On Sunday, December 6, Dylan Neal stars with Danica McKellar in Christmas She Wrote. The 2 actors are Hallmark favorites, and it is their first time teaming up collectively, so we anticipate we’re in for a really enjoyable movie, certainly.
We had the possibility to talk with each of them, and proper now, we’re sharing components of the dialogue we had with Neal, edited for readability and content material.
When you’re a giant fan of Hallmark productions, you may take pleasure in attending to know this proficient man who writes, produces, and performs a few of our favourite programming whereas nonetheless discovering time for pursuits away from the community, too.
How did you get entangled with Christmas She Wrote?
They known as and requested if I wished to do it. And I mentioned, “Certain.” It is like a lot of the issues at Hallmark. I’ve acquired an extended historical past of working with Hallmark, going again to their first TV collection, Cedar Cove once they provided me the male lead reverse Andie MacDowell.
And normally yearly there is a film that, if I’ve not created it and written it and produced it, after which there’s one thing the place they will enable for me one thing to do, and this 12 months it was considered one of their Christmas motion pictures.
And it appears that evidently your character makes a giant mistake of letting his columnist go. So what sort of challenges does Tripp face attempting to repair that mistake? What are his Christmas foibles?
Effectively, he personally does not see it as a mistake at first. He is employed as the brand new editor in chief of this paper, and the mandate from his boss is to deliver the funds in line, and similar to most newspapers out on the earth as of late with the attempting time, to truly make a revenue.
So he is merely giving layoffs and slashing the funds the place attainable. He is not really a nasty man.
And what he does not perceive is when he lets Kaleigh go, who’s a columnist at his paper, is precisely how widespread her column was and the way loyal her followers are. And so then it is his boss that tells him, “Look, that one that you just fired, we have to get her again, and I do not care the way you do it, simply do it.”
So Tripp tries to get her on the telephone a number of instances and e mail, and she or he’s not responding. He goes to trace her down in her hometown to try to get on bended knee and see if she’ll come again.
And her nostril is so out of joint at being fired that she says, “No.” However as issues escalate, Tripp’s personal job is on the road from his boss, that if he does not get Kaleigh again, he will be fired. So the strain’s on for Tripp to determine methods to woo her again to the job. And, in fact, within the course of, begins to fall for her.
The film has a very nice forged. Had you labored with most of those individuals earlier than, or are they new to you?
I knew everybody. I hadn’t labored with anybody apart from the director, Terry Ingram, who had directed considered one of my franchise motion pictures, The Gourmand Detective. That is one of many homicide thriller franchises. And Terry and I’m going again earlier than that. We most likely return about 15 years.
And I had met Danica at one or two community capabilities, however we would by no means labored collectively. And everybody else, we knew one another, however, effectively, we simply have not labored collectively.
And what did you most take pleasure in about filming this specific film?
Let’s have a look at. Effectively, I acquired to get on skates once more. It has been a very long time. I do not do lots of skating down right here in LA. Oh, it should’ve been with my children. Years in the past, we used to take them to an area area and get some little winter in our winter instructing my children methods to skate, nevertheless it’s at all times good to get on skates once more.
And positively, I practiced up on my math with Danica over the course of… A math genius. And it is only a enjoyable Christmas story. These had been at all times enjoyable to work on. And it places you within the Christmas spirit, even when it was a little bit bit early whereas we’re nonetheless filming it, however they’re all simply candy little tales and places a smile in your face.
It is humorous that you just talked about skating as a result of I watched the preview, and it appeared such as you took off like a rocket on these skates, and I assumed, “Wow, you actually know what you are doing.”
Effectively, it is humorous as a result of Danica does not skate, and we needed to construct a rig to place her on, so she’s faking methods to skate, and we had a physique double for her. In order that one the place I take off after that skater, that is not Danica. After which while you see me give an arm to Danica, she’s on a sled being pulled round on the rig.
And that is why I am my ft lots as a result of I am attempting to not journey over this factor that is proper beside me, and I can not take a standard stride as a result of I’ve acquired to get as near her as attainable, however I can not get proper up subsequent to her as a result of she’s on a sled being pushed and pulled by three crew members.
