A Christmas Miracle, which will premiere Nov. 14 at 9 p.m. on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, stars Tia Mowry-Housley and Darnell, as well as legend Barry Bostwick. In this movie, Markus (Darnell) is a creatively stifled hotshot working at a trendy magazine company as a photographer who is looking to move onto something new. The company has hired Emma (Mowry-Housley) to help bring in new and fresh ideas for the magazine. As the office “grinch,” Markus is hesitant to be a team player and accept the new hire until he sees her ideas being claimed by someone else at the company. Coming together and growing closer as they continue to work together, Markus and Emma discover the “true meaning and importance of the holidays.” The idea for the film came from Mowry-Housley, who also executive produced it. “Last January I met with an amazing producer [Stephanie Germain], with whom I share an agent, and presented my idea," The Real cohost told MediaVillage. “My husband was a journalist, so I wanted to play a writer, and the story had to center around a single mother. We came up with the story, I pitched it to Hallmark, they loved it and bam, we started shooting in late August. We did it!” You probably recognize Darnell from the small-screen already. The Ohio native has played Dr. Nate Hastings on The Young and The Restless since 2018. But this was nothing like working on a soap opera. “Film and TV are marathons, you pace it. Soaps can be sprints,” he told Parade.com. This movie is not only different from soap operas; Mowry-Housley prides herself on how “different” it is as a holiday flick. “That was the appeal for me and what I was aiming for,” she told MediaVillage. For one, the main character is a single mom. “We’ve talked to a lot of single moms on The Real, so it was important to create a story, not only for moms and the families that love Christmas, but a story specifically for single moms that gave them a sense of hope and just let them know that I see you, and you’ve got this,” Mowry-Housley said. “It’s a very diverse film,” she added. “Being a cohost on The Real I know how important it is to have representation, because it matters, and I wanted the film to portray that.” Darnell agrees. He said he and Mowry-Housley bonded over the opportunity to represent this “shift” when it comes to diversity in holiday movies. Darnell says that this isn’t just a hope for change, but that he sees A Christmas Miracle as a “win.” Parade.com spoke to the actor about diversity in Christmas movies and how to master the holiday season. Are you a fan of holiday movies? What is your favorite Christmas/holiday movie ever? I’m a huge fan of holiday movies! Until November 14th, it’s Home Alone II Lost in New York; it’s not Christmas without it. As of November 15th, A Christmas Miracle is the gold standard! Did you watch a ton of Hallmark Christmas movies to sort of get a feel for the content? I didn’t have to because my whole family watches Hallmark movies. We’re all so familiar with Hallmark movies that, as a matter of fact, my mom and aunt knew when Hallmark announced A Christmas Miracle online before I did! How do you feel about Christmas? Do you relate to the “Grinch” character you portray at all? Not at all, I’m the total opposite. I’m more like the “mayor of Whoville.” Selfishly, I love giving gifts. How was it working with Tamera? What was the best thing about working with her? Tamera is hands down the most positive person I know. She’s so full of life and brilliant on camera. We came up with so much great stuff together and were able to lean on each other from the very first scene. When I was ill for a few days while shooting, she was right there making sure I was taken care of. She taught me how to run a business. I’m “an artist that has a few people working for him,” but she has a whole production. A Christmas Miracle, The Real, two homes, staff, the reality show, her teams, Housley wines and commitments I might be unaware of. She has mastered being a “business/brand.” Movie sets often breed wonderful and lifelong bonds. Did that happen for you and Tamera? If so, what was it that you bonded over? The paradigm shift in diversity in our industry and how excited we were for this opportunity Hallmark gave us. We took the responsibility very seriously to bring in stellar numbers for the network. It was our top priority every day. A Christmas Miracle is a great example of this shift. This movie has a brilliant executive producer named Stephanie Germain, and two BLACK leads. Hallmark did a wonderful job with inclusion. All we’re missing is a partridge in a pear tree!! But then again, I haven’t seen the full edit so the movie may have that as well! What did it mean to you to work on this film, knowing the part it plays in this diversity shift? Everything. We have to mirror the world we live in. Being the lead in this movie is proof we’re moving in the right direction. It’ll show that Christmas stories can be diverse and still bring in amazing numbers! Back to Christmas. How do you spend the holidays? The last couple holidays were spent working up until Christmas. This year I’ll go back to the normal tradition of giving back. Service to others is very important to me. What’s one holiday tradition you partake in every year? Baking and eating as many Trader Joes chocolate chip cookies while watching Home Alone (one and two). I also love making my backup gift list for people. My back up list is the presents I think they’ll like in case the present I actually got them is a fail! You seem to be a holiday master, especially when it comes to gifting. Any tips or secrets you can share when it comes to shopping for others, besides having the backup gift? Yes, I am! I know this seems counterintuitive, but I recommend waiting until the last minute to go shopping. It forces you to use your heart to shop instead of spending time thinking about the price of a gift or the size, and whether someone will like it. You only have your instincts. Can’t get enough of Christmas on TV?Lifetime’s holiday movie schedule has given us immense Christmas cheer.
