15 Popular Actors You Forgot Were In Hallmark Christmas Movies

Hallmark is known for having a pretty reliable stable of artists. Once an actor has starred in one of the many Hallmark Christmas movies out there, chances are, you’ll start to see them over and over again. In fact, there are a small class of actors who can eke out a reliable living solely through their appearances in holiday films. Especially for a channel like Hallmark, which goes into sicko mode every fall, churning out dozens of Christmas movies to round out their calendar for the last few months of the year. 

Aside from familiar faces, sometimes Hallmark manages to score an actor who is more well-known for their career outside of the holiday film ouevre. Often, they make little pit stops between other projects — sometimes they’re content with a one-off appearance, other times they’re assimilated into the Hallmark family, taking on more holiday films afterwards. 

So grab some hot cocoa, and fire up your IMDb account, because these are some of the most popular actors who you probably forgot or never knew made appearances in Hallmark Christmas movies.

If you grew up watching “Happy Days,” the name Henry Winkler is synonymous with one character: Arthur “The Fonz” Fonzarelli. The ultra-cool 1950s greaser personified what the kids today would call rizz — even if he did end up being the very first character to literally jump the shark. But it’s a testament to Winkler’s irresistable screen presence that he was able to cultivate a career that went well beyond his most iconic role. He played acting teacher Gene Cousineau on Bill Hader’s dark comedy “Barry,” about a hit man in the process of discovering his passion for acting — a role for which he earned an Emmy win in addition to several nominations for best supporting actor in a comedy series.

In 2008, he took on a supporting role in “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” He plays Uncle Ralph, an ersatz matchmaker for his anti-Christmas niece Jennifer (Brooke Burns) and an amiable drifter named Morgan (Warren Christie), who he spontaneously invites over for the holidays after the two meet on a flight. Classic Uncle Ralph behavior.

Over the course of his prolific career, Danny Glover has starred in “Lethal Weapon,” “Witness,” “The Prince of Egypt,” “The Royal Tenenbaums,” and “The Last Black Man in San Francisco,” amongst many other films and television series. He brings a quiet grace and understated sense of humor to many of his roles, especially in his later years, as he moved away from more action-oriented performances. In 2022, he was given the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the Academy Awards. Alfre Woodard paid tribute to him at the ceremony as he received the award, saying, “Danny Glover always does the right thing first, without testing the prevailing winds of public opinion.”

Although his time in Hollywood has been illustrious and his early career saw him receive classical training in acting, he’s not afraid to tackle lighter fare. That brings us to his appearance in “The Christmas Train,” where he plays Max Powers, a film producer who ends up on the same LA-bound train as the film’s leads, played by Dermot Mulroney and Kimberly Williams-Paisley.

Most people remember 2000s dreamboat Chad Michael Murray for his work on the CW teen drama “One Tree Hill,” where he played the kid from the wrong side of the tracks, Lucas Scott. It’s certainly his most memorable role: Aside from a few teen roles during his “One Tree Hill” era, like “A Cinderella Story” or “Freaky Friday,” he largely faded off the radar of audiences when his flagship show ended after nine seasons, though he eventually had recurring roles on both “Agent Carter” and “Riverdale.”

In the late 2010s, he hopped on the Christmas movie circuit, most notably appearing in Hallmark’s “Write Before Christmas.” In it, Jessica (Torrey DeVitto), recovering from a nasty breakup right before the holidays, decides to mail Christmas cards to the five people who have been the most influential in her life. Her seemingly simple action has a far-reaching impact, which might just make her holiday season extra special. Murray plays Luke, the son of Jessica’s former music teacher (one of the Christmas card recipients), who arrives to give Jessica his mother’s beloved cello — and maybe even a little romance. But this isn’t Murray’s only foray in Hallmark Christmas movies: He also appeared in “Road to Christmas” and “Love in Winterland.”

Since the 1970s, Jane Seymour has been cutting a dignified figure throughout film and television, appearing in “Somewhere in Time,” “The Scarlet Pimpernel,” and “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman.” Even if she wasn’t playing a member of royalty, she certainly had the bearing of one. So it should come as no surprise that when the creators of “A Royal Christmas” were looking for a matriarch to head their imperial family, they settled on none other than Seymour. 

In it, she plays Isadora, the queen of Cordinia, whose son Leopold (Stephen Hagan) has made the unconventional decision to become engaged to Emily (Lacey Chabert), an American seamstress. Unsurprisingly, Isadora isn’t particularly pleased with this matrimonial announcement, and she does what she can to undo their relationship, believing her son would be better matched with someone from their own social class. Will Emily win the icy mother-in-law over? Duh! It’s a Hallmark Christmas movie!

Most audiences these days are familiar with Sam Heughan for his stirring performance as Jamie Fraser on “Outlander.” He’s had other roles, of course, but that’s the one that has made him beloved by fans of steamy historical romance. But two years before he donned a kilt and wooed his Sassenach, Claire, he got a crash course in television romance when he starred in “A Princess for Christmas.” He plays Ashton, Prince of Castlebury, whose world seems to have stopped in place after the death of his estranged older brother in a car accident. 