And the cameraman is on skates, skating backward, carrying a really, very heavy digicam, attempting to not get run over by this sled that Danica’s on. It took an actual village to make that and had been a little bit doubtful that it might work.
And I hadn’t actually seen the outcomes apart from the little trailer, however that was good. That is at all times a type of conundrums or these dangers that you just take as a author.
If you write a scene like skating or horseback driving or one thing that is technically a particular talent, and you don’t have any concept whether or not the actor that ultimately will get employed can really do what you have written.
Typically you’ll be able to lose the scene. It isn’t vital, otherwise you rewrite it. Or generally, if it is a little bit extra instrumental, you bought to determine how you are going to cheat it. So, it was a superb job by the director and the crew to provide you with this little resolution.
I like these little film magic moments.
Yeah. Effectively, yeah. Precisely.
And I’ve to confess that I’ve by no means learn any of the books or seen any of the 50 Shades motion pictures, nevertheless it makes me chortle that within the midst of all of your Hallmark, you visited the 50 Shades franchise.
Proper? Effectively, that is extra of my life. After I work at Hallmark, that is extra a detour from actually any actor’s common life. I imply, Hallmark says family-friendly and sweetly and something that they get, however that is not most of what tv and movie are about.
It is a little bit extra reasonable human drama. As a lot as I am thrilled to work at Hallmark, it is good to be out in the actual world, too, and movie a extra conventional position of dramatic tales.
What does it really feel wish to must go out and in of these two totally different worlds, primarily? I understand you are not doing it every day, however you recognize what I imply?
Effectively, it is tough as a result of I put on a bunch of various hats of Hallmark, as a author and as a producer, as an actor. And folks make a mistake once they assume that Hallmark motion pictures are simply actually easy to put in writing and execute. They don’t seem to be as a result of Hallmark has a really, very, very specific means of telling a narrative.
And it isn’t simply merely family-friendly, it is a problem, and it’s totally troublesome. As a author, I am going to inform you that having written seven or eight motion pictures for them now, it’s totally troublesome. In some ways, it is tougher than writing tougher materials in conventional broadcast or cable or options. And so, on the one hand, I am at all times up for a problem.
I technically desire writing the homicide mysteries. I just like the puzzle of placing collectively a thriller over 9 acts. I like these psychological gymnastics greater than rom-coms.
However then, as an actor, it is way more enjoyable to work in a standard cable broadcast atmosphere the place the battle and the stakes are a little bit larger as a result of Hallmark does not usually need excessive stakes.
They need a really pleasing experience that grandma and a seven-year-old can take pleasure in collectively and as they need to. However that implies that the story, it is easier, proper? And that is not, from my perspective, that is not as enjoyable as an actor to ship than one thing the place a little bit extra is on the road.
Having mentioned that, it is at all times pleasing as an entertainer to make a product that the viewers actually enjoys, it doesn’t matter what it’s.
And there is definitely no query that the Hallmark viewers actually, actually enjoys the Hallmark product, particularly over the vacations, the place Hallmark has actually established a beachhead as type of must-see tv for lots of the nation.
And in reality, everyone knows that Netflix, Lifetime, and Freeform are utterly copying the Hallmark mannequin of Christmas programming.
Completely.
And Hallmark takes it. It begins in October, however that was Michelle Vicary’s child to do this Countdown to Christmas, of actually churning out Christmas motion pictures over a two month interval.
That was actually her child. And she or he has to get lots of credit score as a result of you recognize you are doing one thing proper when all the remainder of the trade begins copying it, they usually have.
They’ve. Completely. And also you talked about Gourmand Detective. I like the thriller motion pictures, too.
Oh nice.
And I’ve watched Gourmand Detective, and I do know you try this together with your spouse, proper?
Yep. Becky Southwell.
Are you going to have extra? Is there extra on the best way?
I do not know. However we have had a superb run. We had been the primary one out, really, earlier than they’d even rebranded Hallmark Films & Mysteries. I pitched that whereas I used to be nonetheless doing Cedar Cove, and what they’d accomplished to that date had been Good Witches and Storage Sale Mysteries.
