When Hope Calls is lining up an impressive list of guest stars.
Just days after the announcement that Lori Loughlin would be reprising her When Calls the Heart role on the spinoff, we have another intriguing development.
Deadline is reporting that Daniel Lissing has been locked in to appear on the two-part Season 2 premiere of When Hipe Calls, which will double as a Christmas installment of the series.
Lissing appeared as Jack Thornton on the first five seasons of When Calls the Heart, but his character was killed off in a shocking twist.
The likely scenario here is that Lissing will be playing a new character with a striking resemblance to Jack, or Abigail will be seeing ghosts from the past.
Either way, we’re intrigued.
We never thought Loughlin would be a part of the When Calls the Heart universe again. She was edited out of When Calls the Heart Season 6 when news of the college admissions scandal broke.
The former 90210 actress was also sentenced to prison time, and Hallmark cut all ties with her on the back of it.
“We are saddened by the recent news surrounding the college admissions allegations,” Crown Media said in 2019 when it ousted Loughlin.
“We are no longer working with Lori Loughlin and have stopped development of all productions that air on the Crown Media Family Network channels involving Lori Loughlin, including Garage Sale Mysteries, an independent third party production.”
There’s a good chance the main series could welcome Loughlin back down the line and the spinoff is merely being used to test the waters.
When Hope Calls initially started as a streaming show on Hallmark Movies Now, but it did get a Hallmark run on the linear cable channel and emerged as yet another success story.
The spinoff will air its second season on GAC Family, so it looks like it is leaving the world of streaming behind.
What are your thoughts on this latest casting announcement?
Do you think it’s the right time to bring Daniel Lissing back?
Hit the comments below.
When Calls the Heart has been renewed for a ninth season and production is underway.
Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.