An Adam Brody renaissance is well deserving, according to Rachel Bilson! It seems to have been there all the time

An Adam Brody renaissance is well deserving, according to Rachel Bilson! It seems to have been there all the time

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

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.”

“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.