I knew they had been focused on doing extra with me and knew that Becky and I had a historical past of promoting pilots.
And so I pitched them a few concepts. They appreciated Gourmand Detective probably the most and mentioned, “That that is really a very fortuitous time primarily as a result of nobody is aware of but, however we’re about to rebrand our second channel into one thing known as Hallmark Films & Mysteries, and we would such as you guys to be the primary up.”
I feel that yours is exclusive as a result of a lot of it’s from a male perspective. Often, the male characters are secondary, however I really feel like Henry is the primary attraction there.
Proper. Effectively, and it was an experiment for them, and in some methods, it labored; in some methods, it did not. Once more, coming off Cedar Cove, I feel they had been fairly excessive on staying in enterprise with me, and so I had pitched, “Yeah, regardless that this can be a feminine community, we’ll be at the least 50/50 on this. And since it is known as the Gourmand Detective, possibly Henry goes to be a little bit bit entrance and middle.”
I did not get the whole lot I wished in how we envisioned that present, which, there is no pretending; it is principally Citadel in a Hallmark bow. It is dialed down in sexual innuendo and violence, nevertheless it’s principally, we had been taking pictures for a kind of Citadel. And so Henry needs to be form of entrance and middle as a result of there is no present with out him.
And, in fact, the world actually revolves round Maggie. And I feel we’re one of many provided that possibly the one a type of the place the feminine is the cop. She’s the knowledgeable. He is the one who’s sticking his nostril the place it does not belong.
And I purposely constructed it with Becky to be principally a automobile for a weekly TV collection, if they need to ever really feel they wished to do this. In order that’s why we have now a extra pure engine than among the different homicide mysteries the place to illustrate, it is a librarian, or it is simply somebody who bakes cookies who stumbles on a thriller. Ours is across the police station with robust supporting characters.
There is a household that helps Maggie and Henry. So it is constructed to be a TV collection, and that was accomplished on objective. And that is not the case with the opposite ones. And so, we by no means acquired that. I do not know if they will ever do a weekly collection, which I feel they need to, whether or not it is mine or someone else.
I feel so, too.
I feel they need to completely, completely do their model of a Citadel. I imply, why would Hallmark not try this? I feel that is pure. I would at all times hoped it might be us, however I do not assume that might be the case. However after the second film, and I mentioned that our numbers went up after the second film, our first one did fairly effectively.
The second did not try this effectively, however all the community that night time tanked throughout the board, and I can not keep in mind what the community was up towards, whether or not soccer or different a number of programming. We have at all times been up towards one thing.
I’ve had the worst luck with premiere nights, nevertheless it spooks them, they usually laid the blame I feel on, “You understand what, we’ll be too male-centric. We acquired to dial Henry again.” And so after the second, if persons are actually paying consideration, you may see that the position of Henry pulls again and joyful to do what they wished.
I at all times felt that it wasn’t actually about Henry being too entrance and middle. I assumed it was extra about simply getting the correct tone of the present and the steadiness of the banter, which actually is what individuals tune in for with Gourmand Detective. It is actually in regards to the banter between Henry and Maggie. That is what they love.
And I feel everybody feedback that Brooke and I’ve notably actually good chemistry collectively. She’s a very good pal of mine, and she or he actually will get what we’re attempting to do. And I feel that additionally form of separates us. I perceive I am biased, however I feel ours is a bit more enjoyable. I feel it is totally different; it is a little bit extra irreverent. It has been a enjoyable experience.
So why did you select a gourmand for Henry in Gourmand Detective?
Effectively, I did not, really. I pitched two initiatives on that day. So, as I mentioned, Becky and I, I feel we would already offered one film to them, and it was my spouse simply getting again into the enterprise after staying house with the children for about seven years, and she or he was able to get again into tv.
And I mentioned, “Why do not we simply pitch just a few issues to Hallmark whereas I am right here and see the place that goes, after which you’ll be able to transfer again onto prime time if you would like.” And so I feel we offered as one, which was initially known as Disorderly Conduct and have become Valentine Ever After, which was a special expertise.
