We Finally Know Why These Stars Left The Hallmark Channel

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

The Hallmark Channel is known for its magical holiday movies, made even more magical with its stellar cast of actors and actresses, who come back each year to spread holiday cheer. While there are many reasons actors leave a network, we finally know why these Hallmark Channel stars left. From diversity issues to the new holiday network in town, Great American Family, many actors have left Hallmark for new opportunities.

According to The Wall Street Journal, nearly 100% of the lead actors who starred in Great American Family movies during the 2021 holiday season had previously starred in Hallmark films. The person behind Great American Media is Bill Abbott, former president of Hallmark. He told the outlet that the network isn't "actively going out and poaching from Hallmark," and that he has been approached by Hallmark actors more often than not. 

Here are the former Hallmark actors who've left and why. 

Following her six-year stint on "One Tree Hill," actress Hilarie Burton became one of the many faces of Hallmark, starring in several network movies since 2015, like "Surprised by Love" and "Summer Villa," according to her IMDb page. Burton left Hallmark in 2019 after a reported disagreement about casting. 

Burton shared on X in December 2019 that she was "let go" back in January of that year. "I had insisted on a LGBTQ character, an interracial couple and diverse casting. I was polite, direct and professional," she wrote, adding, "But after the execs gave their notes on the script and NONE of my Requests were honored, I was told 'take it or leave it.'" And she left it, along with her paycheck, even though she was looking forward to the project, she continued in the Twitter post.

After Hallmark, Burton appeared in "The Walking Dead" TV series in 2021 alongside her actor husband, Jeffrey Dean Morgan. Notably, the year before, in 2020, Hallmark released "Wedding Every Weekend," which featured an LGBTQIA+ marriage, and "The Christmas House," starring the first LGBTQIA+ couple on Hallmark.

Actress Lori Loughlin didn't cut ties with Hallmark. Rather, the network cut ties with the star after her involvement in a college admissions scandal back in 2019. Per court records, as reported by NBC News, Loughlin and her husband, Mossimo Giannulli, were found guilty after agreeing "to pay bribes" up to $500,000 to gain their two daughters' admission into the University of Southern California. In the wake of the scandal, NBC News reported that Hallmark fired Loughlin, most famously known for her role as Aunt Becky on "Full House," who went on to serve two months in prison in 2020 after pleading guilty.

For almost a decade, Loughlin had starred in Hallmark network movies like "Northpole: Open for Christmas," Homegrown Christmas," and "When Calls the Heart," a TV movie-turned-series. Following her two months in prison, Loughlin returned to TV in the series "When Hope Calls," a spinoff of "When Calls the Heart," which originally aired on Hallmark before moving over to the new network Great American Family.

Danica McKellar became a Hallmark regular after starring in holiday programs and films like "Hallmark's Countdown to Christmas" and "Christmas at Dollywood.". McKellar left the network in late 2021 for Hallmark's rival network, Great American Family. McKellar told The Wall Street Journal she decided to move over to Great American Family because she liked working with former Hallmark Channel CEO Bill Abbott, who launched it. "So when he was getting ready to launch this new network, I was thrilled that he reached out to me to sign a multipicture deal as an actress and executive producer," she told the outlet.

McKellar shared the news with her Instagram followers in a selfie she posted in November 2021. It marked her first day of shooting her first Great American Family movie, "The Winter Palace," which she starred in and produced. McKellar shared her excitement for the new gig in the post's caption: "Can't wait to make some more feel-good magic for you all!" Throughout the month of December, she documented her role in "The Winter Palace" on Instagram with behind-the-scenes and sneak-peek images.

left Hallmark in late 2021 for its rival, countless times since 2017, starring in "Marry Me at Christmas," "Nostalgic Christmas," and "USS Christmas." Donovan left Hallmark in late 2021 for its rival, Great American Family, and signed a multipicture deal. He spoke to Wide Open Country about Hallmark movies and the magic they bring. He noted that the Hallmark Channel was "a place for people to sort of escape and know that they're [watching] this morally uplifting, positive message, feel-good story that's going to have a happy ending."

His last Hallmark movie, "Nantucket Noel," premiered in November 2021. In the same month, he made his Great American Family debut in the holiday film "Jingle Bell Christmas." Donovan had signed on to star in "Nantucket Noel" when Great American Family approached him to shoot a Christmas movie, his agent told The Wall Street Journal, and signed him to an exclusive two-year deal. When he finished shooting on Vancouver Island, where filming took place for "Nantucket Noel," the actor flew by seaplane to the Great American Family set in Toronto for his next holiday gig.

Jen Lilley, a soap star known for her roles in "General Hospital" and "Days of Our Lives," transformed into a Hallmark star, acting in movies like "Snowkissed" and "USS Christmas" (for the latter, she starred alongside Trevor Donovan). In late 2021, Lilley made her Great American Family debut in "Royally Wrapped for Christmas." She spoke about her "Royally Wrapped" character with The List, saying, "I just love her heart for others, and I love that she's creative. She comes up with really wonderful marketing concepts, and I love that I get to attend a ball. This is my first royal movie."

