Watched: 11/09/2025
Format: Hallmark
Viewing: First
Director: Maclain Nelson
Hallmark fans are never happy. And maybe with good reason. There's a contingent that seems to get mad if anything actually happens in the movies, and others who get mad if it's not a particular kind of movie. Which leaves Hallmark in a pickle as they can't keep making the same movies over and over from a decade or two ago, but anything *new* is also a threat to part of their audience.
But, all that matters is if people watch, and apparently they are watching. And, given the viewership habits of Hallmark viewers - which means a lack of awareness of debuts of new movies, watching later, catching the movies on the app or whenever... that's a pretty good turn out of viewership across streaming and cable.
This year it seems Hallmark is cramming more value into fewer movies to drive up advertising during broadcast and draw eyeballs to the app. This is opposite the decade-ago strategy of going for quantity over quality - ie: they chose not to release 75 new movies in a single Christmas and hope the novelty kept folks locked in. But it's a risk when you make new kinds of movies and fewer of them, and give people a chance to tune away.
