Brooks Darnell Experiences an Unforgettable Vacation in Hallmark's "A Winter Getaway"

The timing was perfect after many months in lockdown quotWe were one of the few productions they let continue as there was a lockdown while we were therequot Darnell pictured at top told MediaVillage in an exclusive interview quotBut Hallmark and our producers really banded together and called in their contacts The Manitoban government was like 39We like these guys we39re going to keep rocking39 So a big thanks to them and Hallmark for not shelving it and for not saying they would come back in 2021 after things clear up They really wanted to make this moviequotIn the film Darnell stars as Joe a recently single computer tech treated to a lavish Banff getaway by his wealthy best friend Overseeing his every move is Courtney Contractor his personal concierge who is used to dealing with quotentitledquot clients But Joe is more of a quotcarry your own bagsquot kind of guy and very different from her usual clientele Traveling solo and not wanting to partake in any of the activities alone Joe invites Courtney along for his unforgettable ride As the two connect feelings form But following her strict quotnodatingclientsquot policy Courtney is determined to keep things strictly businessFor Darnell getting to experience the splendor of Banff and its surroundings was the icing on a dream job quotOur director Steve Monroe and the team really put an added layer to this moviequot he said quotGranted they had a lot of material work with Banff was just majestic The mountains just humble you so much and you don39t realize how small you are until you see things like that in nature Everything from the set pieces to the costumes was amazing and the whole movie is just beautifulquotInitially when I read the script the movie was supposed to be set in the Swiss and French Alpsquot Darnell revealed quotThe Alps would have been wonderful but having Banff as our location you won39t hear me complain I couldn39t stop taking pictures and I think everybody will get that from the movie I39m not a winter person which is why I spend my winters in California but I39d seriously consider for the Winter Wonderland part of it going to a place like Banff because it39s everything you want in the seasonquotAnother surprise element of the project that appealed to Darnell was what turned out to be very diverse casting that paints an accurate picture of the world we live in quotI39m even more diverse than I lookquot he shared quotMy grandma is white she39s about fourfoottwo and Irish Nanzeen who is Canadian Indian was a blast and so full of energy Why we meshed so well together is because we39re people and they wrote it for people They didn39t write it for a black guy or an Indian woman they wrote it for peoplequotThatamp8217s what I think was getting lost before and not just at Hallmark with everything diversitywisequot he continued quotYou don39t write for black or white and yes there are certain contexts but you write for peoplequot We39re all the same so if you write for people it can blend genre blend races sexuality so kudos to Hallmark for getting that I39m always a big proponent of change in advancement and taking a stance on that Hallmark has done well with this filmquotAfter living so nicely courtesy of A Winter Getaway Darnell admitted it39s something he could get used to However he39ll always stay grounded quotI39m the guy who39s like 39Let39s pay a company to carry our stuff and then invite the driver the pilot and the housekeeper in39quot he shared quotI39m like my character Joe in that sense We learned this past year it39s about our nurses first responders doctors and our guy at the grocery store who has a family at home but is still there around a million people a day and making sure the groceries come in at night and the shelves are stocked so you can get up in the morning get food and stay healthy My mom is the same way We39re just open people who feel the love I don39t think I could be any other wayquotHe39s also appreciative of the Hallmarkies who have embraced him and looks forward to their advice as to what his next Hallmark project should be Hint His fingers are crossed for a sequel quotIamp8217d love to further these characters39 adventuresquot he said in closing quotThe Hallmark fans are amazing Not only do they follow the films they follow the Hallmark lifestyle Sometimes they know before I do about things that are happening I39ll get messages and I39m like 39This hasn39t been announced yet How do they know39 They39re just on it with so much love it makes you want to do the next moviequotA Winter Getaway will be telecast Saturday January 23 at 8 pm on Hallmark Channel as part of its New Year New Movies programming eventClick the social buttons above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

Click to Make Your 2025 Contribution to Support the MediaVillage Education Foundation

Brooks Darnell Experiences an Unforgettable Vacation in Hallmark's "A Winter Getaway"

Author

Publish date

Channel

Archived in

Steve Gidlow

Jim Lecinski | Clinical Marketing Professor | The Insomnia Cookies Case - The GOST Model Taught at Northwestern - By Mike Linton

More Videos:

Click to Make Your 2025 Contribution to Support the MediaVillage Education Foundation

Brooks Darnell Experiences an Unforgettable Vacation in Hallmark's "A Winter Getaway"

Enjoying This Commentary? There's More to Love

Steve Gidlow

Jim Lecinski | Clinical Marketing Professor | The Insomnia Cookies Case - The GOST Model Taught at Northwestern - By Mike Linton

The payment was successful

Cookies