Heavy/Hallmark Actor Luke Macfarlane
Fans are abuzz over a new social media video in which former Hallmark star Luke Macfarlane is seen goofing around with longtime Hallmark actor and director Ashley Williams. Many fans are hoping their joint video is a hint that Macfarlane is returning to the network, given that Williams has been filming in Vancouver and may have been on set with him.
When Macfarlane’s Hallmark contract expired in 2022, he said his time making Hallmark movies was over. But with a brand new baby at home and the stability that being a Hallmark regular provides, it’s possible the network has just what Macfarlane needs right now to lure him back. Here’s what you need to know:
Ashley Williams Makes Funny Music Video With Luke Macfarlane
After filming his 14th Hallmark movie in August 2022, “A Magical Christmas Village” with Alison Sweeney, Macfarlane stepped away from the network, according to the Los Angeles Times.
“They’ve been very good to me, but I think I’ve told my story for now with those folks,” Macfarlane said. “I mean, how many firefighters can I play?”
But when Williams uploaded a funny video of herself singing with Macfarlane on June 26, 2023, fans immediately got excited, begging for more information about whether they’ve been filming a new Hallmark movie. In the video, shot in a mostly empty studio or industrial space with a cart of audio/visual equipment behind them, the duo sang their amusing version of a trending audio clip on Instagram. Macfarlane clapped along and added harmonies but, at the end, he laughed as he said, “I wasn’t helpful.”
Given that Williams has made other recent videos showing that she’s been filming in Vancouver, where many Hallmark movies are made, fans quickly flooded the video post with questions and comments about why they were together.
When one person wrote, “Stop it RIGHT NOW!!!! A movie together?!! Eeeeekkkkk!!! 🥰🥰🥰” Williams replied, “I KNOW NOTHING.”
Another fan wrote, “Does this mean you guys are filming something together? Whatever it is I’ll watch!!!❤️” and Williams responded, “Filming an Instagram reel! 😂”
Someone else commented, “I know Luke said he was gone with Hallmark movies but if you two are in a movie together I’ll have a heart attack 😂”
Though the post created a flurry of excitement about Williams’ and Macfarlane’s potentially working together, it’s also possible that Williams was simply making the rounds, visiting friends in town toward the end of her latest shoot.
On June 27, fellow Hallmark star Barbara Niven, who has also been busy filming in Vancouver according to her social media posts, shared her own Instagram photo with Williams.
Niven wrote, “Look who I got to hug and catch up with last night! Ashley Williams! After she wrapped filming yesterday, she stopped at my hotel and we had a quick glass of wine.”
Macfarlane lives in Canada and welcomed his first child in early June with partner Hig Roberts, he revealed on Instagram.
After Movie Flop, Luke Macfarlane is Co-Starring in AppleTV+ Series
GettyLuke Macfarlane with co-stars Rose Byrne and Seth Rogan at the premiere of “Platonic”
Macfarlane’s decision to leave Hallmark came just before Universal’s September 30 release of “Bros,” the first romantic comedy from a major studio featuring an entirely LGBTQ+ principal cast and his first starring role in a feature film. Director Nick Stoller told the LA Times he was stunned when the uber-fit and talented actor auditioned for the role.
He recalled, “When Luke walked in, I was like, ‘He should be Captain America!’ It’s totally crazy that he’s not really famous.”
Macfarlane landed the role, but the movie was a surprise flop at the box office. According to Variety, the film only made $4.8 million during opening weekend, about half of the $8 million to $10 million that the studio expected.
The silver lining, however, is that Stoller was so impressed with Macfarlane that he cast him in his new AppleTV+ series, “Platonic,” with Rose Byrne and Seth Rogan.
But in September 2022, he also told Page Six that he gets why so many people watch his Hallmark movies.
“People watch Hallmark and Hallmark is successful because there is a lack of romance in our culture, there’s a lack of love, we’ve become a little bit cynical,” he said. “People watch Hallmark on repeat because they want to watch people fall in love and I think we’ve kind of forgotten that.”