Danica McKellar Leaving Hallmark to Join GAC Family
Another Hallmark Channel veteran is jumping ship, as Danica McKellar is leaving the network to join competitor GAC Family (formerly known as Great American Country).
According to Deadline, the Wonder Years alum has signed an exclusive deal with the rebranded cable channel that extends through 2023. The agreement will see her star in and executive produce four new films, starting with the January 2022 premiere of The Winter Palace.
McKellar has been a staple of Hallmark since 2015, known primarily for her roles in the network’s holiday movies. Her credits include 2018’s Christmas at Grand Valley, 2019’s Christmas at Dollywood, and 2020’s Christmas She Wrote. Her most recent film, You, Me, & the Christmas Trees, premiered on October 22 — it marks McKellar’s last Hallmark project for the foreseeable future.
GAC Family is helmed by Bill Abbott, the former CEO of Hallmark Channel‘s parent company Crown Media Family Networks. Abbott departed Crown Media in January 2020 following controversy around Hallmark’s decision to stop airing a commercial depicting a same-sex wedding (the decision was later reversed).
McKellar isn’t the first Hallmark veteran to make the jump. Earlier this month, former Home & Family hosts Cameron Mathison and Debbie Matenopoulos moved over to GAC Family, where they hosted the preview special Welcome to Great American Christmas. Meanwhile, When Calls the Heart alum Lori Loughlin makes her acting return in When Hope Calls, which is relocating from Hallmark Movies Now to GAC Family for its second season.
Several Hallmark regulars will also be headlining GAC Family’s upcoming holiday movies, including Chad Michael Murray, Maggie Lawson, Cindy Busby, Dillon Casey, and many more.
In addition to her work at Hallmark, McKellar also voices Miss Martian in the animated superhero series Young Justice and Judy Jetson in The Jetsons. She’s also written six non-fiction books, all dealing with mathematics.
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