Hallmark Star Laura Osnes' Step Back From The Spotlight Explained

Laura Osnes had a successful 15-year career on Broadway, and working on Hallmark movies, but that came to a halt in 2021 when she was involved in controversy. An article published by the New York Post's Page Six in August 2021 claimed that Osnes — who had starred in stage productions of "Cinderella," "South Pacific," and "Bonnie and Clyde" — was fired from a production at Guild Hall in East Hampton because she was not vaccinated against COVID-19. According to Page Six, Osnes was replaced on a one-night production of "Crazy For You," at Guild Hall because the venue required performers to be vaccinated, or test negative for COVID-19. The outlet also reported that one of her co-stars was concerned about working with Osnes because "he has two little kids at home." Five days after the article was published, the "In the Key of Love" actor responded on Instagram, and said that she voluntarily left the production. "Every soul is entitled to live according to their convictions and work without being publicly ostracized," she wrote in the since-deleted post (via Forbes).

Once the report regarding her vaccination status was published, Osnes experienced immediate blowback and found it difficult to find work. "If my experience wasn't considered being canceled from Broadway, I don't know what would be," she told The Tennessean on December 23. "It felt like everyone distanced themselves from me," Osnes added. This led to the Broadway star leaving New York and starting a new chapter in her career elsewhere. 

A year after the article about Laura Osnes being fired from a production because of her vaccination status was published, she fired back with a $5 million defamation lawsuit against the New York Post. Osnes said the report had several inaccuracies. "The article stated I was fired, and I amicably decided to turn it down in a non-confrontational and positive conversation with the director," she explained to The Tennessean on December 23. The actor said she experienced severe online backlash, and was disheartened that those in the Broadway community turned their backs on her.

That led to Osnes and her husband relocating to Franklin, Tennessee in October 2021. "We felt we had to get out. It wasn't even safe for me to remain in New York anymore," she recalled to WSMV4 in August. Part of the fresh start for Osnes involved pivoting to record her own music. "A great mentor encouraged me to write," she said. Osnes took the ordeal of leaving Broadway and channeled that into songwriting. "I was on the floor crying for a year and putting feeling into songs," she told The Tennessean. "What I felt after being 'canceled' became the inspiration for the songs on my new album." In August 2022, Osnes took those tracks and released her EP "On the Other Side Pt. 1." While she had left Broadway and focused on recording, Osnes had only temporarily left the stage and she returned the following year.

Not only did Laura Osnes start working on her own music when she moved to Tennessee, but she also starred in the show "Shiners" in Nashville — a musical about a family of moonshiners. "I got lucky with Laura Osnes. She was sent from the heavens," the show's creator Chuck Wicks told WSMV4 in August. Wicks said the show hit the million ticket benchmark after only five months, thanks in part to Osnes's performance as Violet Shiner. Osnes enjoyed that "Shiners" had three shows a week, which gave her time to pursue other projects. After working on the stage production for just over a year, Osnes stepped away from the show. "You came into my life when I needed it most ... now it's time to go shine somewhere else," she wrote on Instagram in November before her final performance.

During her time on the Nashville stage show, Osnes also worked on her return to TV movies. Previously, she had starred in films such Hallmark films as "In the Key of Love," and "A Homecoming for the Holidays," and 2021's "Christmas in Tahoe." Osnes returned to holiday-themed TV movies, but this time with Great American Family, for the film "A Dash of Christmas." Days before the its release, Osnes made an Instagram post where she spoke about how the crew filmed in Winnipeg, Canada. "We shot the whole movie in 12 days (the 12 days of Christmas) this past June," she wrote.