Heavy/Getty Debbie Matenopoulos and Cameron Mathison in 2019
Ever since Hallmark‘s long-running daily talk show, “Home & Family,” was canceled in 2021, fans have held out hope it would return. Now that former co-host Cameron Mathison has signed a new deal with Great American Family, where his former co-host Debbie Matenopoulos also hosts lifestyle segments, fans have renewed their requests for a reboot of the two-hour morning show.
Great American Family, which was launched in 2021 by former Hallmark Media CEO Bill Abbott, has responded to several fans on social media. The network’s Instagram account replied to say that while a reboot isn’t part of Great American Family’s immediate plans the network “would love to bring a daytime show of this nature back at some point.”
Meanwhile, Mathison has teased that he is hosting a new top secret project for 2024.
Here’s what you need to know:
Great American Family Has Hired Multiple ‘Home & Family’ Contributors as Content Creators
“Home and Family” halted production twice during the pandemic, according to Deadline. Shortly after Hallmark announced that the show was returning in the spring of 2021, the network surprised fans with the news that the series had been canceled, with its final episode airing on August 4.
When Great American Family launched that fall, Mathison and Matenopoulos signed on to host a Christmas special, “Welcome to Great American Christmas.” Most of the show’s contributors also appeared on the special, which gave viewers a preview of what to expect on the new network.
Soon after, Mathison began filming a digital series called “The Happy Life with Cameron Mathison” for the network’s “Great American Community” app, which also houses segments recorded by Matenopoulos and multiple “Home & Family” alums, including former contributors Kym Douglas, Lawrence Zarian and Larissa Wohl.
Movie-wise, Mathison has bounced back and forth between the two networks over the last two years, appearing in a 2022 Christmas movie on Great American Family and then starring in two of Hallmark’s popular “Hannah Swensen Mysteries” in 2023.
On November 20, 2023, Deadline reported that Mathison, who also appears on the soap opera “General Hospital,” signed a multi-year movie deal with Great American Family. It’s not known if the deal precludes him from continuing to work with Hallmark.
When he and Great American Family posted the news on Instagram, Matenopoulos commented, “Woohoooo. Well done my brother!!! ❤️❤️❤️”
Fans quickly started commenting with calls to bring back “Home & Family,” including one who suggested a reboot of the show called “Faith and Living.”
Great American Family’s account responded to many of those requests with the same statement, pointing fans to its app for immediate content.
“Home & Family is a very ambitious undertaking though (5 days a week, 2 hours a day and nearly 52 weeks a year!) and it is very expensive,” the network wrote. “Great American Media would love to bring a daytime show of this nature back at some point, for now our #GreatAmericanCommunity App features content from some of your favorite people from that show.”
Though Mathison might not be hosting “Home & Family” any time soon, he did tell Digital Journal in October that he’s hosting a secret project.
“I can’t tell you what it is but I can say I’m hosting something that has been a blast,” he said. “It will air next year and I’ll be sure to let you know when I’m allowed to say.”
On November 18, he posted a photo in his Instagram Stories from a studio backlot with five crew members all smiling in the background.
He wrote, “It’s a wrap!!! Can’t wait to tell everyone about this amazing new project … (also a Home and Family reunion working with these guys again).”
Cameron Mathison Hinted at Issues He ‘Probably Shouldn’t Talk About’ When Show Was Canceled
Hallmark MediaCameron Mathison and Debbie Matenopopulos on “Home & Family”
Hallmark announced the cancelation of “Home & Family” in the spring of 2021. Variety first reported the news, sharing the following statement from the network.
The ninth and current season of Home & Family will be the series’ last. For nearly a decade, the show has anchored our daytime lineup, featuring countless hours of cooking, lifestyle, DIY, health, entertaining and decorating segments. We want to thank the heart and soul of the show, our incredibly talented cast and crew — led by co-hosts Debbie Matenopoulos and Cameron Mathison — for their creativity, hard work and dedication. Our audience can look forward to more of the topical segments they know and love when the show returns on Monday, April 5 with a new one-hour, three-day-a-week format. The program’s final episode airs Wednesday, August 4th.
In May 2021, shortly after the announcement, Mathison told the hosts of the “Deck the Halls” podcast that reasons for the show’s cancelation were complicated.
“I mean, I think there’s some stuff that is kind of behind the scenes that we’ll never know,” he said. “But the network says, the announcement was, that they really want to go in a different direction. I think ultimately, they’re really focusing on prime time, on movies and series.”
He continued, “Honestly, you know, I know some ins and outs that I probably shouldn’t talk about, but, you know, I think it’s a tough decision. Shows come and show go, and I think definitely Covid didn’t help from the perspective that we were off the air for so long.”
Hallmark’s “Home & Family” was actually a reboot of a previous series called “The Home and Family Show,” Variety reported. That show which premiered in 1996 and aired on The Family Channel for two years. Hallmark Channel revived it, calling it “Home & Family,” in October 2012.
The show’s original hosts were former “Entertainment Tonight” anchor Mark Steines and “Trading Spaces” host Paige Davis, though she left shortly after the talk show began, per Deadline. Cristina Ferrare replaced Davis, and then Matenopoulos replaced Ferrare in 2016. After Steines left in 2018 due to a sexual harassment lawsuit, Mathison took his place, according to Deadline.