Lilley signed a two-year deal with Great American Family, which included four original films, in January 2022. "Aside from being an immensely talented and hardworking actor, Jen is a generous and kindhearted person who is a perfect fit for [Great American Media]," Bill Abbott, president and CEO of Great American Media, told the outlet.

In 2019, Jessica Lowndes starred in "Over the Moon in Love," and in 2021, she starred in "Mix Up in the Mediterranean." However, these two Hallmark projects were surrounded by several other Christmas movies and rom-coms produced by other companies.

Then, in early 2022, Lowndes struck a four-movie deal with the Great American Family to act in, write, direct, and produce four new movies. It seems that the actress was looking for an opportunity to move toward a more hands-on role in her films slowly, and she found it outside of Hallmark.

However, while some Hallmark actors left the network behind for good, Lowndes seemed to have kept the door open for more future Hallmark projects after her four-movie deal ended. However, as Lowndes told The List, it would likely be a while before we saw her back at Hallmark. "I'm so motivated to keep writing and I have been writing a bunch of different genres. I have some in development for [Great American Family], and then I have other things that I'm working on as well," she said. 

Hallmark fans will probably know Daniel Lissing as Jack from the popular series "When Calls the Heart." Lissing had also previously appeared in other Hallmark projects like "Christmas in Love," "A December Bride," "A Christmas Star," and more. However, since Jack's death in 2021, Lissing hasn't appeared in any further Hallmark projects. 

As Lissing's co-star Lori Loughlin told ET Online, Lissing had decided to leave the show when his contract ended. "You either renegotiate or you don't, and Dan has chosen to move on, we respect that," she said. "No judgment, we love him, we wish him well, he's still part of the Hallmark family." A year later, Lissing told ET Online he had no regrets about his decision. "It's funny the way the world works. If I had stayed on the show, and been there during Season 6 and shot and all that kind of stuff, then I wouldn't have met [my fiancée] Nadia, you know?" said the actor. "And I wouldn't be getting married and I wouldn't be at this place in my life where I feel really in line with what I'm meant to be doing personally and professionally, so no regrets at all."

Since Lissing's departure from "When Calls the Heart," the actor has gone on to appear in a few GAC Christmas films along with shows like "The Cleaning Lady," "SWAT," and "The Rookie" — and by the sounds of things, he's still pretty happy with his career trajectory.

You may remember Jesse Metcalfe as Trace Riley from Hallmark's "Chesapeake Shores." The actor decided to step away from the show after four seasons in 2021. "Life's all about growth. I tend to put myself in challenging situations because I feel like that's the fastest way to grow," he told ET Online of his decision at the time. "No one saw this decision coming for me to leave 'Chesapeake,' but sometimes the hardest decisions are the best ones to make and the ones that you grow the most from." He added that he was eager to turn away from TV and pursue a film career. 

After leaving the show, Metcalfe did progress into film as he had intended, appearing in two "Fortress" thriller films alongside Bruce Willis and Chad Michael Murray. He also appeared in the GAC film "Harmony From the Heart" alongside Hallmark alum Jessica Lowndes.

"GAC fits my brand perfectly," said Candace Cameron Bure in an April 2022 statement (via Us Weekly). "I'm very excited to develop heartwarming family and faith-filled programming and make the kind of stories my family and I love to watch." She should know because with her statement came the announcement that the controversial conservative had become GAC's chief creative officer. But whether it was kaput contract negotiations with Hallmark, the pressures of staying within the network's guidelines when trying to create Christmas cheer, or her over15-year strong working relationship with Great American Media boss Bill Abbott, there was more than one factor at play in the "Heart of Christmas" star's volte-face. 

"[Hallmark] basically is a completely different network than when I started because of the change of leadership," she told The Wall Street Journal. "I think that Great American Family will keep traditional marriage at the core," she continued, alluding to Hallmark's pledge to champion diverse perspectives in its narratives. In so many words, she told Hallmark: It's not me, it's you. Her list of reasons for leaving is longer than a spoiled child's Christmas list or, indeed, a complete list of Cameron Bure's Hallmark movies.

While Hallmark releases movies like they're hotcakes going out of style, often upward of 40 per year (via Stephen Follows), Brooke Shields took a more quality over quantity attitude during her time at the network. After signing a 16-film deal with Hallmark in 2014, Shields starred in only three. Unsurprisingly, then, the news she'd even departed bemused Hallmark-heads. "I didn't even know she was still acting," said one user on Hallmark's dedicated Reddit page.

Shields' reason for leaving with 13 films left on her contract? "I'd been hired, I was told, to help change the face of the network," she wrote in her 2025 memoir, "Brooke Shields Is Not Allowed to Get Old" (via Us Weekly). "They wanted me to be funny and bring more comedy to their offerings, but as filming progressed on each of the 'Flower Shop Mysteries' — the franchise I was hired to headline — all the humor had evaporated."

