Hallmark’s biggest holiday movie lineup begins October 16 with NFL and Disney collaborations, while HBO’s Lanterns faces questions about its divisive season finale.
Hallmark Channel is preparing its largest holiday movie season yet, with 34 original Christmas films scheduled to premiere between October 16 and December 20, 2026. The network’s 17th annual Countdown to Christmas event will feature new movies on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings, along with special premieres during Thanksgiving weekend.
The 2026 lineup includes 10 more original movies than last year. Among the major attractions are Holiday Touchdown: A Bears Love Story, featuring the Chicago Bears, and Holiday Ever After: A Disney World Wish Come True, marking Hallmark’s first movie collaboration with Walt Disney World Resort.
The celebration begins Friday, October 16, at 8 p.m. Eastern with ‘Tis the Season for Setups, starring Amanda Schull, Victor Webster and Barbara Niven. Schull plays Lexi, an organized single mother and party planner hired to prepare a ski resort’s annual Christmas celebration.
Lexi initially clashes with Ridge, a ski instructor played by Webster, before discovering a possible romance between their parents. The two begin arranging opportunities for their families to spend time together, but their matchmaking efforts gradually draw them closer.
The following evening brings Holiday Touchdown: A Bears Love Story, starring Lyndsy Fonseca, Robert Buckley and Marsha Mason. The October 17 premiere continues Hallmark’s partnership with the NFL after earlier Christmas movies featuring the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills.
Fonseca portrays Avery, a reporter assigned to interview a devoted Chicago Bears supporter played by Mason. Her assignment introduces her to Matt, the woman’s grandson and a firefighter played by Buckley. The film draws on Chicago’s football traditions and features locations around the city.
On Sunday, October 18, Brendan Penny and Pascale Hutton star in Mr. & Mrs. Christmas. Penny plays Taylor Lewis, a single father who moves to a small town with his children and tries to restore its Christmas market. Hutton portrays Sophie Shaw, an accountant seeking a leadership opportunity who becomes involved in the project.
The second weekend begins October 23 with Winter Wonderlanes, starring Ashley Newbrough and Franco Lo Presti. Newbrough plays Audrey Bell, a restaurateur who returns home and discovers that her grandfather’s bowling alley faces closure.
Audrey agrees to help revive a youth bowling tournament and works with her former boyfriend Jason, now a local television reporter. Their renewed partnership brings back memories of their relationship while giving the business another opportunity to survive.
On October 24, Janel Parrish and Daniel Lissing lead Forgotten Holiday. Parrish portrays Kathryn Liu, an antiques buyer who becomes frightened when her boyfriend proposes marriage. After she leaves without answering, an accident causes him to lose memories of their relationship.
Lori Loughlin and Tom Cavanagh star in What If Christmas, premiering October 25. Loughlin plays Erin, a woman whose role in her husband’s professional life changes unexpectedly. A mysterious Christmas ornament transports her into an alternate reality where she has become a successful fashion designer.
The following weekend includes Julie’s Christmas Eve Dinner on October 30, starring Rhiannon Fish, Jake Foy and Mila Morgan. The story follows a woman settling into a new home with belongings inherited from her grandmother. An approaching storm threatens her holiday plans after she becomes acquainted with a neighbor and his daughter.
Adopting St. Nick, starring Amy Groening and Michael Rady, arrives October 31. Groening portrays Maren, a single mother raising her adopted daughter Leah. The movie joins a season built around family relationships, new beginnings and unexpected connections.
Hallmark has also scheduled several larger productions for later in the season. Holiday Ever After: A Disney World Wish Come True, starring Lacey Chabert and Travis Van Winkle, premieres November 28. Filmed at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, the movie brings a familiar Hallmark holiday romance to one of the country’s best-known vacation destinations.
Another major production, A Grand Biltmore Christmas, premieres December 5. The movie stars Holland Roden, Niall Matter, Andie MacDowell and Jonathan Frakes and returns the network to the historic Biltmore Estate setting.
The network is expanding its Christmas programming beyond films. The third season of Mistletoe Murders, starring Sarah Drew and Peter Mooney, begins November 5. New holiday movies will generally become available on Hallmark+ the day after their television premieres.
While Hallmark prepares for its holiday schedule, another television franchise is receiving attention for a very different reason.
HBO’s DC superhero series Lanterns has sparked debate over its treatment of Hal Jordan and the direction of the Green Lantern franchise. The eight-episode season stars Kyle Chandler as Jordan and Aaron Pierre as John Stewart, two characters associated with the Green Lantern Corps.
The series takes a darker approach than many traditional superhero productions. Rather than concentrating primarily on battles in space, the story follows an investigation in Nebraska involving an apparent murder and connections to an extraterrestrial threat.
The first episode established the central mystery by revealing Jordan’s death in a later timeline. Subsequent episodes explored his relationship with Stewart and the events leading to his disappearance.
Spoilers follow for the first season of Lanterns.
The season finale revealed that Sheriff Kerry Kane, played by Kelly Macdonald, shot Jordan after discovering that he knew the truth about her son Noah. The young man was connected to the Manhunters, artificial beings whose origins are important to Green Lantern mythology.
The revelation drew criticism from some viewers who believed Jordan’s death deserved a more traditional superhero storyline. Others defended the decision as consistent with the show’s emphasis on human relationships, moral choices and the consequences of violence.
Series co-creator and comic book writer Tom King has addressed questions about why Kerry was not brought to justice in the usual way. The story instead places greater emphasis on her personal circumstances and the consequences surrounding Noah.
Stewart’s development provides another major element of the finale. He assumes a new role protecting Earth, although his approach to the Green Lantern identity differs from established comic book traditions. His decisions also introduce tensions involving other Lantern characters.
Chandler and Pierre have discussed their reactions to the season, including its emotional ending. During an HBO discussion, Chandler described being moved by the story, while Pierre spoke about the importance of portraying a character he had long admired.
The original account also attributed criticism of episodes six and seven to comic book writer Grant Morrison, including a claim that Morrison fell asleep while watching. That specific account has not been independently verified and should not be presented as an established statement.
Questions about a possible second season continue following the finale. As of October 11, HBO has not officially announced a renewal, although Pierre’s John Stewart is expected to appear in the DC film Man of Tomorrow, scheduled for 2027.
Hallmark’s next major programming event begins October 16, while all eight episodes of Lanterns are already available to stream. The two developments reflect different sides of television entertainment: one network is expanding an established seasonal tradition, while another is testing a new approach to familiar comic book characters.
IMAGE: Entrance portal of the St Viktor Church in Dülmen, North Rhine-Westphalia, GermanyThe Roman Catholic parish church of St. Victor is the oldest church in Dülmen. It is located in the town center and is the only one within the former town walls. It was founded in 780 by Abbot Bernrad or St. Liudger on a Saxon (later episcopal) main farmstead. It is not only considered the original parish church of Dülmen, but also one of the oldest churches in the diocese of Münster. The church is named after and dedicated to St. Victor. The consecration of a larger church, which was probably the first stone church, took place in 1074. The church building was destroyed, rebuilt, renovated, or remodeled several times, but was always oriented toward the east, the place of sunrise. The church took on its current form around 1500, but was destroyed on March 21 and 22, 1945, and then rebuilt, with traces of the difficult reconstruction still visible.. Photo: Dietmar Rabich / Wikimedia, CC BY-SA 4.0