Fans of When Calls the Heart have been waiting since way back in June 2024 for the hit show to return to Hallmark, and the 2025 TV schedule fortunately premieres Season 12 early in the new year. Not many shows are fortunate enough to run for nearly as long as the one that has starred Erin Krakow since back in 2014, and one star reflected to CinemaBlend on how the “well-oiled machine” of the show has become so well established twelve seasons in.
Max Lloyd-Jones arrived on network television in the fall 2024 TV schedule as a new addition to the cast of The Irrational on NBC, joining Jesse L. Martin in Season 2. Prior to his newest gig as Simon Wylton, his longest-running TV role was recurring for ten episodes of When Calls the Heart as Tom Thornton between Season 2 and Season 11. When I spoke with the actor, he addressed working on the Hallmark series and how it compares to The Irrational now. He began:
All sets are different and the same, simultaneously. There's always the same routine of getting there early and getting out late and trying to make your days and trying to crank out as many pages as you can, essentially, and keep the rhythm going. TV has a similar routine that I'm more used to now, so I wouldn't say they're massively different.
While he has accumulated TV roles over the years, the majority of Max Lloyd-Jones’ credits are in movies that range from small screen productions to larger scale films like War for the Planet of the Apes, and he’s attached to the cast of Final Destination 6. When Calls the Heart was a unique experience for the actor thanks to how long it has been running on Hallmark, as he explained:
Obviously being on something like When Calls the Heart – which is a very established show, has been around for quite a while, and films basically exclusively on one set – is [different]. They don't do a lot of on-location stuff, I believe, anymore. So it's a very controlled, very well-oiled machine, and a lot of those characters and crew have been there since the inception of it. So you feel like you're kind of walking onto Coronation Street in the UK. That's been going on for eons.
It remains to be seen if Max Lloyd-Jones will ever return to When Calls the Heart. His most recent appearances on the show as Tom Thornton were both in Season 11, which were his first since back in Season 5. He may remain busy with The Irrational for the foreseeable future, assuming NBC keeps the drama on the air beyond the 2024-2025 TV season. Even if Jesse L. Martin doesn’t play Alec for as long as when he was a Law & Order actor, fans are surely on board for at least a third season! Lloyd-Jones went on:
The Irrational has a bit of a different energy, and it's still trying to make its mark and find its way and decide, what could this show be if it went on for five plus seasons, or like When Calls the Heart? Obviously a bit of a more underdog feeling, but there's still the same pressure to do a good job. You never get that comfortable with audiences, because they're fickle.
Fans of The Irrational have a little bit longer to wait in the new year for new episodes than When Calls the Heart diehards, and the promo for the Hallmark show’s return previews a “brand new era” for the characters and a “thoroughly modern mystery,” complete with newcomers and “ritzy romance.” Take a look:
When Calls the Heart Season 12 premieres on Sunday, January 5 at 9 p.m. ET on Hallmark, so there’s still time to revisit the end of Season 11 with a Peacock subscription if you need a refresher. As for The Irrational, the NBC drama will be back in the new year on Tuesday, January 7 in its usual 10 p.m. ET time slot. The most recent episodes of that show are also available streaming on Peacock.
