Alison Sweeney’s face is a familiar one to any fan of the Hallmark Channel, but this year has been especially busy for the actress. Just five months into the 2026 TV schedule, we’ve already seen her star in Romance at Hope Ranch (where her daughter made her acting debut) and two Hannah Swensen Mysteries. Sweeney spoke to CinemaBlend recently, and I had to ask if we’ll see more of her on this year’s Hallmark schedule — say, around Christmas time, maybe?
Alison Sweeney’s latest project Best Served Cold: A Hannah Swensen Mystery premiered earlier this month and marked her 14th movie in the franchise. It also served as her third offering for Hallmark this year so far, with previous releases coming in February and March. How on earth is she spitting these movies out so quickly? She told me:
I know, it's a lot! It's so funny how it comes in groups like that. Like last year I was sort of working all throughout the year, and then they just save them up for when they're gonna air them. Luckily, that's not my job. I just go along with whatever they want.
OK, so Alison Sweeney apparently spent last year churning out movies, and I’m imagining Hallmark with a stockpile of options that they can slot in for whatever appropriate holiday throughout the year — or when Hallmark audiences are in need of a new delicious mystery to solve!
As for whether or not any of those projects in the stockpile are themed for the holidays, Alison Sweeney couldn’t confirm or deny, but I’m keeping my hopes up given how special she knows the Countdown to Christmas is. She said:
I love making Christmas movies for Hallmark. I really enjoy coming up with new ideas, working with really talented people that I get to have access to and get to work with at Hallmark. Hopefully that gets to come out, especially at Christmas time, because I think those are sort of the highlight of the year. So I'm very much looking forward to, hopefully, getting to be a part of your Christmas, your favorite time of the year.
It’s only May, so we’ve still got a while before we can start thinking too hard about this year’s Christmas slate. But that doesn’t mean we don’t have at least a little info. Lacey Chabert — Alison Sweeney’s co-star in The Wedding Veil trilogies — is teaming up with Disney World for Holiday Ever After: A Disney World Wish Come True, which will be part of the 2026 Countdown to Christmas.
I’m excited to see what else is coming our way — not just for the holidays, but for the months leading up to it. How many more times will we see Alison Sweeney? We’ll have to wait and see!
If you missed it the first time around, you can catch Best Served Cold: A Hannah Swensen Mystery at 8 p.m. ET Friday, May 22, on Hallmark or streaming on Hallmark+.
