| The Wedding March | |
|---|---|
 Jack Wagner and Jodie Bissett in a promotional photo from the first film in the series | |
| Genre | Romantic comedy |
| Starring | Jack Wagner Josie Bissett |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producer | Harvey Kahn |
| Production company | A Wedding Production |
| Original release | |
| Network | Hallmark Channel |
| Release | June 25, 2016 (2016-06-25) – August 14, 2021 (2021-08-14) |
The Wedding March is an American-Canadian made for television romantic comedy film series starring Jack Wagner and Josie Bissett. Written by Neal H. Dobrofsky and Tippi Dobrofsky, the films were originally broadcast on the Hallmark Channel from 2016 to 2021.
Cast
- Jack Wagner as Mick Turner, a has-been singer and widower who owns the Willow Lake Inn in Vermont
- Josie Bissett as Olivia "Livvy" Phillips-Pershing, Mick's college girlfriend and single mother
- Emily Tennant as Grace Pershing, Olivia's daughter
- Aaron Pearl as Duke, an old friend of Mick and Olivia's who is also the head chef at the Inn
- Sarah Grey as Julie Turner, Mick's daughter
- Mitch Ainley as Wyatt, Julie's boyfriend
- Susan Hogan as Nora Phillips, Olivia's mother
- Serge Houde as Johnny, Nora's boyfriend
Characters summary
- A dark grey cell indicates the character was not in the film.
| Character | Title | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Wedding March | Resorting to Love | Here Comes the Bride | Something Old, Something New | My Boyfriend's Back | Sealed with a Kiss | |
| Mick Turner | Jack Wagner | |||||
| Olivia Phillips-Pershing | Josie Bissett | |||||
| Grace Pershing | Emily Tennant | Emily Tennant | ||||
| Duke | Aaron Pearl | |||||
| Julie Turner | Sarah Grey | |||||
| Wyatt | Mitch Ainley | |||||
| Nora Phillips | Susan Hogan | Susan Hogan | Susan Hogan | |||
| Johnny | Serge Houde | |||||
Films
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Wedding March" | Neill Fearnley | Neal Dobrofsky, Tippi Dobrofsky | June 25, 2016 (2016-06-25) | |
| With her own successful business, and a full-grown daughter, single mother Olivia Persching (Josie Bissett) is looking forward to her upcoming nuptials to successful New York realtor Josh Johnson (Cameron Bancroft). At her daughter Grace's (Emily Tennant) suggestion, Olivia books the picturesque Willow Lake Inn in Vermont for her wedding. She is shocked to discover that the inn is owned and run by her college sweetheart, Mick Turner (Jack Wagner), and even more dismayed when she learns that Mick will be the singer at her wedding, after her previously booked band cancels at the last moment. The pair haven't seen each other for over two decades, and parted on bad terms. Olivia and Mick's reunion is plagued by animosity. However that soon fades as old feelings resurface, encouraged by both Grace and Mick's teenage daughter Julie (Sarah Grey). Mick confesses his true feelings to Olivia at the rehearsal dinner, and she is left with the choice between going ahead with the wedding as planned or taking a second chance on first love. | |||||
| 2 | "Wedding March 2: Resorting to Love" | David Weaver | Neal Dobrofsky, Tippi Dobrofsky | June 17, 2017 (2017-06-17) | |
| Olivia sells her house and hands over her business to her daughter, Grace and comes to live at the Willow Lake Inn with Mick. However, the two start out awkward with Olivia deciding to live in the Carriage House and taking things slow between them. She proposes that they work together to make the Inn the best wedding resort. Meanwhile, Mick's daughter Julie brings home her boyfriend, Wyatt making Mick uncomfortable. Olivia and Mick visit their competition inn nearby and poach the wedding of landscaper Chris (Aren Buchholz) and editor Corrine (Tara Wilson). The couple want to have Mick as their wedding singer and Mick works to help one of his choir singers overcome her stage fear. Olivia starts making changes to the Inn and the wedding starts becoming bigger than they anticipated leading to tensions between her and Mick. Eventually, they come together to work on the wedding when the groom suddenly develops cold feet. | |||||
| 3 | "Wedding March 3: Here Comes the Bride" | David Weaver | Neal Dobrofsky, Tippi Dobrofsky | February 17, 2018 (2018-02-17) | |
| Mick and Olivia have been running the Inn successfully and have kept busy. They choose to take some time off to spend a romantic Valentines weekend but their plans suddenly change when Mick's sister, fashion designer Bonnie (Gabrielle Miller), Olivia's mother Nora and Mick's daughter Julie all decide to visit the couple over the same weekend. Bonnie brings home her fiance, Sean (Peter Benson) and wants to marry at the Inn but Mick is still suspicious of Sean who ran out on their band 20 years ago. Moreover, Julie informs Mick that she wants to quit school to become a chef adding to his worries and straining their relationship. Nora, visiting with her boyfriend Johnny, begins pressuring Olivia to be in a more committed relationship with Mick. Julie's boyfriend Wyatt is upset she is leaving school. Sean apologizes to Mick. Mick writes a song for Olivia and plans to surprise her at the town's Valentines Day benefit. | |||||
