Heavy/Hallmark Hallmark star Benjamin Ayres is recovering from surgery
While longtime Hallmark star Benjamin Ayres recovers from a recent surgery, he says the love he’s received from fans and colleagues is helping him heal.
On June 22, 2024, Ayres posted an Instagram photo of his mom holding his hand as she sat at his hospital bedside. Ayres shared the photo and a brief update via his Romance University (RU) account, part of the initiative he founded in early 2023 with merchandise and events for rom-com fans, with proceeds benefitting a variety of charities.
“I was at the hospital for a surgery and am on the road to a speedy recovery,” he wrote in his post. “My mom is making sure of it. Taking a little break from the RU page but will be back shortly. Enjoy your weekend and thank you for all your supportive messages. ☀️”
Benjamin Ayres Says ‘Support’ From Friends & Fans is Likely Helping Him Heal
Fans and friends flooded Ayres’ post with encouraging messages, which have not gone unnoticed by the Canadian actor.
In a statement to Heavy on June 23, Ayres said, “I’m getting better every day and the support that has been showered upon me probably has a lot to do with it.”
Among Ayres’ Hallmark colleagues who commented on his post, his friend and “Long Lost Christmas” co-star Taylor Cole joked, “Hope the face lift is all you dreamed it would be. 💕”
Actress Cindy Busby sent her love in emoji form, commenting with “🙏❤️🙏”
“Get well soon brother,” wrote fellow Hallmark actor Victor Webster, who is no stranger to surgeries himself, including having a prosthetic disc placed in his spine in 2015 and undergoing hamstring surgery in 2023.
Fans were quick to offer encouraging words to Ayres, too, including one who wrote, “Wishing you a speedy, uneventful recovery. Take all the time you need because we will always be here for you. Love and kisses. God bless.🌈🙏🏻😘❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️”
Another commented, “My thoughts and prayers for you @benjaminayres I hope you are able to recover at your own pace 🙏❤️”
Benjamin Ayres is Healing in the Middle of a Busy Year
HallmarkNikki DeLoach and Benjamin Ayres in “True Justice: Family Ties”
The downtime Ayres needs to recover from his surgery comes in the middle of a busy year for the actor, who’s appeared in 18 Hallmark movies since 2016, per IMDb.
In 2024, he’s already appeared in three Hallmark movies, appearing with Nikki DeLoach in Hallmark Mystery’s “True Justice: Family Ties,” co-starring with Alison Sweeney in February’s “Love & Jane,” and making a surprise cameo as a golfer with Will Kemp in “Paging Mr. Darcy.” Ayres has also appeared in six episodes of the hit Canadian TV drama “Family Law.”
Meanwhile, 2023 was also a jam-packed year for the Hallmark fan-favorite, after creating Romance University on a whim by making a few hoodies and buttons to hand out to colleagues and fans at Christmas Con in December 2022. The concept took off quickly and Ayres, now coined the “Chancellor” of Romance University, raised over $20,000 for charities in 2023 by expanding the merchandise line to include hats, shirts, candles, blankets and giftware.
In December 2023, he held his first of two in-person fan events featuring panels and meet-and-greets with some of Hallmark’s biggest stars, whom he affectionately calls “professors.”
Among his Hallmark projects in 2023, Ayres’ Christmas movie — “Miracle in Bethlehem, P.A.” co-starring Laura Vandervoort — “broke ratings records for the network, becoming the #1 most-watched premiere of 2023” on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries (now called Hallmark Mystery), and the second most-watched movie in the channel’s history, according to a press release.