He and his father (played by James Bond actor Roger Moore) live a stuffy, emotionally repressed existence, which only shows evidence of changing when Jules (Katie McGrath) comes to stay at their castle. She’s the aunt of his orphaned niece and nephew, sister-in-law to his late brother, and she’s brought the children to celebrate Christmas with their family. But almost immediately, Ashton finds himself entranced by her warm, open-hearted nature, and he begins to open up as well. It’s a fairly standard “stiff upper lip” role in a royal holiday romance, but Heughan brings understated charm to the character, showing glimpses of a less buttoned-down personality behind the regal facade.

Long before Hallmark executives said, “What if we made a Christmas movie where a baker falls in love with a European prince while on a holiday vacation to Tuscany?” they asked, “What if we made a movie about a German civilian mom who has to deal with a group of German and American soldiers at Christmastime during World War II?”

Clearly, the channel has shifted gears since 2002, when “Silent Night” was first released. It stars Linda Hamilton as Elisabeth who, along with her son, takes refuge in a cabin, only to realize that she will have to share it with three soldiers on opposite sides of the war. Presumably, they have … different opinions on a variety of subjects, so tensions are bound to run a little high.

Hamilton is perhaps best known for her performance as Sarah Connor in “The Terminator,” “Terminator 2: Judgment Day,” and “Terminator: Dark Fate,” but that’s far from the only credit to her name. She also appeared in “Dante’s Peak,” had a recurring role as Mary Bartowski on the spy comedy “Chuck,” and in the 1980s, she starred in the modern-day TV adaptation of “Beauty and the Beast.”

We know that Christopher Lloyd’s most famous character, Dr. Emmett Brown from “Back to the Future,” has a thing for trains. In the third “Back to the Future” film, our last glimpse of the eccentric scientist is aboard a vintage steam train, which he has converted into a time machine for his travels alongside his wife Clara (Mary Steenbergen) and their two sons, Jules and Verne. In “Next Stop, Christmas,” Lloyd gets the opportunity to play with trains once again — as well as teaming up with his “Back to the Future” costar Lea Thompson.

“Next Stop, Christmas” stars Lyndsy Fonseca as Angie, a girl who is minding her own business on the commuter rail when all of a sudden, it turns into a magical Christmas train that deposits her in her hometown — just 10 years earlier. Christopher Lloyd plays the conductor of the train, a fitting role considering his history with time travel. Maybe we can consider this “Back to the Future: Part IV.”

You all remember James Brolin: Star of the life-changing “The Amityville Horror,” “Westworld,” and “Catch Me If You Can,” father of Josh Brolin, husband to Barbra Streisand, the list goes on and on. His career has been going strong since the early 1960s, and even though he’s now in his mid-80s, he shows little sign of slowing up — he recently voiced the Narrator on Netflix’s “Sweet Tooth.”

“I’ll Be Home for Christmas” is all about reconciliation and forgiveness, and in the story that revolves around a complicated relationship between an estranged father and daughter, it makes sense that they cast Brolin to take on the role of Jake, the flawed but ultimately caring patriarch. (It also probably helps that he himself directed the film.) His daughter Jackie (Mena Suvari) is doing just fine for herself, working as an assistant DA and raising her young son as a single mother, when Jack throws everything into upheaval when he shows up, unannounced, on her doorstep. But Christmas is all about family, and the spirit of the holiday helps them reconnect.

For superhero fans, Brandon Routh is best known for playing Clark Kent, Superman himself, in “Superman Returns.” Although he was a perfect fit for the walking slice of Americana, his Superman outing wasn’t particularly well-received and ended up being a one-off venture. Don’t feel too bad for Routh, though — he’s had plenty of other fun and exciting roles in film and TV. He appeared in a recurring role on “Chuck,” for instance, as well as “The Flash” and “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, and he even got to play another version of Superman.

In the Hallmark world, he even took on a role that allowed him plenty of face time with the greatest creatures on Earth: cats. He played Zachary Stone in 2014’s “The Nine Lives of Christmas,” a fireman whose life and romantic prospects are changed when he is adopted by a stray cat, and he meets a charming veterinary student named Marilee (Kimberley Sustad). It’s such a sweet little romance for animal lovers that Routh followed it up with a sequel in 2021, “The Nine Kittens of Christmas,” where he and Marilee are given the extremely adorable job of tracking down homes for a new litter of kittens.

Mandy Moore has had plenty of lighter fare on her resume — she did star in “Tangled,” “Chasing Liberty,” and “The Princess Diaries.” But nowadays, her adult career leans more to the drama (or melodramatic), dominated by her starring role in the TV phenomenon “This is Us,” which ran for six seasons on NBC. Despite this, she’s still willing to venture into fluffy Christmas territory when the occasion calls for is, as evinced by her performance in “Christmas in Conway.” 

Released in 2013 as part of the Hallmark Hall of Fame series, “Christmas in Conway” stars Andy Garcia as a husband who squares off against his entire town when he becomes determined to construct a ferris wheel in his backyard in honor of his wife Suzy (Mary-Louise Parker), who is dying of cancer. Mandy Moore appears as the family’s live-in nurse, who is tasked with taking care of Suzy as she reaches the end of her life.

