Countdown to Christmas on Hallmark Channel and Miracles of Christmas on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries continue in December with the premiere of 11 new movies.
First up is Eight Gifts of Hanukkah, which premieres on Friday, December 3 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c. In the movie, a newly single optometrist begins receiving gifts from a secret admirer for Hanukkah. With the help of her best friend, she tries to figure out who is sending her presents.
The film stars Inbar Lavi and Jake Epstein. The Israeli-born Lavi has appeared in several television series, including Lucifer, Imposters, and Sons of Anarchy. Epstein starred in Degrassi: The Next Generation.
A Very Merry Bridesmaid will premiere on Saturday, December 4 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c. Emily Osment plays Leah, a woman whose birthday happens to be the same day her brother is getting married.
When she returns home for the wedding, her high-school crush becomes determined to make her birthday special. The movie also stars Casey Deidrick.
In October, Osment posted a photo from the movie set, telling fans she was grateful that filming was limited to 12 hours a day.
Our Christmas Journey
Also on Saturday, December 4, Our Christmas Journey will premiere on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries at 10/9c. The movie tells the story of two exes who must come together to help their son, who has autism, achieve independence.
The movie stars Holly Robinson Peete, whose son Rodney is also on the autism spectrum. In an Instagram post, the star said she was thrilled to be producing and starring in the first Hallmark movie featuring a character with autism.
Sister Swap: A Hometown Holiday will premiere on Sunday, December 5 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c. Part of a two-movie series featuring the same characters, Sister Swap: A Hometown Holiday follows sisters Meg and Jennifer Swift, who try to save their uncle’s theater when it is in danger of being shut down right before Christmas.
The second movie, Sister Swap: Christmas in the City, will premiere on Sunday, December 12 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c. In the follow-up, the sisters compete in a Salt Lake City competition to win money for the charity of their choice.
The movies star real-life sisters Ashley Williams and Kimberly Williams-Paisley, who said they began planning a Hallmark project together back in 2018.
On Friday, December 10, A Dickens of a Holiday! will premiere on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c. The movie tells the story of a woman who is put in charge of her town’s centennial celebration. She ends up casting a former classmate as Ebenezer Scrooge in “A Christmas Carol,” and the two end up clashing behind the scenes.
The movie features Hallmark veteran Brooke D’Orsay, who starred in Miss Christmas, A Godwink Christmas: First Act, Second Love, and Christmas in Love.
A Royal Queens Christmas will premiere on Saturday, December 11 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c. In the movie, a prince travels to Queens, New York, to help a woman who is directing a Christmas show for children.
The movie stars Julian Morris, who appeared in New Girl and Pretty Little Liars, and Megan Park, who starred in The Secret Life of the American Teenager.
Two new sequels
Also on Saturday, December 11, A Godwink Christmas: Miracle of Love will premiere on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries at 10/9c.
The fourth in the “Godwink” series, the movie stars Kat Barrell and Alberto Frezza play two people who connect when they volunteer to help build a home for a family in need.
Barrell, who played Joy in the Hallmark series Good Witch, posted photos from the set to Instagram.
She described filming the movie as a special experience.
“Just 5 weeks after my son was born – getting ‘back in the saddle’ was both exciting and very intimidating!!” she wrote.
The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls will premiere on Saturday, December 18 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c. In the sequel to The Christmas House, the movie stars Jonathan Bennett and Robert Buckley as brothers who try to outdo each other with their Christmas decorations. Also stars Sharon Lawrence and Treat Williams.
The Christmas House made headlines during last year’s Countdown to Christmas because it featured a gay couple. In a 2020 interview with USA Today, Bennett, who is a member of the LGBTQ community, said he was stunned when he found out his romantic partner in the film would be a man.
“I asked my agent what girl was gonna play my love interest – who was it gonna be,” he told the newspaper. “They responded, ‘Jake’…and my jaw hit the floor.”
He said that he hoped the movie would help other members of the LGBTQ community feel accepted.
“If I saw a movie that had a storyline like this – with a gay couple who are adopting a child and starting their own family with unconditional love – I think I would’ve felt a little less scared at Christmas,” he said.
Also on Saturday, December 18, Christmas for Keeps will premiere on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries at 10/9c. A group of friends returns to their hometown to take part in a celebration for their beloved high-school teacher. Stars Christa B. Allen, Ryan Rottman, Ashley Newbrough, and Marielle Scott.
A positive influence
The final new movie to air on Hallmark this December will be ’Tis the Season To Be Merry, which premieres on Hallmark Channel on Sunday, December 19 at 8/7c. Rachael Leigh Cook plays an author who travels to Vermont for Christmas where she meet a handsome stranger. Also stars Travis Van Winkle and Karen Malina White.
Cook, who has starred in several Hallmark movies, said she appreciates how positive they are.
“I really wanted to put something positive out there,” she said in a 2016 interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “I know it’s a cliche to say that’s what you want to do after you have kids. The more the world has fallen apart, I wanted to go in a different direction. A lot of indie scripts I’ve been sent are about the most dark, horrible, awful things.”
Eight Gifts of Hanukkah will premiere on Friday, December 3 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c.
A Very Merry Bridesmaid will premiere on Saturday, December 4 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c.
Our Christmas Journey will premiere on on Saturday, December 4 on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries at 10/9c.
Sister Swap: A Hometown Holiday will premiere on Sunday, December 5 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c.
A Dickens of a Holiday! will premiere on Friday, December 10 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c.
A Royal Queens Christmas will premiere on Saturday, December 11 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c.
A Godwink Christmas: Miracle of Love will premiere on Saturday, December 11 on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries at 10/9c.
Sister Swap: Christmas in the City will premiere on Sunday, December 12 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c.
The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls will premiere on Saturday, December 18 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c.
Christmas for Keeps will premiere on Saturday, December 18 on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries at 10/9c.
’Tis the Season To Be Merry, will premiere on Sunday, December 19 on Hallmark Channel at 8/7c.