about how he knew both Summer and Marissa since elementary school despite having never spoken to them.

As a student, Ryan is described as highly intelligent despite his behavior problems (he was suspended multiple times for fighting and truancy). In the pilot episode, the audience learns that he took his SATs (the only sophomore doing so) and scored in the 98th percentile. According to his mother Dawn, Ryan was always "the smart one, the good one" in the family.^[8]

Ryan's favorite fruit is peaches, and his favorite band is

Of the characters in the show, Ryan is closest to his adoptive brother Seth, and their respective love interests—Marissa and Summer. This "core four" group of friends is the basis of Seth's Atomic County comic series. Ryan and Seth often finish each other's sentences, according to Summer, "like they're composing a lie on the spot",[13] and they also read each other's body language and facial expressions.^[17]

References