Get excited, hearties! ET has your first look at the ‘When Calls the Heart’ season 7 premiere and tune-in date!
It’s time to return to Hope Valley, hearties!
ET has exclusively learned that season 7 of Hallmark Channel’s top-rated drama series, When Calls the Heart, will officially premiere Sunday, Feb. 23. The episode is titled “A Moving Picture,” and in it, we’ll see our favorite friendly faces tasked with various obstacles. For Elizabeth, she’ll receive writing advice from Lucas that causes her to search for new inspiration. Rosemary and Lee will plan a vacation, while Faith returns home with a dilemma that could cause her to split from Carson (oh no!). We also know that Henry will be interviewed for a business magazine.
Of course, ET will be with you every step of the way as season 7 unfolds, bringing you exclusive interviews with the entire cast. In fact, when we visited the Vancouver set in September, we scored a ton of scoop about where we’ll find our favorite characters when the series picks up.
“Lots of developments!” star Erin Krakow gushed when asked how the characters on WCTH would be progressing.
“We have developments with Team Infirmary and what's going to happen there between Faith and Carson. We have a wedding happening in Hope Valley between Clara and Jesse, lots of fun stuff with the babies, of course, Rosemary and Lee and their relationship, moving forward,” she explained, before adding, “And of course, picking up where we left off with that [season 6 finale] cliffhanger and getting to see a bit more of where Elizabeth and Nathan and Lucas stand.”
The cliffhanger Krakow is referring to has left hearties all over the world completely shook, wondering where Elizabeth’s heart and loyalty lie: with the charming saloon owner or the dignified Mountie?
“I like to think that throughout season 6, Elizabeth was really moving on with her life. She was making peace with having lost Jack, really becoming a single mother and standing on her own two feet and by the end of season 6, we see that she is starting to become willing to open her heart to love again and in season 7 we get to see a bit more of that, as far as how she feels about these two men. I think maybe she's a bit surprised that she's got feelings for anyone, let alone two men!” Krakow exclaimed. “They're pretty great guys. They're both single, they’re both handsome, they're generous, they're sensitive, they're good listeners, they're good with her kid. I mean, I have to think that Jack would approve. He'd want her to be happy and we're moving in that direction.”
Kevin McGarry, who plays Mountie Nathan, summed it up by telling ET, “One of the suitors pushes her to be better, and one of the suitors needs her to help him be better.”
Chris McNally, who plays Lucas Bouchard, agrees with McGarry. “Lucas is able to push Elizabeth in a way that no one else does, and challenge her when she needs to be challenged in order to help her grow as a person. The thing he has the most going for him is his ability to do that,” he affirmed.
As for what Nathan has going for him? Well, McGarry lovingly teased… not much. “Nathan is bad at talking to girls!” he said, laughing. “Nathan needs to read a book on how to talk to women!” On a more serious note, McGarry explained, “I think Nathan looked at that last scene in season 6 as, ‘I guess she’s not interested. I guess her heart is with somebody else or she’s looking to go somewhere else,’ so I think outside circumstances start coming into their lives and bringing them a bit closer together.”
Speaking of romance, we’ll see plenty more of it when Clara and Jesse get married! Actors Eva Bourne and Aren Buchholz confirmed the nuptials will play out during season 7, and said to expect over-the-top, swoon-worthy moments. And get this -- the actors want to stay true to wedding tradition and avoid seeing one another until Bourne, in character as Clara, walks down the aisle.
“I think we’d like to be separated and have that genuine moment of us seeing each other and me walking down the aisle to him,” Bourne gushed.
“I don’t want to see her at all, no,” Buchholz said. “If we could keep me completely separated from her until that moment when I see her walking up, that would be so cool. I’m getting emotional already, picturing her coming down the aisle. I think it’s gonna be an accumulation of the last five years together, all the beautiful moments we shared: our first kiss, our first date, our first picnic, all these things are going to come together right there.”
Last month, ET chatted with showrunner Alfonso H. Moreno via email, and he teased a few more important storylines to look forward to.
“Lee reveals a big secret about his past to Rosemary. Bill has to put a jury together in a legal case against Gowen. Lucas and Gowen deal with Gowen Petroleum, which is at risk of going under. Carson and Faith face some challenges in their relationship. Finally, our characters have to deal with more than just emotional slings and arrows, as some of them end up in harm’s way, either by the natural elements or, in one instance, at the hand of another.”
When Calls the Heart season 7 premieres Sunday, Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
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