What Hallmarks tenured holiday hunks have learned from a combined quarter-century in the feelings game.
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Our faces have become synonymous with the idea of Christmas, Campbell says.
If you want that feeling, and if you want us, you have to go to Hallmark.
As an actor, Walker says, I could not have any better-case scenario.
But these actors affinity for the channel goes deeper than the promise of a steady paycheck.
But theyre in no rush.
Theyre in it for the long haul.
I had started a juice company with my wife.
We were trying to figure out how to get our lives back.
I had become very resentful toward my business because it had taken me away from my acting.
I thought,Oh yeah, Ill take some time off.
I do a lot of work for ABC and whatnot.
Ill get it back in no time.I was wrong.
They want you to come up to Vancouver and shoot it.
And I was like, A Hallmark movie?
Dont they make greeting cards?
The director was Gary Yates, who
Paul Campbell:Gary is universally beloved, by the way.
AW:Weve all done movies with him.
Its almost a rite of passage.
PC:He createsa lot of Hallmark stars.
AW:But I did that movie,A Bride for Christmas,andit snowballedfrom there.
I didnt know the world I was entering into.
I got an audition for a Hallmark movie.
So I read it and was like,This is one of the most fun scripts Ive ever read.
Why would I not want to do this?That wasWinter Wonderlandin 2013.
After that, I said, Illdo as manyas the channel throws out.
TH:Ive been doing this for about five years now.
I dont know how I ended up on that list or why.
I dont think Hallmark would have ever been stoked to hire me.
AW:He called me about it.
TH:I called him.
I was like,I dont know what this is; youve done 4 billion of these films.
AW:You had been asked about doing Hallmark another time, though, right?
I remember that was the second time we had a talk about it.
TH:Yeah, youre right.
There had been outreach from Hallmark prior to that and it never materialized.
I had a meeting and it was super-strange.
They were saying things like, Once you do one, youre in the family.
And I was like, I dont know about all that.
AW:Youre like, I dont need a second family.
I knew his skills.
Hes my wifes second cousin, so Ive known Tyler for 20 years.
I knew the impact Tyler had as an actor in Canada.
TH:Listen, I love romantic comedies.Notting Hillis one of my favorite movies ever.
I think Hugh Grant is the most underrated actor of all time.
If Hugh Grant and Meg Ryan ended up in a Hallmark movie, Id be the happiest dude ever.
I started to go, Im going to make these movies from where I want to make them.
That was yielding a reaction from the people Im working with and the executives.
A lot of people who watch these holiday films describe them with similar verbiage.
Theyre set in fantasy worlds.
These sentiments are often expressed by the actors themselves.
Theres a reason why nurses and teachers are the primary viewers for these movies.
A lot of the actors are bringing in their life stories.
Theyre bringing in baggage.
The perfect example isThree Wise Men and a Baby.
Paul and Kimberley Sustad wrote this unbelievable script about real people going through real issues.
We saw how much of an impact it made on the viewers.
I wouldnt be surprised if Hugh Grant or Meg Ryan wanted to get involved one day.
PC:If you look across the board, whats woven most deeply is the message of optimism.
The happy ending is essential.
There has to be eternal hope alive.
The reason people tune in is because they know how these things end.
They tune in because they want to see the kiss.
Regardless of circumstance, were telling stories about relatable characters.
They could be you or me or anybody, and theres always a message of hope at the end.
Theres so much pain and suffering, and theres so much despair.
Weve made a formula that works.
I think its the consistency of the journey youre going to be on.
I watch certain directors who I love and I know for that same consistency.
What is that subgenre?PC:The genre is feeling.
And its a feeling you cant articulate.
These movies are deceptively complicated.
Everyone goes, Oh, what simple, cheesy stories.
Theyre really complex in their simplicity.
Where are the areas in which you could push to create new experiences so it doesnt become too redundant?
AW:That takes a lot of years to accomplish.
Hallmark has gone through a lot of different variations of what its aesthetics are.
There was a period where we couldnt be in plaid clothing or we couldnt be eating in a scene.
Paul, youve transitioned to a dual roleas a writerand actor.
It was something theyd never done before.
As a writer, theres no defined formula, but intuitively, we all understand what the thing is.
I understand the feeling were trying to provoke.
More and more, were telling stories about people who have more damage and conflict.
Its not as glossy as it once was.
Then on the opposite side, the humor comes with the tragedy.
Comedy only comes from pain, so the more pain there is, theres more humor.
Its a great balance.
We try things all the time that get edged back.
To see him actually take the pills means you have to acknowledge that his disorder is a real thing.
If he doesnt take the pills, you’re free to kind of go, I dont know.
Hes got some stuff going on.
Hallmark said, Yeah, absolutely.
