Hallmark's Merry & Bright: Where Filmed; Meet the Cast & Dog

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Hallmark is continuing its famed Countdown to Christmas TV movie series with Merry & Bright, starring Jodie Sweetin, Andrew Walker, and Sharon Lawrence and a sweet dog named Wilson. You know Christmas is just around the corner when Hallmark starts its long-awaited season of holiday movies. Read on to learn all about the movie, including the cast, where it was filmed, and see behind-the-scenes photos. This article will have minor spoilers in terms of photos from the movie, behind-the-scenes pictures, and film locations.

How To Watch ‘Merry & Bright’

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Merry & Bright premieres Saturday, November 2, 2019 at 8 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Central on Hallmark. Encores will air Nov. 3 at 4 p.m. Eastern, Nov. 7 at 8 p.m., Nov. 9 at 6 p.m., Nov. 13 at 12 a.m., Nov. 24 at 10 p.m., Nov. 27 at 4 p.m., Dec. 7 at 12 a.m., Dec. 15 at 12 p.m., Dec. 19 at 10 p.m., Dec. 25 at 3:30 a.m., and Dec. 30 at 2 p.m. Eastern.

To find out what channel Hallmark is on for you, click here to go to TV Guide’s listings. Then change the “Provider” (right under TV Listings) to your local provider. You’ll be able to scroll down to see what channel Hallmark is on for you.

The synopsis for tonight’s movie reads: “The story begins when Cate (Sweetin), CEO of the Merry & Bright Candy Cane Company, meets Gabe (Walker) during the busy Christmas season. She assumes Gabe is the suitor her well-meaning mother is trying to set her up with when in reality, he works for Empire Corporate Recovery, which has been hired to take a closer look at Merry & Bright’s operation and find ways to make the company more profitable. As Cate and Gabe begin to work together, they find ways to elevate the business and find that they have more in common than savvy business sense.”

‘Merry & Bright’ Was Filmed in Winnipeg, Canada

Merry & Bright was filmed this past summer in Winnipeg, Walker told My Devotional Thoughts. He said Winnipeg’s tax credits are the best in the country, which is one reason why it’s so popular for filming.

He told My Devotional Thoughts: “Winnipeg has this area called the Exchange District, and it’s exactly what Chicago’s architecture looks like. It’s only maybe three blocks by three blocks. And so they’ll go down there and shoot a lot of scenes that are supposed to be in Chicago or New York. Then there’s the river, so you can go shoot by the river. Winnipeg is flat and has lots of farmland. There are farms you can shoot on. There’s these small towns within the farm community. There are lots of different areas you can use for filming in Winnipeg.”

The movie finished shooting on May 18 and Sweetin shared this photo on Instagram. “We wrapped at 5 am,” she wrote.

Instagram

Here are some more behind-the-scenes photos she shared on Instagram.

Instagram

Instagram

And Walker shared this photo.

Instagram

The Cast for ‘Merry & Bright’

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Jodie Sweetin stars as Cate. Last year she starred on Hallmark’s Entertaining Christmas. She’s perhaps best known for playing Stephanie Tanner on Full House and Fuller House. Her other credits include Love Under the Rainbow, Strange Ones, Hollywood Darlings (Jodie), My Perfect Romance, Finding Santa, Can’t Get Arrested, Port City, Party of Five (Rhiannon), and more.

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Andrew Walker stars as Gabe. He started his acting career as a recurring lead on Student Bodies and then cast as a lead in Back to Sherwood and Radio Active. His other many credits include Maybe It’s Me, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Wicked Minds, Lies and Deception, Snowed-Inn Christmas, AGainst the Wall, ER, CSI: Miami, CSI: New York, Without a Trace, The Big Bang Theory, When Calls the Heart, Steel Toes, Loaded, Penthouse North, God Bless the Broken Road, The Perfect Catch, Love on Ice, A Dream of Christmas, and more. He often stars in Hallmark and Lifetime Christmas movies.

He told My Devotional Thoughts that he’s starring in two Hallmark Christmas movies this season.

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Sharon Lawrence stars as Joy. She’s a prolific actress with many credits to her name. Just a few of her credits include Dynasty (Laura Van Kirk), On Becoming a God in Central Florida (Louise), Shameless (Margo), Criminal Minds, Poinsettias for Christmas, My Myself and I (Eleanor), How to Get Away with Murder, The Ranch (Brenda), Queen Sugar, The Last Tycoon, Rizzoli & Isles (Dr. Hope Martin), Game of Silence (Diana), Drop Dead Diva (Bobbie), One Tree Hill (Sylvia Baker), The Line (Jayne), Monk (Linda Fusco), Hidden Palms, Desperate Housewives, Ladies Man, NYPD Blue (Sylvia Costas), Fired Up, and much more.