Lori Loughlin Could Be Back On Your Screen Sooner Than You Think
In recent years, Lori Loughlin has made more headlines for her part in the 2019 college admissions scandal than her work as an actor — but there's a chance that might change in the near future.
When Loughlin was sentenced to jail time in 2020, it seemed as though her career would take a significant hit. However, things got a little confusing when, per Deadline, she was cast in the GAC — subsequently renamed Great American Media — 2021 Christmas special, "When Hope Calls." The special was a spinoff of Hallmark's TV show, "When Calls the Heart." As for where the confusion came in, shortly after the announcement, Hallmark told Entertainment Tonight it was not involved with Loughlin. In fact, its wording suggested it was pretty opposed to the idea. "Hallmark Channel has not cast Lori Loughlin in any current projects, including 'When Calls the Heart,' nor do we have any plans to cast her in the future," the company told the outlet in a statement, adding, "She was cast by GAC Family, a wholly separate cable network not affiliated with Hallmark Channel or Crown Media Family Networks." Ouch.
That said, while Loughlin may not have been welcome back at Hallmark, it seems as though Great American Media is backing her all the way. In fact, one executive hinted that he'd happily help her re-launch her career...
Great American Media's CEO is a major Lori Loughlin fan
It seems Lori Loughlin's stint on the "When Hope Calls" Christmas special was just the beginning of her rise on Great American Media. In fact, the network's CEO recently made it clear that he's a major fan of the actor.
Speaking to Variety, Bill Abbott revealed that he would love to work with Loughlin again, describing her as, "America's sweetheart, regardless of whatever happened." Abbott also said that the actor, "Represents all that is positive about entertainment." And, in a comment that might be read as a direct dig at Hallmark's statement last year, he noted, "We're very proud of our association with her." As an aside, Abbott happens to be the former CEO of Hallmark's parent company, Crown Media (via Us Weekly).
It's worth noting that despite its earlier stance on Loughlin, Hallmark has more recently taken steps to bring her back to the network in small ways. Though the network had previously removed any films featuring her from their platform, in July, they announced via Facebook that her "Garage Sale Mysteries" films were available once again. That said, something tells us she's unlikely to be cast in newer projects for the time being. After all, as Entertainment Weekly reported back in 2019, she was edited out of "When Calls the Heart" in wake of the college admissions scandal. Either way, we have a feeling that when Loughlin does make her comeback, it'll be on Great American Media.