Oh What The Heck Hallmark? The Network’s Longtime Streaming Deal Is Reportedly Ending And Things Are Starting To Feel Messy Again

I want to preface my slew of complaints about what’s happening with Hallmark and streaming with a simple truth: I am a huge Hallmark fan and I would like to see the cabler succeed with a wide variety of audiences. Having said this, what’s been happening with the upcoming Hallmark schedule has done the exact opposite, and the latest news with the company and its sister streaming service Peacock just has me in my feelings… again.

Hallmark Content Is Leaving Peacock

In order to even start to untangle the content problems I feel Hallmark has had, first we need to make a few things clear:

• Most new Hallmark content airs on either the OG Hallmark Channel or Hallmark Movies and Mysteries for its first run, but not all new content hits cable. Plus, some cable packages don’t offer both channels and fans miss some content that way.
• Hallmark also has some original content that airs ONLY on its streaming service Hallmark+, a service I have written extensively against. That content includes originals like The Chicken Sisters or Celebrations with Lacey Chabert.
• Hallmark also had a deal for those with a Peacock subscription in place since 2022 in which streaming fans could get some of the shows and movies that traditionally air on the cable channels or streaming service.
• Additionally, Netflix has some second tier runs of Hallmark movies from time to time.

In short, there are a lot of ways you can currently view Hallmark content.

News came down the pipeline today that Peacock and Hallmark are ending a ride they began together back in 2022. Some of Hallmark’s best content has been available on the streaming service during that time, including episodes of The Way Home, a show that’s very different from a lot of the network’s other content and has really helped put the brand on the map for more creative storytelling than it has historically been known for. Hallmark content will reportedly be leaving Peacock on May 1, per a Vulture reporter on Bluesky.

On the one hand, this should enable Hallmark to wrest back control of its own original content and keep it either on repeats on the networks or send it to Hallmark+, but it still does not resolve the main issue I have. The way things work right now, Hallmark effectively wants its viewers to be paying for content twice.

The Problem With Hallmark+

Right now, Hallmark has things set up so that fans of the brand basically have to subscribe to both cable and streaming in order to access all of the original content the network will be putting out. I used to basically watch every original the network put out, but that has dwindled as my cable subscription was streamlined into one channel instead of two and as Hallmark out a slew of new projects onto its streaming service.

This really stinks. I’m the rare millennial still shelling out cash and watching TV in a regular TV format, but it’s not cheap to do that and also subscribe to a slew of streaming services. Something’s got to give, and there’s just no chance I can also subscribe to Hallmark+.

But as a Hallmark fan who is still watching with cable, I feel like I deserve the new Hallmark+ originals too. I am the target audience for this brand; I will watch whatever they will put in front of me. If I’m not willing to shell out for the streaming service, I’d assume the only target audience there is former Hallmark fans who no longer subscribe to cable, and I just don’t know how they could possibly generate momentum on both fronts. Instead, by pushing out new content in two places, they are just hollowing and segmenting their audience out.

That’s particularly true as the company has potentially and allegedly mulled over sending some of its more popular projects to streaming. For example, there were rumors a short while back that Hallmark had plans to shift the new season of The Way Home from the network to the streaming service. It ended up remaining on Hallmark Channel before heading elsewhere streaming, but I think it’s a good example of the type of stuff that’s been cropping up and stressing out longtime fans.

The Peacock deal had been an interesting outlier for me. While I'd personally prefer stuff to just run on the channel first, I had actually finally been able to start watching The Chicken Sisters thanks to my husband shelling out for a Peacock subscription (to watch WWE), but that leads me to yet another concern.

What’s Even Going To Happen With The Chicken Sisters?

The Chicken Sisters is an example of a Hallmark+ original that did not initially run on the cabler. Now it’s been renewed for Season 2, I had been looking for a way to watch, and a few weeks ago Peacock started adding the show one episode at a time. Episode 5 is supposed to hit Peacock on Sunday, April 27th. There are eight episodes total in the first season, which would theoretically mean Episode 6 should be hitting the streamer on May the 4th.

However, if all Hallmark content is leaving Peacock on May 1st, what does this mean for fans like me who were able to finally catch the show this way? There could be some sort of separate deal for The Chicken Sisters, but something tells me they’ll doubtless be hoping I’ll subscribe to Hallmark+.