Before he was guarding the galaxy or running from velociraptors, Chris Pratt was a "trustafarian."
Most people remember The O.C. for the high-octane drama of the first three seasons. You think of the pool house, the dramatic theme song, and the tragic end of Marissa Cooper. But by the time season 4 rolled around, the show had shifted gears. It got weird. It got meta. And right in the middle of that final, chaotic swan song was The O.C. Chris Pratt playing a character named Winchester "Ché" Cook.
Honestly, if you missed it, you aren't alone. Season 4 was a strange time for everyone.
Who Was Ché Cook Anyway?
Pratt didn't play a brooding heartthrob or a tough guy from the wrong side of the tracks. He played a Brown University activist who wore a lot of hemp and talked about "harmony."
Summer Roberts met him after she headed off to college, trying to reinvent herself after the trauma of losing her best friend. Ché was the guy who convinced her to start "liberating" lab rabbits and protesting basically everything. He was a caricature of a college liberal, but Pratt played him with this weird, earnest energy that made him stand out.
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It turns out, the whole "activist" thing was a bit of a front. Ché wasn't some starving student fighting the system. He was actually the son of a massive pharmaceutical mogul. He was a rich kid playing dress-up in a poncho.
The most hilarious (and deeply uncomfortable) part of his arc involved Seth Cohen. Ché went on a spiritual journey and somehow became convinced that Seth was his soulmate. Not in a romantic way, necessarily, but in a "our spirits are intertwined" kind of way. He even took Seth to the woods to find his spirit animal.
Why This Role Actually Mattered
You might think a nine-episode stint on a dying teen drama wouldn't do much for a career. You'd be wrong.
While Pratt had already done Everwood, his role as Ché showed off his comedic timing in a way that hadn't been seen yet. It was goofy. It was physical. It was exactly the kind of "lovable idiot" energy that eventually led him to Parks and Recreation.
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In fact, there is a direct line between Newport Beach and Pawnee. J.J. Philbin, who was a writer on The O.C., is married to Michael Schur. When Schur was looking to cast Andy Dwyer for Parks and Rec, Philbin basically told him he had to see this guy Pratt.
He was supposed to be a guest star on that show, too. Just like on The O.C.. But he was so naturally funny that they couldn't let him go.
The Weirdness of Season 4
If you go back and watch The O.C. Chris Pratt episodes now, they feel like they belong to a different show. The series had lost its "it" factor and was leaning into self-parody.
- The Chrismukk-huh? episode: This is where Ché appears in an alternate reality where Ryan Atwood never came to Newport. In this world, Ché is a total jerk who is engaged to Summer and having an affair with Julie Cooper.
- The Animal Rights Arc: Summer eventually gets suspended because of Ché’s antics (he blamed the rabbit-liberation on her to save his own skin), which was a pretty heavy plot point for a character that felt like comic relief.
- The Ending: Ché eventually finds his actual soulmate—a girl in a jail cell next to him—and they leave town together. It was as abrupt as his arrival.
The cast of The O.C. was famously "checked out" by the fourth season. Adam Brody and Ben McKenzie have been pretty vocal over the years about how they were ready to move on. Bringing in fresh blood like Pratt and Autumn Reeser (Taylor Townsend) was a desperate, though entertaining, attempt to keep the energy up.
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Pratt vs. The Star-Lord Persona
It’s jarring to see Pratt in 2006. He’s softer. He’s sillier. He hasn't been through the "Marvel workout" phase yet.
Some fans of the show actually hated Ché. On Reddit and old fan forums, you'll see people calling the character "insufferable" or "the moment the show jumped the shark." But looking back through a 2026 lens, you can see the blueprint for everything he did later. The way he uses his eyes to sell a joke, the slight bumbling nature—it’s all there.
Actionable Steps for The O.C. Fans
If you want to revisit this specific era of television history, here is how to do it properly:
- Watch the "Spirit Animal" Episode: Season 4, Episode 9 ("The My Two Dads"). It is peak Ché and features some of the best interaction between Pratt and Adam Brody.
- Check out "The Chrismukk-huh?": Season 4, Episode 7. It’s widely considered one of the best "what if" episodes in TV history, and Pratt plays a version of the character that is the polar opposite of the hippie we usually see.
- Listen to the "Welcome to the OC, Bitches" Podcast: Rachel Bilson and Melinda Clarke have discussed Pratt's time on the show, giving some behind-the-scenes context on what he was like before the massive fame hit.
The O.C. Chris Pratt might be a footnote in his massive filmography, but it was the bridge that got him to the A-list. Without Winchester Cook, we might never have had Andy Dwyer, and without Andy Dwyer, we definitely wouldn't have Star-Lord.