| 4 | "Wedding March 4: Something Old, Something New" | Peter DeLuise | Robin Bernheim, Richard Manning, Tracy Andreen, David Golden | June 23, 2018 (2018-06-23) | |
| Abby (Merritt Patterson) and Rob (Andrew Walker) are very much in love and are about to be married at the Willow Lake Inn. However, Abby believes that she may not fit in with Rob's family, especially with his sister who continues to compare their wedding to the perfect wedding their parents had. | |||||
| 5 | "Wedding March 5: My Boyfriend's Back" | Mike Rohl | Kim Beyer-Johnson | June 8, 2019 (2019-06-08) | |
| Annalise (Cindy Busby) starts her own wedding planning company but everything hangs on the first wedding that is being held at the Willow Lake Inn. When her ex-boyfriend, Brad (Tyler Hynes), shows up as the best man, she must set her feelings aside about their break-up and try and make the wedding a success. Meanwhile, Olivia and Mick have an important milestone coming up in their relationship and try to arrange a surprise for one another. | |||||
| 6 | "Sealed with a Kiss: Wedding March 6" | David Weaver | Kim Beyer-Johnson | August 14, 2021 (2021-08-14) | |
| The modest wedding plans of a celebrity (Nathan Witte) and his down-to-earth fiancée (Caitlin Stryker) escalate while Mick gets an enticing opportunity Olivia won't let him refuse, putting their own big day in jeopardy. | |||||
Production
Development
Following the success of its first "June Weddings" event in 2015 Hallmark announced that the event would return in 2016, with The Wedding March as one of the channel's line-up of original television movies.
The film saw stars Jack Wagner and Josie Bissett reunite after having both previously starred in the 1990s Fox television series Melrose Place. Wagner was also involved in the development of the film and served as an executive producer on the production.
Wagner's character teaches a choir and he also recorded music for the film.
Filming
Filming took place in Vancouver and British Columbia in April and May 2016. The second installment was also shot in Vancouver. The third installment in the franchise, entitled The Wedding March 3: Here Comes the Bride was filmed in British Columbia in May 2017, again starring Wagner and Bissett.
Broadcast
The first film in the series aired on June 25, 2016, as part of the channel's second annual "June Weddings" event on Hallmark Channel.
Reception
The first installment of the film garnered 2.3 million viewers on its premiere and was the top-rated cable network program of the day. On Twitter it became the number one Tweeted cable/broadcast television film of the week.
References
- Yarborough, Kaitlyn. "Everything You Need to Know About Hallmark Channel in 2018". Southern Living. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
- "Take a First Look at My Boyfriend's Back: Wedding March 5!". Parade. 23 May 2019.
- "Jack Wagner of 'When Calls the Heart' explains why 'My Boyfriend's Back: Wedding March 5' is one of the best in Hallmark series". Deseret News. 7 June 2019. Archived from the original on June 7, 2019.
- TV Newsdesk (April 26, 2016). "Hallmark Channel to Celebrate June Weddings with Four New Original Movies". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
- Hill, Ruth (February 16, 2017). "Interview With Actor Jack Wagner, "When Calls the Heart"". My Devotional Thoughts. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
- Soap Opera Digest (June 16, 2017). "Jack Wagner And Josie Bissett Interview". Soap Opera Disgest. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
- "Signed Sealed Delivered, The Convenient Groom & Haters Back Off Start Filming in Vancouver". "What's Filming". April 19, 2016. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
- "Beyond Season 2 & The Wedding March 2 Start Filming in BC". "What's Filming". April 26, 2017. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
- "Distorted, The Wedding March 3 & Summer in the Vineyard Start Filming in BC". "What's Filming". May 29, 2017. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
- "'The Wedding March': Hallmark Movie — June Bride Unwittingly Hires Wedding Singer Who Is Her Ex, Starring Josie Bissett, Jack Wagner". Inquisitr. 23 June 2016.
- "Josie Bissett, Jack Wagner reunite 17 years after 'Melrose Place'". Today. 23 June 2016.
- Yeotsas, Christina (June 28, 2016). "HALLMARK CHANNEL WIN STREAK CONTINUES AS STRONG PREMIERE OF ORIGINAL MOVIE 'THE WEDDING MARCH' MARKS FOURTH CONSECUTIVE WEEK FOR NETWORK WITH TOP HH-RATED MOVIE OF THE WEEK". Crown Media. Retrieved December 7, 2017.