Hallmark Actor Becomes First-Time Dad

Heavy Dad and baby give each other a fist bump

Actor Jake Epstein has two brand new roles to be excited about. He stars as a soon-to-be-married ad executive in the new Hallmark movie, “The Wedding Contract,” premiering on June 17, 2023. But more importantly, he just announced a role he’ll have for the rest of his life, becoming a first-time dad to baby boy Miles August, born on May 25.

Epstein, who first rose to fame on “Degrassi: The Next Generation” from 2002 to 2009, per IMDb, has been a cast member on multiple TV series including “Designated Survivor” with Kiefer Sutherland, “Suits” with former Hallmark actress-turned-duchess Meghan Markle, and Netflix’s series “The Umbrella Academy.” He also co-starred in 2021’s “Eight Gifts of Hanukkah” on Hallmark Channel.

When Epstein filmed “The Wedding Contract” in Vancouver from March 20 to April 10, per the ACFC West Union website, his wife — fellow Canadian actress Vanessa Smythe — was seven months pregnant with their first child. But they didn’t announce she was expecting until after he was home, in an April 22 post. Once baby Miles arrived, the couple waited over three weeks before announcing the baby’s birth on Instagram. Here’s what you need to know:

Jake Epstein & Vanessa Smythe Introduce Their First-Born to the World

Eighteen days after Miles’ birth, on June 13, Epstein shared a sweet photo of the two of them napping via Instagram, revealing his name and birth date.

“I’m in total awe of his mama and how she is transforming into this amazing new mum before my eyes,” he wrote of Smythe.

Epstein continued, “He’s only been on this planet for 18 days and it feels like I’ve landed in this new alternate reality of life. Being a parent. It’s wild. I’m on no sleep but I couldn’t love this little cuddler, music lover and pooper more. Welcome to the world my guy…”

On the same day, Smythe, best known for playing Michio in Amazon’s original series “The Expanse,” also shared a series of baby photos on her Instagram account. 

“It has been only a couple weeks and yet I swear there is a dimension of time that has wrenched open vertically because it feels like he’s been here for ages,” she wrote. “Holy moly what a trip. Thank your parents if they raised you. This kind of love is so consuming and yet I can’t grasp it with words.”

Epstein and Smythe are about to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary on July 7. On their second anniversary in 2020, Smythe posted a photo from their reception and joked, “I’m so glad I tricked you into marrying me.”

Jake Epstein Already Wants a ‘Baby’ Sequel for ‘The Wedding Contract’

HallmarkBecca Tobin and Jake Epstein in “The Wedding Contract”

A year and a half after appearing in the December 2021 movie “Eight Gifts of Hanukkah,” Epstein returns to Hallmark with his newest movie, “The Wedding Contract.” He and fellow Hallmark alum Becca Tobin play a recently engaged Jewish couple who are starting to think their relationship may be doomed due to their different values and beliefs. Tobin’s character, Rebecca, is “all about home and family” while Epstein’s character, Adam, is “all about work,” per Hallmark’s synopsis.

Epstein told TV Insider that he feels like the storyline is different than many Hallmark movies and “more human.”

“It’s unique,” he said. “Every other Hallmark movie I’ve ever seen is sort of about the love story. In this case it is the love story, but in a way, it’s more human. Yes, romances can happen, but what happens next? What’s the reality of families meeting? Will they get along? Job stuff, does that get in the way of the relationship? It’s kind of a really loving portrayal of a real love story.”

Epstein told TV Insider that he likes doing Hallmark movies because they’re “calming and fun and kind of an escape,” and said he’d “100 percent” like to make a sequel to “The Wedding Contract.”

As for its theme, he brainstormed aloud, “What should be next? Throw in some other holidays. A baby? Throw in the next generation. Being a young parent and navigating everything … I think I nailed it. I think that’s probably next on the list.”

Epstein continued, “In the same way that this movie is kind of showing what happens next after the typical Hallmark romance story, I feel like it would make total sense to show, OK, well, they got married, what would happen next?”

“The Wedding Contract” premieres on June 17 at 8 p.m. Eastern time.