‘The O.C.’ costars dated in real life for three years before splitting in 2006

Rachel Bilson attends the Accused screening during SCAD TVFEST 2023 and Adam Brody and Kristen Bell attend Netflix's Nobody Wants This NY Fan Screening a

Rachel Bilson (left) and Adam Brody. Photo: Jason Kempin/Getty; Jamie McCarthy/Getty

It’s taken over two decades for Adam Brody to finally get his leading man flowers — but Rachel Bilson has always been in his corner.

Sparked by his turn as swoon-worthy rabbi Noah in Nobody Wants This, the “Adam Brody Renaissance” has been on everyone’s lips, spawning 2000s-heartthrob thinkpieces, The O.C. rewatches and — of course — dreamy fan edits.

But is the Brody-sance truly underway? Well, according to his former flame and costar, it’s actually “been there” all along.

“I feel like it’s always been there,” Bilson, 43, recently told PEOPLE at a SimpliSafe launch event. “But if it is, it’s well deserved.”

Adam Brody Kissing Kristen Bell's Head in 'Nobody Wants This'

Kristen Bell and Adam Brody in ‘Nobody Wants This’.Netflix

“I mean, he is awesome,” added The O.C. alum. “He’s the best.”

As for Nobody Wants This, which has taken Netflix by storm since its Sept. 26 debut and already been renewed for a second season, Bilson hasn’t tuned in just yet. She is, however, so “excited” by its success — and what it means for leads Brody and Kristen Bell.

“I hear everyone loves it and I couldn’t be more excited, ’cause literally Kristen and Adam both I love, and are like my people,” she said of the rom-com series. “So I’m really excited about it and excited for them.”

As half of one of TV’s funniest and most iconic couples (The O.C.’s Seth Cohen and Summer Roberts) the actress also said she would be ecstatic if the hit Netflix show triggered a larger romantic comedy renaissance.

THE O.C.-Rachel Bilson and Adam Brody

Rachel Bilson and Adam Brody in ‘The O.C.’.Alamy

“I’m a huge rom-com person myself, so yeah, I would jump at a chance, just because I am such a movie nerd like that with anything romantic,” Bilson said, adding that genre staple When Harry Met Sally is “one of my all-time favorite movies.”

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Like their on-screen counterparts, Brody and Bilson dated in real life for the majority of their time on The O.C., which ran from 2003 through 2007.

After three years of dating, the pair called it quits just before the series’ fourth and final season premiered in 2006. At the time, a source told PEOPLE that they “just grew apart.”

The former couple has not reunited on-screen since, but they have interacted a few times since their breakup. In 2019, they ran into each other at the airport and snapped a selfie, and in 2021, Brody made a guest appearance on Bilson’s podcast with castmate Melinda Clarke, Welcome to the OC, Bitches!

THE O.C., Rachel Bilson, Adam Brody, 'The Disconnect'

Rachel Bilson and Adam Brody in ‘The O.C.’.Everett

While launching The O.C. rewatch podcast in 2021, Bilson reflected on her experience dating Brody (who is now married to fellow teen drama royalty Leighton Meester) while filming the teen drama.

“Because of what the show was and how young we all were, going through it with someone experiencing the same thing and having that kind of support was really awesome,” the Hart of Dixie alum told NYLON at the time.

“I’m actually grateful that I did have it,” she continued. “It was definitely a unique experience and I don’t think anyone else could have really understood it had they not been in it, so for that reason, it was super helpful and supportive, and I have total gratitude for the whole experience.”