Wed like to see that.
Thats a big part of his journey.
That said, there are still some restrictions.
I cant write sucks.
I can write jerk, which is pretty fun and opens some doors.
AW:My young kids would say sucks is a bad word.
Excuse me its the S-word.
PC:So, I have to do stinks.
Now I just lean older with word choices.
Ill write rats or jeepers.
I wrote a joke about marrying a cat in a recent script.
There was a joke where my character went, Marriage is different for everybody.
I love my cat, but I wouldnt marry my cat.
And then another character goes, Yeah, because of the legal red tape.
They walked that one one back.
That was a good joke, though.
I think the data pipe feels the same way.
AW:I think an imperfect ending, for sure, could happen.
She goes off as a pilot, and I have to stay on the island.
PC:Though we cant underestimate the power of the happy ending and the kiss at the end.
I think the audience really does tune in for that and its part of the message of hope.
Were telling romantic comedies and it needs a satisfying ending.
Without the kiss, movies do lose something.
Im fine; Ive found my peace.
But its not as satisfying of an ending.
I think its better when that connection is made.
TH:Maybe at first you go, like, Yeah, thats realistic to life.
And then you leave and think, Wait, what?
We get it, life sucks.
AW:Yeah, why did I tune in for this?
We do want to see people end up together.
TH:This is the tightrope walk weve seen Hallmark venture to work with.
For example, were not constantly saving the community center or getting that promotion.
The emotional arc of the character is becoming more important.
Theres something equally satisfying in just realizing that youre okay being you at the end.
I dont know, people seem to be generally a lot more depressed and down these days.
Im not going to go off on a tangent about social media, but I think its killing us.
I think its slowly poisoning our entire population.
TH:In my next movie, I play a social-media agent.
I wish I was joking.
The sentiment that you just described, well, Im trying to make that be the case.
You three have been with Hallmark for long stretches of time.
Andrew has the longest tenure, starting in 2012.
Thats the way I took it.
TH:I cant imagine how complicated or nuanced her relationship was or wasnt.
All I know is, for us, its very simplewhy were here.
We know what were doing.
I dont want to speak for you guys, but I certainly know why Im here.
PC:Feel free to speak for me.
AW:I love it when you speak for me.
TH:That was the intention from the beginning.
We want to see the same things youre talking about diversity of storytelling.
Because things have to evolve.
AW:Hallmark has created a culture thats a trickle-down effect from the top.
The formula is pretty sound.
Its like comparing apples to oranges.
If you look at the numbers this season,viewership is up, so its a big playground.
Theres a lot of space for people to produce and tell similar stories.
But I dont think theres competition.
Hallmark is the only place that does specifically what Hallmark does.
AW:Im not competing with Pauls movie.
Im not competing with Tylers movie.
Individual movies arent competing with other individual movies, which cant be said at other networks.
PC:Hallmark has created something that resembles an old studio system.
I dont know if theres anywhere else where the same actors appear year after year to create that familiarity.
For the actors that work in Christmas movies at Hallmark, we dont make Christmas movies anywhere else.
AW:I want Pauls face for Christmas.
Thats all I want.
PC:Wait, what does that mean?
AW:You both are on my Christmas tree.
Lifetime will be airing its first holiday-movie sex scene this year.
Will there ever be a point where Hallmark depicts intimacy beyond a kiss?TH:Im in.
PC:Hes going to be the test subject.
TH:Two people waking up in bed together I think might be possible.
PC:People talk about how theres a safe feeling to the programming.
I hate using the termfamily-friendly,because it has a lot of negative connotations.
TH:Same withsafe.
That gets tossed around too much.
PC:This is why I go back to feeling.
Why do we need to tell that part of the story?
If you want to see that, you’re able to go to Lifetime.
To make our movies sing, we dont have to see intimacy beyond a kiss.
They still resonate strongly.
AW:I also think it would take away from building tension in the movie if that ever happened.
PC:Theres an innocence and a sweetness.
I wouldnt want to do a sex scene just for the sake of itself.
When the magic goes away for me, its probably time to hang it up.
AW:When my kids need me at some point in their lives or if Im going to travel.
I have these ideas that I want to just leave for a year and travel the world.
PC:Your kids do need you.
I just want you to know, they do need you now.
TH:Im getting texts from your wife right now.
Shes like, Wheres Andrew?
AW:Its really out of our control.
At least, I see it that way.
TH:Thats an interesting question.
Youre going to make me start thinking about that.
If it ever gets pretty unpleasant, Id be out.If the vibes go toxic, I would leave.
PC:He has an aversion to bad vibes.
AW:I like sick waves and sick vibes, bruh.
TH:As soon as that fucking wave starts to give out, man, Im gone.
