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| Ms. Chabert, set to grace Christmas screens this Holiday season, seen here having pulled this man's finger |
Well, Hallmark has released their schedule for the Christmas movies coming in 2025. Despite the fact it's September and in the 90's where I live, over in Hallmark HQ, it might as well be time to rock around the Christmas tree.
Hallmark isn't completely ignoring the rest of the year. They're currently showing movies with a fall theme on the channels (although it's not officially autumn until September 22nd). And they're even getting spooky this year as Ms. Chabert and Hallmark stalwart Wes Brown will appear in the Halloween themed third chapter in the "Haul Out the Holly" saga.
Meanwhile, Hallmark ornaments are coming in waves for 2025, with an official Lacey Chabert ornament coming in October. (I am well aware of the Superman ornament, thanks).
If the pickings of this year's offerings look slim, this is just the list of *new* things that are coming, that are currently scheduled. I would assume somewhere, sometime, we can expect the three-network Hallmark blitz of 24/7 holiday movies, playing their deep backlog of festive content to which they retain the rights.
But, yes, you're reading correctly. It looks like they're starting Christmas on October 17th, while some folks still haven't decided on their costume for Halloween.
Over the years, Hallmark has tried different start dates for their Christmas catalog of films. I very much remember checking a few years ago, and, yeah, on Halloween one year, when we passed midnight and hit 12:01 AM, November 1, at least one channel had flipped over to 24/7 Christmas programming. And I've seen some Christmas content in October before, so this is proven territory.
And this blitzkrieg of merriment is in addition to Christmas in July, and Christmas Fridays that seem to run on and off all year.
Now, fun fact - the thing to kick off the Holiday Season is (a) not a movie. It's the first episode in a TV series called The Mistletoe Murders. This is actually the second season of the show. No, I've never seen it. But (b) it will need to run for a few weeks, which explains the early start time if they want to get in 8 episodes or so by Christmas. And (c) I'm not sure this means they're flipping to 24/7 Christmas programming on the 17th of October.
All this bears a mention that Hallmark TV is now very different from what it was in days of yesteryear. They still own and operate three networks (The Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, and Hallmark Family). But... they now have a streamer, Hallmark+.
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| the fellow with Ms. Chabert is apparently the favored handsome-man of Hallmark |
Hallmark Reddit seems to not really understand what is happening in the brave new landscape of media consolidation, streaming, and death of basic cable, so I'll explain here quickly.
That's it, Hallmark Reddit. That's the mystery. The reason they replaced nonstop movies with Golden Girls, The Waltons, and Gilmore Girls running 20 hours a day Monday - Friday, is that they would rather have your $8 a month or $80 per year and the metrics telling them which movies to make more of.
I'll be honest - for the price of two large coffees at Starbucks, you could be shoving Hallmark in your eyes from Thanksgiving to New Year. But your mileage may vary. You may not want specific films from the back catalog, and you may want to lean into the chaos that is sifting through the offerings across the networks. But I am pretty sure that people are paying for Hallmark+ and watching Christmas movies all year long, which may be why they didn't bother to add a 4th network on basic cable to run Christmas movies 24/7.
What I did note on a quick scan of the Variety article offering synopses of the 2025 films is that it's a smattering of themes that worked in prior years. There's a film about:
- active duty soldiers finding love
- vaguely European royalty meeting a working-class American
- time travel
- a third installment of the "Wise Men" series about three adult brothers and some kid (if you think this is a peppermint-drenched Three Men and a Baby, you are correct)
- an NFL-associated film
- Laura Vandervoort looking wounded but soulful
- two people meeting whilst travelling
- a European travel film
- a country music-themed movie
- cats
- people faking a relationship, who actually fall in love
- a Hannukah film
We are running the Hallmark movie gamut, and that's fine. Chabert's movie is this year's Magical Santa movie, an increasingly rare film in the Hallmark lineup - but it's nice to know Hallmark is still making movies about a Santa heavily invested in randos getting laid.
What we are lacking, I think, is:
- divorcee with precocious child meets man
- woman saves bakery/ tree farm/ toy store/ antique shop
- woman wins baking contest
- some sort of It's a Wonderful Life rip-off
I didn't count new releases, but it feels like a far reduced schedule of new movies from years prior where it seemed like every eight hours through the Christmas season, Hallmark was playing a new movie. Quality over quantity?
I'm also not clear on what constitutes a Hallmark star in 2025, but I'm not seeing, say Rachael Leigh Cooke or Allison Sweeney listed. Which seems weird. For God's sake - where is Erica Durance in all this? At least Kimberley Sustad is showing up in a movie.
Speaking of how Hallmark is now different - There are also no less than three reality shows. I see a baking show, the "finding Mr. Christmas" thing I kind of refuse to look into, and a feature on the very real Hallmark ChristmasCon called "The Hallmark Christmas Experience" that runs for two weekends in Kansas City every year now.
Anyway, I am locked and loaded for my Hallmark Holidays now, I guess. I sincerely doubt we'll have a repeat of last year's All Hallmark, All The Time Christmas Viewing.
I am still unsure what Lacey Chabert's exclusive contract will mean for her participation with Hallmark this year, what with her exclusive contract. We are anxiously awaiting news of her line of goods and any additional work she will be adding to the Hallmark line-up.
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