‘Holiday Hearts’ Star Ashley Williams Shares Funniest On-Set Moment With Hallmark Movie’s Cast

Hallmarkies will be happy to hear that, like last year, actress Ashley Williams will once again be featured in two Hallmark Christmas movies this holiday season, including one tonight.

She stars as Peyton Canady in Hallmark Movies & Mysteries’ festive flick, “Holiday Hearts,” tonight and then reprises her role as Allie in a cameo in the third “Christmas in Evergreen” movie on Hallmark Channel next week.

The “How I Met Your Mother” alum has been making Christmas movies for over a decade now — some for Hallmark, some for other networks — and she opened up to International Business Times at Christmas Con 2019 earlier this month about what she loves about the new one she has airing Saturday night.

Starring opposite Williams in “Holiday Hearts” is Paul Campbell (“The Last Bridesmaid”), who plays Dr. Ben Tyler. The film is based on Barbara Ankrum’s book, “The Christmas Wish,” and was directed by Allan Harmon (“Christmas Under the Stars”) and written by Susan Brightbill.

Keep reading to find out what Williams thinks makes this new Hallmark Christmas movie so special, what it was like working with Campbell and the funniest memory she has from her time filming the movie (hint: snoring is involved).

International Business Times: What can you tell me about “Holiday Hearts” and your character in the film?

Ashley Williams: This movie is really cute. I play an event planner, or a girl who wants to become an event planner, and she’s been charged with throwing the town’s big annual Christmas party this year, which she’s really nervous about because she’s got aspirations to kill it as an event planner. But, right around that same time, a friend asks her to take care of his daughter, in the weeks leading up to Christmas. So, in the midst of trying to launch this new career as an event planner, she’s also hanging out with this little girl and doing all these Christmas traditions — decorating the cookies, going ice skating, snowball fights, the whole nine yards. And through that, she sort of falls back in love with Christmas time and the traditions that go with it. It’s really cute.

IBT: She only falls in love with Christmas? What about Paul Campbell’s character, where does he come into play?

Williams: Of course, the boy. So, the boy is also really good friends with this friend, and so we have to take care of the little girl together. And, coincidentally, he and I used to kind of date — or be really close, and I told him I had feelings for him and he basically said that he didn’t feel the same way — and that was like 15 years ago, and now we’re back again. So, I’m like, ‘Ugh, here we go,’ but then we kind of, ya know. Ya know what happens.

IBT: You’ve done so many Hallmark movies, what is it about “Holiday Hearts” that you really love?

Williams: I truly think — well, first of all, Paul Campbell is a really funny guy. We laughed so hard while making this movie, and I think one of the things that makes this different is that there was a lot of humor that we found that was just genuinely sort of generated from who we are and our natural chemistry. There was a lot of laughter, which was really, really fun. And, also, I think, there’s something to being able to see the holidays through a child’s eyes. [It] allows you to remember and sort of get back in touch with what is magical about Christmas time. And that was a really cool angle.

IBT: Were there any scenes where you guys kept breaking character and couldn’t stop laughing?

Williams: Yeah, I mean, that is basically the only way I know how to work. I’m basically always giggling a little bit because…when I go into one of these, I just know it’s kind of just gonna be a hoot. And that’s awesome.

There was one night when we were shooting this movie, it was really late at night, and it was a really kind of romantic, heartfelt scene, and it was my coverage, so the camera’s very tight on my face, and I took a pause between a couple of my lines, and I heard the absolutely undeniable sound of a man snoring on set. And I look over, and it was our First AD. And usually the First AD is the guy standing there, he’s the cheerleader, he’s just getting us all organized and getting us charged. And I realized if I broke, we would have to go back to the beginning and everybody was so tired, so I had this moment where I was looking at Paul, and I knew he could hear the snoring, and he knew I could hear the snoring, and we both were just like, ‘Keeeeep going.’ So, we did. But that was a first for me. That’s something that’s never happened to me before. It was very funny.

“Holiday Hearts” premieres on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries on Saturday at 9 p.m. EST.