It may be hard to believe in today’s TV climate, but there was once a family drama that aired for 11 seasons and produced 243 episodes. That show was 7th Heaven, a staple of the WB that aired from 1996 to 2007 and helped make stars out of cast members like Jessica Biel, Barry Watson, Tyler Hoechlin, and more.
The series followed the California-based Camden family: Protestant minister Eric Camden (Stephen Collins), his wife Annie (Catherine Hicks), and their seven children (hence the title). Throughout its run, 7th Heaven tackled numerous relevant issues facing families at the time (and still today), including teen pregnancy, drug use, and the trials and tribulations of raising seven children at once, often concluding with a wholesome moral message.
Since 7th Heaven went off the air in 2007, its stars have gone in many different directions. Some found further success on TV and the big screen while others faced scandal and tragedy. Find out the latest on where the cast is now, ahead.
Catherine Hicks (Annie Camden)
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Catherine Hicks — who plays Camden family matriarch Annie — was active in both film and TV when she joined 7th Heaven in 1996, and had been nominated for a Primetime Emmy for her performance as Marilyn Monroe in the 1980 TV movie Marilyn: The Untold Story.
Since then, she has worked largely in TV films like A Christmas Reunion (2015) and Honeymoon From Hell (2016), and has lent her voice to the series Coming to the Stage and JJ Villard’s Fairy Tales.
Speaking with StarTrek.com about her 1986 role in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Hicks was asked which role fans bring up most often on the street. “No question, 7th Heaven,” she said. “It’s lovely. I feel like I was part of something that meant so much to people and really did good. It’s an example of how acting and entertainment, how what we do, can truly change people’s lives and help them with their lives.”
Hicks confirmed to TMZ in 2023 that she’s retired from acting. She is married to special effects makeup artist Kevin Yaeger, whom she met in 1988 on the set of Child’s Play.
Stephen Collins (Rev. Eric Camden)
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Before playing Protestant minister and Camden family patriarch Eric on 7th Heaven, Stephen Collins had an impressive résumé that included roles in films like All the President’s Men (1976) and Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979).
After the show wrapped, Collins continued to act on the small screen with appearances on Private Practice, No Ordinary Family, Devious Maids, and Revolution.
But it was his personal life that overshadowed his career when, in 2014, Collins admitted to sexually abusing three underage women. He later released a public apology, stating: “I deeply regret the mistakes I’ve made and any pain I have caused these three women. I admit to, apologize for, and take responsibility for what I did.” The 2025 Investigation Discovery docuseries Hollywood Demons features an episode in which one of Collins’ alleged victims details her experience with him.
Collins married actress Faye Grant, his second wife, in 1985. They have a daughter together but divorced in 2015.
Barry Watson (Matt Camden)
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After a handful of credits in the early-’90s, Barry Watson was cast as Matt, the Camden’s oldest child. Shortly after 7th Heaven‘s finale, he starred on the TV series What About Brian and Samantha Who?
Throughout the years, Watson has racked up several onscreen credits, such as recurring roles on Gossip Girl, Hart of Dixie, and Masters of Sex, and starring roles on the one-season series Date My Dad and Naomi, as well as some film projects like 2019’s A Dog’s Way Home.
Watson has spoken fondly of his time on 7th Heaven, except for that one time he and his on-screen sister, played by Jessica Biel, almost kissed. “I knew then, I was like, ‘I don’t want to do this,'” he said at a PEOPLE-moderated panel at 90s Con in 2024. “And I found out from Brenda [Hampton], the creator, that it was Aaron [Spelling] that insisted on having that scene. I was like, that was the only time I ever questioned Aaron’s creativity because I always think, ‘This would never happen.'”
Watson is married to Natasha Gregson Wagner, daughter of actress Natalie Wood. He has two sons from a previous marriage to Tracy Hutson.
Jessica Biel (Mary Camden)
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Jessica Biel plays Mary, the black sheep of the Camden family. Since 7th Heaven, she has had one of the most prolific careers of the main cast, primarily in film.
Her post-Camden credits include The A-Team (2010), New Year’s Eve (2011), Total Recall (2012), Hitchcock (2012), A Kind of Murder (2016), and Shock and Awe (2017). However, Biel returned to the small screen and landed leading roles on The Sinner (for which she was nominated for an Emmy), Limetown, Candy, and the upcoming Amazon series The Better Sister. She also married global superstar Justin Timberlake in 2012. They have two children together.
Biel was the source of drama during the show’s run when she appeared in a revealing photo spread for Gear magazine. “It really was difficult for a while,” she told EW in 2001. “I was 17 years old and totally rebellious, so I was just like, ‘What do you mean I can’t dye my hair? You can’t tell me what to do!’ I look back now, and I’m like, ‘God, I was a nutball!’ And I’ve really changed from that. I had to learn in front of the entire country, but I guess that’s a really poignant lesson.”
