She’s a "Home & Family" expert, but Tamera Mowry-Housley had her own family ripped apart
by tragedy in 2018. Her story is just one of many from these Hallmark stars.
Anyone who was a teenager or adult in the 1990s probably remembers Josie Bissett
from her breakout role on the cultural phenomenon "Melrose Place." But Bissett
worked very little in the years following the show's end in 1999. It wasn't until
she transitioned to TV movies years later that her career really got a second wind.
Her first film with Hallmark came in 2013, but her biggest hit with the network has
been the "The Wedding March" series. Bissett has appeared in six of these
films over the years in addition to her other work with Hallmark,
which often sees her paired with former "Melrose Place" co-star Jack Wagner.
Sadly, though, Bissett is no stranger to heartache. She has spoken quite openly about
a devastating miscarriage that occurred when she was on "Melrose Place." Bissett also had a
very public divorce from fellow "Melrose Place" actor Rob Estes, and in 2015, she survived a
house fire that ruined her home and took with it nearly all of Bissett's possessions and memories.
"It's still so hard to see it."
But this time, in true Hallmark fashion, there was at least a happy twist — the
complex in which she lived while her home was being reconstructed is where
Bissett and her future husband, businessman Thomas Doig, met. She told First For Women,
"In a way, it just solidified a belief I already had that every day is so special."
Alicia Witt has appeared in many Hallmark films, with fans knowing her best from
her holiday films like "I'm Not Ready for Christmas" and "Christmas List."
Sadly, though, the first few years of the 2020s have been nothing short of heartbreaking. In 2021,
just before Christmas, her elderly parents, Robert and Diane Witt, were found dead in
their Worcester, Massachusetts home. According to The Telegram & Gazette, Witt's mother and
father had a broken heater and likely died of heart failure due to the cold. Witt posted on
Instagram that their bodies were only discovered after she asked someone to go check on them.
As if the loss of both one's parents is not painful enough,
Witt was diagnosed with breast cancer shortly before the incident. She only
made her cancer public in a detailed Instagram post shared in May 2022 regarding her journey,
from diagnosis through treatment. Thankfully, that June, the actor revealed that she was cancer free.
Witt had continued to work throughout her treatment, without telling most of those
around her of her diagnosis, and she explained in another post that December that she wore special
caps to maintain her hair in order to allow her the privacy to deal with her cancer quietly.
Peter Porte may have said that he considers his
role on "The Young and the Restless" to have been his first big break,
but he's probably best known by fans for his subsequent work, like his recurring role in
the series "Baby Daddy" or his work in the miniseries "Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem."
Most of all, though, Porte is recognizable to many as a Hallmark Channel recurring player.
He has appeared in five Hallmark movies to date, including "Rome in Love" and "A Gift to Remember."
Though he has worked steadily in Hollywood, Porte was temporarily unable to take
roles when he was in a bad car accident. Speaking with Soap Opera Digest in 2018,
Porte revealed that he was on his vespa when a car hit him and caused him to fly through the air.
"I was lying there and the adrenaline was just pumping like crazy,
so it didn't hurt like I thought it would. Then I was scoping out the situation and
that's when I saw my ankle was on top of my foot. It was at this horrible position,
and then I pressed on my calf and I felt a pop. It ended up breaking in four different places."
While waiting for and recovering from surgery,
Porte said he had to turn down work, including a coveted Christmas movie.
Candace Cameron Bure was one of Hallmark's prized gems for years before jumping ship
to their competitor, Great American Media, in 2022. But Cameron Bure's
"Full House" and "Fuller House" sister Jodie Sweetin is still a Hallmark staple,
and while she may not have appeared in as many of their films as Cameron Bure, Sweetin has
still starred in an impressive five movies since 2017, including "Finding Santa" among others.
But before her career resurgence began in 2016 with "Fuller House," Sweetin's
personal life had often eclipsed her professional one in media coverage,
as the actor's struggles with addiction and her multiple failed marriages made
her tabloid fodder. Like far too many child stars, Sweetin found herself in a
difficult place after she rose to fame, which she detailed in her 2009 autobiography "unSweetined."
