Heavy/Hallmark Hallmark star Stephen Huszar
Actor Stephen Huszar has worked with lots of talented co-stars during his tenure at Hallmark, from the cast of “Chesapeake Shores” to Jodie Sweetin in “The Jane Mysteries.” But he’s so fond of his most recent castmates, Huszar doesn’t even care that they upstaged him in his new movie.
As the leading man in Hallmark Channel’s “Everything Puppies,” premiering on May 18, 2024, Huszar told Heavy that he’s totally fine with getting overshadowed by a bunch of Golden Retriever puppies and other dogs.
“They’re amazing,” Huszar said, assuring Heavy that he was also fond of his human co-stars, Pascal Lamothe-Kipnes and Kathryn Davis. But, he said, getting to work with “furries” made the shoot extra special.
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In “Everything Puppies,” Huzsar plays a pet store general manager named Alex who takes a liking to Lamothe-Kipnes’ character, Scarlett, an entrepreneur struggling to find stores to carry her line of dog treats.
“It’s just a super fun super fun script,” Huszar told Heavy. “I mean, as as rom-coms go, this one’s gonna get your heart for sure.”
The animal lover, who has two cats and a dog at home, said the dogs on-set were so cute and well-behaved that he’s sure they steal the show.
“Once you have a dog in the shot, no one’s looking at us,” Huszar laughed. “They’re always looking at the furry. I don’t mind – it’s fine!”
One of the highlights of his time on-set in Ottawa, Huszar said, was an “amazing” photo shoot they did with a bunch of Golden puppies.
“Oh my gosh, they’re these little adorable things that just sort of nuzzle up to you and make you feel so special,” he gushed. “I’m very comfortable around (dogs), but these guys are really special. Yeah. I haven’t held a puppy that young in quite some time, so it was quite a treat.”
Huszar also worked with some older dogs, including one that was a couple of years old that belonged to his character and was a joy to work with, he said.
“He was definitely trained,” he said. “There were some scenes where I was bathing (him) and we were running around and things like that. (He was) very, very well behaved — much, much better behaved than my dogs!”
Working on a tight film schedule and with lots of people around, Huszar wasn’t sure how the dogs would handle the situation, but said they were all “unbelievable.”
He told Heavy, “It’s amazing because you just never know what they’re gonna do, and sometimes it’s magic, you know? They’ll just do something that’s like, just, ‘Wow, thank you! You got the shot!'”
“I think I think people are going to enjoy their performances,” Huszar said, adding with a laugh, “Maybe a lot more than ours.”
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HallmarkStephen Huszar in “Everything Puppies”
Huszar, who grew up in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, now splits his time between Los Angeles and Vancouver, where a large number of Hallmark movies are filmed. But “Everything Puppies” was filmed away from home in Ottawa, which Huszar said he prefers.
“It’s easier to shoot away from home,” he told Heavy. “I find that you can focus more. You know, you’re not sort of in your regular routine. When you’re in character or trying to portray a different sort of life, it’s nice to get yourself outside of that habitual environment and get in something that’s different. So I actually prefer being in a hotel and shooting elsewhere. Less distractions.”
Huszar also told Heavy that after so many years with Hallmark, he loves the familiarity of the sets and crews, often getting to work with people he knows.
“They’re very loyal,” he told Heavy of Hallmark. “And now that I’ve done so many projects with the network, I (often) work with a similar crew, directors, producers, you know. (On any movie) you never know who you’re gonna get paired up with or you know who you’re going to shoot with. So it’s really nice to come back to get back to many families now that I have within the Hallmark family.”
“Everything Puppies” premieres on May 18 on Hallmark Channel at 8 p.m. Eastern time.