Beverley Mitchell (Lucy Camden)
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Since playing middle sibling Lucy, Beverley Mitchell has accrued credits on the big and small screens. Mitchell had a regular role on The Secret Life of the American Teenager from 2011 to 2013, appeared in a handful of TV movies, and played a heightened version of herself in the comedy series Hollywood Darlings, alongside fellow TV child stars Jodie Sweetin and Christine Lakin.
“I was not necessarily the best actress, but I was the one that got the opportunity, and I worked my butt off,” Mitchell reflected in a July 2016 blog post. “I never gave anyone else a chance to take it away because no matter what I always showed up and worked harder than anyone else. That is what made me different!”
The actress also released a self-titled country album in 2007, a year before she married longtime boyfriend Michael Cameron. They have three kids together.
Mitchell currently hosts a 7th Heaven rewatch podcast called Catching Up With the Camdens with costars David Gallagher and Mackenzie Rosman.
David Gallagher (Simon Camden)
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David Gallagher plays Simon, the fourth-oldest Camden kid, on 7th Heaven.
Since then, he has appeared on the TV series Smallville, The Vampire Diaries, Criminal Minds, CSI, and S.W.A.T., among others, as well as in J.J. Abrams‘ 2011 sci-fi thriller Super 8. In addition to cohosting Catching Up With the Camdens, he has also been the voice of Riku in the Kingdom Hearts video game franchise since 2002.
After college, taking on those darker roles was a “semi-conscious decision” for Gallagher. “I’d spent a decade on 7th Heaven playing Simon, which was a great opportunity for me. It was a wonderful show and a great role and it did a lot of great things for me. But ultimately, at the end of the day, I wanted to be challenged by something new,” he told EW in 2011. “Now, I’m sorta coming into this era, especially after Super 8 and a lot of my other guest appearances, where people are saying, ‘Well, David Gallagher’s very dark.’ That makes me happy.”
Mackenzie Rosman (Ruthie Camden)
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Mackenzie Rosman got her first credit playing the Camdens’ fifth-oldest (and longtime youngest) child, Ruthie.
Now an adult, the actress had a guest role on The Secret Life of the American Teenager and appeared in the 2013 horror films Nightcomer, Beneath, and Ghost Shark, the latter of which was a TV movie.
The Catching Up With the Camdens cohost also took part in a 2024 7th Heaven reunion at 90s Con. “There truly is no greater feeling than the love of family… Thank you [Beverley Mitchell] for bringing us all together to laugh, cry, and love once again!” she wrote on Instagram. “My soul feels full with food I didn’t even know that I’d needed.”
In 2022, Rosman gave birth to a daughter, Ophelia Katelyn.
Nikolas and Lorenzo Brino (David and Sam Camden)
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Nikolas and Lorenzo Brino played the Camdens’ two youngest children, twins David and Sam, who are born during the series’ third season. Originally, Nikolas, Lorenzo, and their two fellow quadruplet brothers played the twins, but, as the babies grew up, Nikolas and Lorenzo became the official David and Sam. 7th Heaven was their only acting credit.
In 2020, Lorenzo died in a car accident at 21 years old.
George Stults (Kevin Kinkirk)
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Before joining the cast of 7th Heaven in 2002 to play Kevin Kinkirk, a police officer and Lucy’s eventual husband, George Stults appeared on such early-2000s staples as Will & Grace and Friends.
Post-Heaven, his credits include appearances on the series Zoo and Melissa & Joey, and in a handful of holiday flicks, such as Christmas With the Andersons (2016), Staging Christmas (2019), Hope for the Holidays (2020), and A New Lease on Christmas (2021).
Adam LaVorgna (Robbie Palmer)
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Adam LaVorgna plays Mary Camden’s on-and-off boyfriend, Robbie Palmer, on 7th Heaven. Before he was cast on the show, he had already built up his TV résumé with a job playing young Frank Sinatra in the miniseries Sinatra and had a role on the series Brooklyn Bridge.
Since 7th Heaven, his TV credits include appearances on Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Cold Case, CSI: Miami, and Power. He has also taken on a number of film projects, including 2015’s faith-based Masterless.
Tyler Hoechlin (Martin Brewer)
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Before he joined 7th Heaven during its eighth season, Tyler Hoechlin had his first major role as Tom Hanks‘ young son in 2002’s Road to Perdition.
Hoechlin has since had success on the big screen in Everybody Wants Some!! (2016), Fifty Shades Freed (2018), Can You Keep a Secret? (2019), Palm Springs (2020), and Teen Wolf: The Movie (2023). On TV, he played Derek Hale in the first four seasons of Teen Wolf and returned for the show’s final season. He also played Superman on Supergirl and Superman & Lois.
