Great American Family unveils premiere dates for star-studded 2024 holiday movie lineup (exclusive)
'Tis the season for 18 Christmas films featuring stars like Candace Cameron Bure, Mario Lopez, and Gladys Knight.
As summer comes to a close, Great American Family is already focused on the most wonderful time of the year: the holiday season!
Now Entertainment Weekly can exclusively reveal the premiere dates for the cable network’s fourth annual Great American Christmas franchise, which will feature 18 star-studded new films sure to bring a hefty dose of yuletide cheer to all starting Oct. 19. (Move over, Halloween and Thanksgiving!)
The list includes not one, not two, but three movies starring Candace Cameron Bure, following the Full House alum as she embarks on a magical holiday road trip (A Christmas Less Traveled), inherits a maple sugar farm (Home Sweet Christmas), and transforms an old lodge into a holiday hotspot (Let It Snow). Elsewhere, Mario Lopez and his wife, Courtney Lopez, find their dreams come true in Once Upon a Christmas Wish, and the phenomenal Gladys Knight stars in a holiday adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's classic novel Little Women. And that's just the tip of the iceberg — surprise films will also be added throughout the season.
Find out everything you need to know about Great American Family's holiday movie lineup below.
Christmas in Scotland
Premieres: Oct. 19, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Jill Winternitz and Dominic Watters
Official description: "A New York installation designer helps a small Scottish community create a dazzling light display to win the Best Christmas Village festival. The designer is forced to work with a wealthy heir who doesn't like Christmas, though feelings may change if the pair succeeds in creating joy for the community."
A Christmas Castle Proposal
Premieres: Oct. 20, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Rhiannon Fish and Mitchell Bourke
Official description: "Olivia, a commoner, travels with Prince Alexander to his family's magical palace, Torovia, so their families can spend a first Christmas together. The couple's plans for an enchanted Christmas are threatened by comedic mishaps caused by cultural differences between the families."
A Vintage Christmas
Premieres: Oct. 26, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Merritt Patterson and Christopher Russell
Official description: "A dedicated preservationist battles a developer’s ambitions to tear down a historic post office with ties to her family. The choice of old versus new threatens to divide the small town unless there is a solution for the greater good of all concerned."
The Fabric of Christmas
Premieres: Nov. 2, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Ferelith Young and Harmon Walsh
Official description: "Firefighter Liam and quilting teacher Amy come together to make the perfect quilt for Liam's sister's Christmas wedding. Two headstrong people discover the importance of putting personal differences aside to create what is most important at Christmas."
A Royal Christmas Ballet
Premieres: Nov. 9, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Brittany Underwood and Jonathan Stoddard
Official description: "A retired ballerina is pressed into service working with a visiting team of royal ambassadors to put on the season's performance of The Nutcracker and finds herself center stage in an unexpected Christmas romance."
A Christmas Less Traveled
Premieres: Nov. 16, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Candace Cameron Bure and Eric Johnson
Official description: "A local business owner finds an audio cassette in the player of her recently departed dad's classic red truck. The message instructs Desi to go on a holiday road trip down memory lane, where she meets a man who needs her help and who offers help in return."
A Little Women's Christmas
Premieres: Nov. 23, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Trevor Donovan, Jen Lilley, Jillian Murray, Laura Osnes, Julia Reilly, Jesse Hutch, and Gladys Knight
Official description: "A modern retelling of Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel."
Sleigh Bells and Sugar Plums
Premieres: Nov. 24, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Jill Wagner and Jesse Hutch
Official description: "A historian seeks inspiration for her next project in her family's hometown of Aurora, which is famous for experiencing the Northern Lights. While there, she bonds with a local tour guide who shows her the town's Christmas traditions and witnesses a harbinger of miracles to come."
I Heard the Bells
Premieres: commercial free, one-night-only presentation on Nov. 28, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Stephen Atherholt, Jonathan Blair, and Rachel Day Hughes
Official description: "I Heard the Bells is the inspiring true story behind the beloved Christmas carol and the song's author, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Known as America's Poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow leads an idyllic life... until the day his world is shattered by tragedy. With a nation divided by the Civil War and his family torn apart, Henry puts down his pen, silenced by grief. But it's the sound of Christmas morning that reignites the poet's lost voice as he discovers the resounding hope of rekindled faith."
A Cinderella Christmas Ball
Premieres: Nov. 29, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Danica McKellar and Oliver Rice
Official description: "With only the Internet, a plane ticket, and a lifelong determination to find her birth family, Chelsea travels to royal hamlet Havenshire at Christmas. Along the way, Chelsea sneaks into a castle, teaches a stubborn prince how to dance, and looks to be in the perfect place when the bells toll Christmas Eve."
Wreathmaker Christmas
Premieres: Nov. 30, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Kristin Wollett and Casey Elliott
Official description: "A wreath maker slips on ice and injures her arm, which puts her holiday wreath deliveries in jeopardy until a selfless neighbor steps up to keep her business afloat."
Home Sweet Christmas
Premieres: Dec. 1, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Candace Cameron Bure and Cameron Mathison
Official description: "Two former childhood friends reunite after a beloved family member passes, leaving the future of his magical maple sugar farm in their hands."
Once Upon a Christmas Wish
Premieres: Dec. 7, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Mario Lopez and Courtney Lopez
Official description: "A local mayor discovers his childhood Christmas wishes are coming true. With his childhood friend, the pair can inspire residents to showcase the town's warmth and values while pushing back a major developer's desire to take the community in a different direction."
Let It Snow
Premieres: Dec. 8, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Candace Cameron Bure, Jesse Hutch, and Alan Thicke
Official description: "An executive evaluates her company's property and begins to draw up plans for transforming the rustic old lodge into a hot tourist attraction."
Get Him Back for Christmas
Premieres: Dec. 14, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Alexa PenaVega and Carlos PenaVega, with special appearances by the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, Mario Lopez, Victoria Jackson, and Natasha Bure
Official description: "Bella made it big in music. Jack stayed behind in his hometown working at the Salvation Army to help his family after his dad passed. Bella returns home after a heartbreaking split with her chart-topping singing partner and asks Jack to write the perfect song to get her boyfriend back."
A Shelter and Season's Greetings
Premieres: Dec. 15, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Ash Tsai and Eric Guilmette
Official description: "Caleb is injured in the Army and recovers through help from shelter therapy dogs. As a sign of thanks, Caleb returns home to help Amber run the local shelter and, in the process, discovers his feelings for Amber go beyond gratitude."
Christmas by Candelight
Premieres: Dec. 21, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Erin Agostino and Harmon Walsh
Official description: "Juliet pitches Christmas candles to her boss to earn a promotion and enlists the help of a candle store owner, Tom, who refuses at first but reluctantly agrees when he realizes the money will help make his daughter's Christmas wish come true."
Coupled Up for Christmas
Premieres: Dec. 22, 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT
Cast: Sara Canning and Marcus Rosner
Official description: "Two heartbroken strangers pretend to be dating others to win the affection of their true soulmates."
Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.