The 2024 Christmas movie season is upon us, and there is much to look forward to, especially on networks like Hallmark and GAF. In just a few short years, Great American Family has become a favorite among fans, partly because of its star power. This is partially because many Hallmark stars opted to move to GAF, including Danica McKellar, who recently explained her reasons why.
After starring in well over a dozen Hallmark original titles, the Wonder Years alum left the company in 2021 in favor of GAF. She was one of the first Hallmark mainstays to make the move, followed soon by Candace Cameron Bure, Jen Lilley, Trevor Donovan, Jessica Lowndes, and more. While she doesn’t have any ill will towards her former home, as she still defends her own Hallmark movies, McKellar told former DWTS pro Cheryl Burke on her Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans podcast why she left:
So Great American Family channel was started by the man who ran Hallmark Channel for 20 years. Bill Abbott is his name. I credit him with reviving my career, giving me the genre. I did like 15 movies with him at Hallmark Channel. So, when he left to start his own network and he asked me to come along, I was like, ‘Yeah.’
Even though it seems like McKellar has had quite a consistent acting career and is one of many former child stars still acting, there was a time she quit acting in the mid-90s after The Wonder Years. But she got back in the game and eventually landed at Hallmark in 2015. That's when she found a new level of success, and I can’t say I blame her for wanting to follow someone who helped her achieve all that.
Bill Abbott is not the only reason why Danica McKellar felt the need for a new setting. Despite doing nearly 20 films at Hallmark, the actress shared the one thing that GAF provided that her old network didn’t:
And, also, at Hallmark, I never had an overall deal. And, with Great American, I had these multi-picture deals. They let me be way more involved in the writing and the producing. It is so creatively fulfilling. The fact that I’ve done two dance movies because I wanted to do dance movies – I just like being more involved. It is a smaller network. I know it has fewer viewers at this point. But it’s growing, and they’ve given me opportunities to weave my faith into some of the stories. [It’s] a really great situation. I’m so grateful for it, and I’m so grateful to Bill as well.
It might have been a surprise when McKellar announced she’d be leaving Hallmark, but the reason does make a lot of sense. Her deal at GAF allows her to have a much bigger say in the projects she makes. That kind of creative input mixed with her longstanding partnership with Bill Abbott makes this move very logical.
Now, the actress has a lot more movies in the works, including A Cinderella Christmas Ball, which premieres on November 29 on the 2024 TV schedule. The film also stars Oliver Rice, Sarah Orenstein, and Haley Summer, and it follows a dance instructor who travels to a small European country in search of her heritage during Christmas break. So, fans won't want to miss out on that as well as other projects Danica McKellar is working on with GAF.