She revealed that she began drinking as a teen before turning to drugs like cocaine,
ecstasy, and eventually methamphetamine. It took her multiple attempts at treatment
in rehab centers to get clean for good. She wrote,
"I was selfish, self-serving, insecure, angry and fearful person living a double
life. I covered up my problems by pretending to be happy and saying that everything was fine."
"Drugs and alcohol just sort of numbed everything. I was doing cocaine,
and ecstacy, and alcohol, and all of that."
Sweetin's early years had also been quite heartbreaking;
her mother struggled with addiction and her father died in prison. Ultimately
she was adopted by an uncle as a baby as her biological parents were unable to care for her.
Kristoffer Polaha has been a Hallmark staple ever since his first film back in 2016, when he starred
opposite future Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle in "Dater's Handbook." He has since appeared in over
a dozen other films for the network, including stand-alone movies like "Pearl in Paradise"
and seven flicks as part of the "Mystery 101" series that airs on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries.
The actor loves appearing in these films so much that he even wrote a 2018
guest column about it for The Hollywood Reporter. He explained in the article,
"As an actor, I am leaning into Hallmark because it's fun to sit with my seven-year-old and show
him what I do for a living. These are family-friendly movies. I'm leaning in
because my 91-year-old Nana finally thinks I've made it in Hollywood because I'm on Hallmark."
It is terrible, therefore, to think that a horrible accident nearly cut Polaha's
life short years earlier. In 1997, Polaha and a friend were walking down a New York
City street when a fireball exploded from a grate, sending him flying and leaving
him with facial injuries. The near death experience led to a religious awakening.
"I truly believe that God had put into my life this guardian angel,
for in that moment, to protect me."
Andrew Walker never planned to become an actor,
as he trained his whole life to become a professional football player. But a
devastating knee injury during college ended his dreams. He told The Montreal Gazette,
"They have a huge pool of athletes in the U.S. Once you're damaged goods, you're
finished. [...] The first weeks after surgery were devastating. But I tried to channel my energy into
different avenues after the accident. I tried to turn something bad into something good."
Though acting wasn't the first choice, Walker has become one of the most prolific Hallmark actors
since beginning his relationship with the network in 2012's "A Bride for Christmas." To date,
he has starred in over 20 Hallmark films, such as "Bridal Wave," "The Perfect Catch," and "Three
Wise Men and a Baby," as well as Valentine's Day favorites like "Appetite for Love." However,
he's especially prominent in the yearly Christmas movie lineup.
In an interview with Lolly Christmas, Walker revealed that his long history with
Hallmark has allowed him top priority when choosing projects, explaining,
"I do get a script and I get to read through it, and say,
'Hey, do you want to take this one? Do you want to wait for the next one?'"
He told "Hallmark Home & Family" hosts Debbie Matenopolous and Cameron
Mathison that he wouldn't trade his Hallmark career for anything.
"I just have so much gratitude that you guys are in my life
and that we've had this experience together throughout these years."
Jesse Metcalfe's worldwide fame came suddenly,
but once he hit screens as John Rowland on "Desperate Housewives," you could not avoid
his face. Metcalfe has already established himself as a popular soap actor due to his
five-year stint on "Passions," but "Desperate Housewives" opened up all sorts of new doors.
He went on to headline the feature film "John Tucker Must Die," but
with subsequent film projects including many flops, Metcalfe has had more success on TV,
appearing in series like "Chesapeake Shores." That show was a popular Hallmark original that
ran for six seasons. And Metcalfe has also appeared in many Hallmark films,
including four movies in the "Martha's Vineyard Mystery" franchise.
That success came despite a struggle with alcohol that nearly derailed Metcalfe's career. According
to Page Six, Metcalfe entered rehab in 2007 after a particularly bad weekend of hard partying landed
him in the tabloids. While promoting "God's Not Dead 2" in 2016, the actor told Fox News that
Alcoholics Anonymous not only helped him become sober, but also led him to connect with religion.