While on 7th Heaven, Hoechlin balanced the show with his love of baseball, which he played in high school and college. “We would have Sunday night practices [at Arizona State], and then I would take a red-eye, from the field,” he told Empire in 2016. “I would get picked up, go to the airport, take a red-eye to New York (because of my storyline I had to shoot in New York that year), land at the airport, go straight to set, shoot for twelve hours, go back to the airport, fly back to Arizona, go to class on Tuesday morning.”
Christopher Michael (Police Chief Michaels)
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Christopher Michael plays Police Chief Michaels on 7th Heaven, having already racked up dozens of TV credits.
After leaving Glen Oak, his résumé included a recurring role on The Secret Life of the American Teenager, as well as appearances on iCarly, Pretty Little Liars, Grey’s Anatomy, Parenthood, Castle, Community, and GLOW, among other shows, often playing guards and officers.
Rachel Blanchard (Roxanne Richardson)
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Before joining 7th Heaven as Kevin’s partner, Roxanne, Rachel Blanchard was already a noteworthy TV actress for having been one of the original main cast members of Are You Afraid of the Dark? She also starred as Cher Horowitz on the TV adaptation of Clueless from 1996 to 1999.
Her other TV credits include appearances on Psych, Another Period, the first season of Fargo, and starring roles on You Me Her and The Summer I Turned Pretty. She also appeared in the 2022 film Deep Water.
Ashlee Simpson (Cecilia Smith)
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Though better known as a musician, Jessica Simpson‘s little sister Ashlee appears on 7th Heaven as Simon’s girlfriend Cecilia from 2002 to 2004 before releasing her debut album, Autobiography, in 2004.
She has since released two more solo albums, 2005’s I Am Me and 2008’s Bittersweet World; performed as a musical guest on Saturday Night Live twice; starred in various stage productions of the musical Chicago as Roxie Hart; appeared as herself on Punk’d, America’s Next Top Model, and her own reality series with husband Evan Ross (Ashlee+Evan), among other shows; and had a lead role on the short-lived 2009 reboot of Melrose Place.
Her music career began when she played Cecilia. “While I was on 7th Heaven, I wrote music in my trailer, and I would go to the [recording] studio at night,” she told Cosmopolitan in 2005. “Then finally my dad was like, ‘Okay, I’m taking you to record labels.’ There were definitely labels that turned me down because I wanted to do an indie kind of thing.”
In 2008, she married Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz. They had a son together before divorcing in 2011. In 2014, she married actor Evan Ross, son of Diana Ross. They have two children together.
Jeremy London (Chandler Hampton)
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Jeremy London plays Chandler Hampton, the minister who temporarily replaces and then assists Eric Camden on 7th Heaven.
Before visiting Glen Oak, London had recurring roles on Party of Five and I’ll Fly Away, among other TV appearances. He has accrued dozens of film and TV credits since 7th Heaven, including Tell Me You Love Me, MacGyver, and more.
London and his wife, Juliet Reeves, have one son. He has another son from a previous marriage as well.
Scotty Leavenworth (Peter Petrowski)
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Child actor Scotty Leavenworth had quite a long list of credits before joining 7th Heaven as the Camdens’ neighbor and Ruthie’s eventual boyfriend, including parts on the TV series The Young and the Restless, Passions, and Philly, as well as roles in the films The Green Mile (1999), Donnie Darko (2001), and The Majestic (2001).
Post-Heaven, he appeared in episodes of The Forgotten, Desperate Housewives, and Bones. His last acting credits were in 2010.
Chaz Lamar Shepherd (John Hamilton)
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Chaz Lamar Shepherd was already known for his role on Me and the Boys when he joined the cast of 7th Heaven as Reverend Hamilton’s son, John. He had also appeared on Moesha, The Steve Harvey Show, and Sister, Sister.
After 7th Heaven ended, Shepherd landed recurring roles on The Game, Haters Back Off!, and Marvel’s Luke Cage. He is also known for starring in a national tour of the musical Dreamgirls and released the 2010 album Love & Truth.
Haylie Duff (Sandy Jameson)
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Before joining the cast of 7th Heaven in its 10th season as Sandy, Simon’s fiancée’s best friend, Haylie Duff had appeared on American Dreams, Joan of Arcadia, and Lizzie McGuire, which starred her sister Hilary. She was perhaps best known, however, for her role as Summer in the 2004 sleeper hit Napoleon Dynamite.
Since 7th Heaven, she has been a part of the Broadway cast of Hairspray; had roles in the films Slightly Single in L.A. (2013), Blending Christmas (2021), and The Baby Pact (2022); and recorded music with her sister.
Duff got engaged to Matt Rosenberg in 2014. They have two daughters.