After which I talked with Michelle Vicary about, “I would wish to deliver a franchise.” For example, what I had talked about to her was the Tom Selleck TV collection at CBS, Jesse Stone.
And she or he mentioned, “Humorous you talked about that as a result of we’re in talks with Tom proper now about bringing the subsequent one to Hallmark.”
And so I acquired my marching orders that they had been open to that. And we partnered up with Muse, with who Becky and I had an extended affiliation with outdoors of Hallmark, who simply by coincidence, Muse and Joel Rice, the president of Muse, is considered one of their prime producers.
So I mentioned, “Joel, why do not you come on to what I am pitching over at Hallmark, as a result of I feel that can strengthen our crew.” And so we pitched it as an adaptation of BBC collection, ABC collection, and I will not identify it, however that was my favourite, in actual fact. After which we had this guide collection by Peter King known as Gourmand Detective. I appreciated it, however I knew it was going to be problematic as a author.
There have been lots of issues in adapting these books to A, tv, and B, Hallmark as a result of they’re 40 years previous; they’re utterly the fallacious tone for Hallmark. The man within the books is definitely very misogynistic. There was no supporting forged as a franchise. Every guide has a totally totally different set of characters, and every guide has a forged of 1000’s.
I’ve acquired to interrupt it aside utterly, and, actually, all we had been promoting to Hallmark was a superb guide title as a result of The Gourmand Detective is an efficient identify and the truth that it was a guide collection, and everyone knows that the producers know Hallmark like adapting books.
It makes them really feel, I feel, a little bit safer that there is a template and that there is already a guide and a narrative versus one thing utterly from scratch. And so, certain sufficient, they did not go together with the BBC collection, which I actually, actually wished to do. And we ended up with Gourmand Detective.
Then I used to be nonetheless doing, I feel, most likely the second season of Cedar Cove, Becky was ending up the Disorderly Conduct script, after which I used to be working on the finish of every day and on weekends, all weekend lengthy, on writing the primary Gourmand Detective, whereas additionally breaking down every guide — I feel there are eight books — as a result of they’d ordered three motion pictures proper out of the gate.
So I wrote the primary one after which broke down the define for what I assumed must be quantity two and quantity three. And, anyway, so I used to be working nonstop 24/7. I used to be doing Cedar Cove, writing Gourmand, checking in with Becky on Disorderly Conduct. So it was a very busy time. And that is the genesis of how Gourmand Detective happened.
And my final query for you is how are you guys going to spend the vacations this 12 months? As a result of it is form of unusual, and it has been lower than savory, so how are you going to make up for it?
We’re actually wanting ahead to it, really. It is simply going to be us. We’re not rising wherever. We usually go right down to Newport to see my sister-in-law and her household, my spouse’s sister, and we have now a superb time there. And her dad and mom fly down from British Columbia, and we have now a blended household, greater Christmas.
And this 12 months, it is simply going to be us enjoying board video games and simply having enjoyable actions. And naturally, we are able to go outdoors and maintain distance and do every kind of enjoyable issues, go to the seashore, relying on how LA cracks down with the surge.
However assuming we’re allowed to truly go away the home, we’re actually wanting ahead to it. I am simply conserving it a very easy Christmas. It will not be something extravagant, and it will simply be about specializing in the household and simply us, which I actually like. As a lot as I like happening to Newport and being with the larger household, generally I miss simply us doing one thing.
And in years previous, we would gone as a household… We’d go as much as Mammoth and go snowboarding and get a cabin or one thing, however this 12 months, it is simply going to be us. And there will be lots of motion pictures. There will be lots of board video games. Through the pandemic, we purchased most likely a dozen board video games so as to add to our common stack.
And I feel lots of households are doing that, which is admittedly nice as a result of children these days, they’re on their telephones, they’re on tablets and TV, and I feel there’s most likely been an enormous surge in old school board video games.
They usually’re pretty much as good immediately as they had been after we had been rising up as children, and it is enjoyable to see among the previous classics and among the new ones, too. So actually easy, and I am form of wanting ahead to it.
Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a workers author and critic for TV Fanatic. She’s a member of the Critic’s Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of tv and movie. Comply with her on Twitter and e mail her right here at TV Fanatic.