"A large part of that program is giving the will and care of my life over to God — or a
God as you understand him — and prayer is also a big part of that program as
well. I feel that that really helped me overcome a difficult time in my life."
It's a tragic fact that mass shootings have become a norm rather than an anomaly in American culture.
One incident hit very close to home for Tamera Mowry-Housley, whose family was met with tragedy
in November 2018 when her niece, Pepperdine University student Alaina Housley, was killed.
Tamera Mowry-Housley and her husband Adam Housley issued a joint statement to CNN that read in part,
"Our hearts are broken. We just learned that our Alaina was one of the victims of last night's
shooting at Borderline Bar in Thousand Oaks. Alaina was an incredible young woman with so
much life ahead of her and we are devastated that her life was cut short in this manner."
The tragic event took the lives of 11 others, and Alaina's family later set up the Alaina's Voice
Foundation in her honor. The Foundation's mission statement on their official website states,
"Our mission is to inspire hope and kindness in our communities through
education, music, and mental health initiatives."
Mowry-Housley has become a Hallmark regular in more recent years as a featured expert on
the "Home & Family" talk show and an actor in five Hallmark movies,
including "Christmas Comes Twice." But the
loss of her niece is a pain that never truly goes away. She posted on Instagram in 2020,
"There are days I loop my LIVE photos just to get a glimpse of you;
your spirit, your smile, your kindness. 2 years without you...it still hurts."
Cameron Mathison was the co-host of the Hallmark talk show "Home & Family" from 2018 to 2021 and
has appeared in a plethora of films for the Hallmark Channel and its offshoots.
This includes titles like "Love of Course" and "At Home in Mitford," as well as five
movies in the "Murder, She Baked" series. In 2021, though, Mathison jumped over to
Hallmark's competitor Great American Family, suggesting his time at Hallmark may be over.
That move came a couple years after Mathison was diagnosed with renal cancer. In September 2019,
one day after announcing the diagnosis on "Home & Family," Mathison wrote on Instagram,
"About a month ago, I had an MRI for some gut issues I've been having, and during that MRI they
found a tumor on my right kidney. It's consistent with Renal Cell Carcinoma... or kidney cancer."
Soon after, Mathison confirmed doctors had removed his tumor. During an August
2022 appearance on "Good Morning America," Mathison said he had
thankfully been cancer-free for three years. He told People that these days,
he works with a health coach and regularly focuses on his physical wellbeing.
"I've learned more about my own specific health
challenges and growth than I have probably in decades before that."
"How incredibly deeply grateful I am, for this incredible love and support
I've gotten."
Even a casual Hallmark fan would surely recognize Niall Matter's face,
if not his name. The star has appeared in over two dozen Hallmark projects to date,
including 10 "Aurora Teagarden Mysteries" films and standalone flicks like "Frozen in
Love." He's even been known to do a music video or two for the Hallmark Channel!
But he almost never became a star. An Alberta native and third-generation oil rigger,
Matter worked on the rigs for eight years while pursuing acting on the side before a
serious injury nearly ended his life. According to the Chicago Tribune, while working one day,
Matter's leg was badly injured when he was crushed by a drilling rig weighing 17 tons. Matter said,
"It took me about six months to learn how to walk again. And when I got back to the rig,
my very first week I saw a terrible accident... and the next day I quit. I came back to Vancouver
[and] after a month of working as a bartender I ended up booking my very first lead role."
Matter's injuries were so bad that amputation was considered — though
the actor, who enjoys hitting the gym and performing his own on-set stunts,
has thankfully since recovered in full. He told the Chicago Tribune that his leg is now 100%.
"I have no problem with it whatsoever now. [...] It took about two to three years for
it to really feel like a normal part of my body."
Though he has not signed an overall deal with Great American Family — as
former Hallmark staples Candace Cameron Bure, Trevor Donovan, and Danica McKellar
have — two of Chad Michael Murray's more recent TV films have been Hallmark's biggest rivals.