Let’s be real, Laura Dern is probably one of the last people you would expect to show up in a Hallmark Christmas movie. After all, she’s had an decorated film career, with “Jurassic Park,” Blue Velvet,” “Little Women,” and “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” as just a few credits on her resume. She has an Academy Award, for crying out loud. Yet here she is. But technically, the film that she appears in (“A Season for Miracles”) was released as part of the Hallmark Hall of Fame series, back when they were tackling still sentimental but slightly more prestige subject matter. 

Released in 1999, “A Season for Miracles” revolves around an aunt (Carla Gugino) who impulsively takes in her niece and nephew as a result of their mother’s struggles with drug addiction, in a bid to keep them out of foster care. Although things aren’t easy for them, they eventually find unexpected help in the form of the residents of Bethelem, Rhode Island, and a kindly guardian angel (Patty Duke). Laura Dern takes on the meatiest role in the production, playing Berry Thompson, a mother who loves her children but whose addiction issues prevent her from taking care of them.

If you had eyes and a pulse in the late ’90s, chances are you’re familiar with James Van Der Beek. He spent several seasons as Dawson on “Dawson’s Creek,” pining after Joey (Katie Holmes), dreaming about his future career as the next Steven Spielberg, and crying so hard he generated dozens of memes. His career was at a fever pitch in the late ’90s and early 2000s — not only was he the star of “Dawson’s Creek,” but he had a string of popular teen movies, including “Varsity Blues” and “The Rules of Attraction.” Since then, you could argue that he’s had the most success playing a version of himself, as he did in the criminally underrated “Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23.”

But fans might be surprised to learn that, back in 2013, Van Der Beek had his very own Hallmark Christmas vehicle in the form of “Mrs. Miracle.” Played by Doris Roberts, Mrs. Merkle (aka Mrs. Miracle) is basically a holiday-themed Mary Poppins, who helps Seth Webster (Van Der Beek) not only manage his out-of-control children, but also get his love life in order as well. Good luck finding that kind of service on Care.com!

Shirley MacLaine is Hollywood royalty. Her acting credits stretch over an astonishing eight decades, with appearances in films like “Sweet Charity,” “Being There,” “Steel Magnolias, and “Terms of Endearment” — the last of which earned her an Academy Award. But perhaps her most famous role — and the one that first established her Christmas movie cred — is in “The Apartment,” where she stars opposite Jack Lemmon in a downbeat and understated but ultimately uplifting romantic comedy.

In between appearances on beloved TV series “Downton Abbey” and “Only Murders in the Building,” MacLaine made time to take on a supporting role in the Hallmark Christmas movie “A Heavenly Christmas.” She plays Pearl, an angel who serves as a mentor to Eve (Kristin Davis) after her recent death puts her on the path to becoming a Christmas angel herself. Her new responsibilities are centered around helping people, including Max (Eric McCormack), who is struggling to raise his orphaned niece as a musician/fry cook. But is her life actually over, or will she get another chance at happiness among the world of the living?

Danielle Panabaker got some of her biggest credits in the world of superheroes. As a teenager, she played Layla Williams in “Sky High,” a burgeoning superhero with the power to commune with and control plant life. Years later, she joined the cast of “The Flash” as Caitlin Snow, a bioengineer working with S.T.A.R. Labs, one of The Flash’s closest confidantes, and eventually a superhero in her own right. And in the midst of her tenure on the long-running “The Flash,” Panabaker found time to headline her very own Hallmark Christmas movie.

“Christmas Joy,” released in 2018, revolves around one of the most enduring Hallmark narratives: a successful young woman returning to her hometown and reconnecting with an old flame (Matt Long) amid the romance of the holiday season. While helping her aunt recover from recent surgery, Joy (Panabaker) volunteers to take her place in the town’s annual baking competition, something that may end up being more taxing than she could have imagined. Sweet as icing sugar, “Christmas Joy” may be conventional, but it’s also packed full of warm, Christmasy goodness.

Sean Astin has been a popular figure in Hollywood since he was a kid, making appearances in films like “The Goonies,” “Encino Man,” and “Rudy,” both of which see him cast as an underdog whose rugged determination ultimately wins the day. This theme carried on to his adult career, when he starred as the stalwart Samwise Gamgee in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, accompanying Frodo (Elijah Wood) on his epic journey to destroy the One Ring. In the years since, we’ve seen him as the ill-fated Bob Newby on “Stranger Things,” in addition to voicing Raphael on the 2012 revival series of “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.”

Astin has certainly kept himself busy, and part of that included an appearance in the 2013 Hallmark Christmas movie, “Santa Switch.” In it, he plays Eddie, elf assistant to Santa Claus, who is sent to help a struggling father (Ethan Erickson) learn the ropes as he prepares to take on Santa duties while the real Kris Kringle takes a much-needed vacation. (It kind of seems like he only works one day a year, but hey, who are we to judge?) The new Santa may or may not get carried away with all the Christmas wishes, leaving Eddie to reel in the more impulsive characters around him — a theme in Astin’s work if we’ve ever seen one.