Andrew Walker and Nikki DeLoach Michael Tullberg/Getty Images
Nikki DeLoach is excited to be working with Andrew Walker on Hallmark’s Curious Caterer Mysteries franchise — but she’s ready to reunite for a holiday feature.
DeLoach, 44, exclusively told Us Weekly that she’d “love to” do another Christmas-specific project with Walker, 44. The actors began their onscreen partnership with 2016’s A Dream of Christmas and if the stars align, they’d tackle its sequel.
“I’ve had this idea that I have been dying and wanting to do for years,” DeLoach said, noting that a lot of fans want a Hallmark sequel for one reason or another, but A Dream of Christmas is the one she’s pulling for.
The actress envisions picking up 10 years later — since it would be a decade after they filmed the first installment — with Penny (DeLoach) and Stuart (Walker) having three children.
“They had not had children back in the day whenever we first saw them in that movie. They 1714800503 have three children. They are underwater,” DeLoach told Us, imagining the new story line. “They’re underwater with their jobs. They’re underwater with their children. They’re underwater with lives.”
She teased that it would resemble her and Walker’s lives now as they are both married with children. DeLoach shares sons William “Hudson,” 10, and Bennett, 6, with husband Ryan Goodell. Walker and his wife Cassandra Troy also share two boys: West, 8, and Wolf, 4.
“I find myself waking up every day and going to bed at the end of the day completely and totally exhausted by all the doing that had to happen in that one day,” DeLoach said of the inspiration. “And what if they both make a wish unintentionally? ‘Oh my God. Yeah. Remember when we didn’t have responsibility? Remember when we didn’t have people to take care of just ourselves?’”
That wish would result in both characters “in an alternate reality [where they] have to work together to come back to each other.”
The Hallmark Channel has become the one-stop-shop of holiday movies and light-hearted rom-coms over the years — with many fans tuning in to see their favorite leading ladies. Whether it’s When Calls the Heart’s Erin Krakow or Sweet Autumn lead Nikki DeLoach, the network is full of talented women telling heart-warming stories. Hallmark’s long list […]
In A Dream of Christmas, DeLoach’s character wishes for a break from her marriage. When Penny wakes up single and Stuart doesn’t know who she is, she realizes that her life was perfect the way it was and must try to patch it back together.
While a sequel is something DeLoach has been “wanting to put out there and pitch for a long time,” she has a second idea for a holiday film with Walker that might be just as fun for fans.
“Andrew and I did this really incredible Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade event, which is the most incredible holiday event I’ve ever been a part of. And it was a Hallmark movie,” DeLoach told Us of the 2023 experience in California. “I was like, ‘All we have to do is set the cameras up.’ This is bananas, how Hallmark this is.”
Nikki DeLoach Michael Tullberg/Getty Images
The annual event, which takes place in Newport Beach, features decked out boats with Christmas decorations and a visit from Santa. During the December 2023 parade, DeLoach and Walker were the grand marshals, which sparked the idea for a possible Hallmark movie.
“We’re now thinking and trying to work on something that we could potentially do in partnership with Newport Beach to put together a really incredible movie,” DeLoach explained. “And it would be for me and Andrew to star in.”
Andrew Walker has cemented himself as one of Hallmark Media’s biggest stars after making his network debut in 2012. The Canadian actor first left his mark on viewers that year with A Bride for Christmas alongside Arielle Kebbel. The twosome reunited on camera for 2015’s Bridal Wave, which launched Walker into an even bigger name […]
She recalled having an “extraordinary” time watching the boat parade in person, so much so that she and Walker have been brainstorming what’s next.
“They really are this tight-knit community, which is so nice. And it reminds me of how I was raised in my small town,” DeLoach gushed. “Just the work and effort that people put into making their houses and their boats [festive] and everything’s just totally Christmas vibes. It was amazing.”
Although neither holiday movie has been greenlit by Hallmark, fans can watch all of DeLoach and Walker’s Curious Caterer Mysteries films on Hallmark Now. Some of their Hallmark Channel rom-coms are also available to stream.