Still, he has appeared in five Hallmark movies, including "The Beach House" and
"Road to Christmas." And though Murray is incredibly handsome and obviously quite
talented, that doesn't mean that the star hasn't struggled in life.
Murray told Seventeen magazine in 2007 that he experienced bullying in his youth,
and also had to miss four months of high school because of a football injury. As a young adult,
Murray also went through a very public divorce with then "One Tree
Hill" co-star Sophia Bush after only months of marriage in 2005.
However, one of the saddest details about Murray's life happened quite
early in his upbringing: he was just 10 years old when his mother left the family,
abandoning him and his younger siblings. He told Seventeen that he's incredibly
grateful for the close relationship he has with his father, Rex Murray.
"I idolize my father. I mean, he has worked so hard in his life. [...] He stepped up,
and he said, 'You know what? I'll take care of what I need to do. I've got
responsibilities in life.' He took care of all five of us and raised us well."
Both Ashley Williams and her sister, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, have become Hallmark recurring
players. For Ashley, it's taken a lot to get to where she's at. While she's had a number of career
and creative high points, she's also dealt with one particularly difficult and public low point.
The former teen actor's resume has been littered with an array of shows like
"The Jim Gaffigan Show" and "Good Morning Miami," as well as TV movies on networks
from ABC to TBS. But almost all of her TV films since 2015 have been for Hallmark,
including two "Sister Swap" movies, as well as "Love on a Limb" and several more.
Sadly, though, Williams suffered a tragic miscarriage. In 2016,
she wrote an essay for Medium to try and destigmatize miscarriages
and help other women open up about the trauma and loss. She wrote,
"Medical confirmations of the lost pregnancy [...] use jargon that feeds
more self-sabotaging thoughts that I am deficient. Abnormality… Defect… Incapable…
Incomplete… Not viable.These are hopeless and disempowering diagnoses. [...]. I am a badass
woman. I am strong. My miscarriage, however, decimated my confidence."
Opening up about the essay to Country Living, Williams noted,
"When I went through that I was just so surprised by how much secrecy I
found in our culture surrounding it. It didn't make sense to me,
so I wanted to write about it. The response I got was overwhelming — the amount of women
who were relieved and inspired. It's so common and we need to talk about it."
Like far too many women in Hollywood and beyond, Hilarie Burton was allegedly
harassed by someone in a position of power. In a 2017 interview with Variety, she accused
"One Tree Hill" showrunner Mark Schwahn of verbal and sexual abuse on set. She said,
"Things took a turn in season three. That's when Mark decided that I was his muse."
In November, 2017, a total of 18 female cast and crew members came forward with
sexual harassment allegations against Schwahn. He also faced similar allegations from the
cast and crew of "The Royals" and was later fired. Burton's "One Tree HIll"
co-star Joy Lenz said it was a good move not just for the show, but for Schwahn himself.
"I feel like that's the best thing that could ever have happened to him."
In 2020, Burton told People that the alleged abuse still affected her and even shaped her parenting.
"I was told that if you speak up, your career is
over [so] I didn't say anything for a decade. And as a result of that,
people were abused after me. The guilt that comes with that is really difficult."
Burton, who shares two kids with husband Jeffrey Dean Morgan, said that she is using
the painful experience as an opportunity to teach her daughter an important lesson.
"She will never be a pleaser. If my daughter tells someone to f--- off,
awesome. I wish I had had the ability to do that."
Lucky for fans, Burton's experience didn't lead her to run away from Hollywood — and
she has continued to speak truth to power, even at the expense of her Hallmark career.
She first joined Hallmark to star in 2012's "Naughty or Nice," and later appeared in
"Summer Villa" and "Surprised by Love." But she famously left the network in 2019 after
execs allegedly failed to honor her requests for more inclusive casting and storylines.
A strong woman standing up to authority in the name of
justice? Now there's a story that's truly worthy of a Hallmark movie.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault,
help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network
website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).