"Not everything is for everyone," she continued. "I'm never against hard work, but I am now a believer in only saying yes to work that serves me." Her departure is a win-win for both parties, really. The Hallmark-Industrial Complex just wasn't the right fit artistically for "The Blue Lagoon" actress, and the network hasn't ceased releasing movies post-Shields. As one Hallmark fan on Reddit concurred, "Aww I like seeing her but good for her choosing what's best for her."

Whether it was harassment from fraudsters, his financial troubles, or his mother's lung cancer diagnosis, Ryan Paevey had been going through it between 2023 and 2024. And these are just a few of the many tragic details about Paevey's life. So, via a June 2024 Instagram statement, the "Two Tickets to Paradise" actor announced he'd be turning his attention away from Hallmark and the movie industry and toward his family. 

As they say, it's always darkest before the dawn, and Paevey's in a better place since leaving showbiz. "I get asked sometimes if I miss it ... the way my life used to be," he captioned an Instagram post in September 2024. "Not really, no. Hollywood paid pretty well, but it was pretty taxing on the heart, mind, and soul," he continued. "[I]t's a good life I've chosen." Despite Paevey's surprise return to "General Hospital" in 2025, if his social media is anything to go by, he's been more focused on his outdoor adventure company, Fortunate Wanderer, since leaving Hallmark. At least we know what this Hallmark star who disappeared from the spotlight is up to now.

In 2022, it looked like Luke Macfarlane was ready to turn the page and start a new chapter of his career — a chapter that wouldn't include Hallmark. After landing a role in the Judd Apatow-produced movie "Bros," he made clear where he stood with Hallmark and where he saw his future. "[Hallmark has] been very good to me, but I think I've told my story for now with those folks," said the "Chateau Christmas" star, speaking to the Los Angeles Times while promoting the LGBTQ comedy. "I mean, how many firefighters can I play?"

However, there were still, evidently, a few more quote-unquote firefighters Macfarlane could play. Post-"Bros," he went on to star in Hallmark's 2023 movie "Notes of Autumn" and its 2024 detective drama "CrimeTime: Freefall." At some point between promoting "Bros" and "CrimeTime," he'd changed his tune about working with the cable network. "I'm just so grateful that they also keep making it interesting for me to continue to want to work with Hallmark as their storytelling has changed, it's more inclusive," Macfarlane told Coffee, TV, and Me in 2024. Indeed, as we've noted, there are many Hallmark stars who are LGBTQ+ allies. Thankfully, for Hallmark enthusiasts, Macfarlane wasn't another member of the Great American Family exodus.

Another star who did leave Hallmark for Great American Family was Cameron Mathison. In November 2023, he signed a multipicture (and multiyear) deal with Great American Media. "It is very important to me to create well-crafted, beautiful stories," he said after switching sides (via Deadline). "I am grateful to be back at Great American Media and to collaborate with some of the best creative teams in entertainment to make heartwarming content everyone can enjoy."

But the actor, who starred in "A Summer to Remember" and the "Murder, She Baked" franchise for Hallmark, was at pains to highlight the similarities between his former and new employers. For Mathison, the difference between the two is all pretty to-may-to, to-mah-to. "[T]he people that are at Great American are the people that I started with at Hallmark," he told Us Weekly in 2024. "So it's, like, coming home with Great American Family ... I think a lot of the viewers are now watching both [channels]." Before adding, "[R]ight now, I'm definitely all in on the Great American Family." Hallmark fans can still hold a candle for the "Dancing With the Stars" alum, though, and he hasn't ruled out a return to the network.

These real-life lovers played Hallmark movie couples numerous times for the network, in flicks like "Never Too Late to Celebrate" and "Love in the Limelight." It even seemed like they were starting a dynasty when their son appeared in Hallmark's 2018 film "Royal Caribbean." But in April 2024, it was announced that the pair were set to star in Great American Pure Flix's "Mr. Manhattan." Yes, that Great American, which brought Pure Flix under its umbrella with a 2023 merger. But it wasn't only "Mr. Manhattan." The couple also had more Great American work lined up. Indeed, Alexa and Carlos PenaVega's Great American Family move had fans wondering about their Hallmark future.

So, what does Great American Family have that Hallmark doesn't for the PenaVegas? Carlos claims they make him feel assured that his significant other will be looked after if they're working apart. "That's what I love so much about Great American Family," said Carlos to Fox News. "If [Alexa's] not doing a movie with me, I know that whatever she's doing, whoever she's with, it's safe. And it's all going to be good. So, for us, this is such a great home for us." Considering that's why competing on "Dancing With the Stars" was so difficult for Carlos and Alexa, it's understandable that they'd value the peace of mind Great American Family offers.