What Hallmark's Boss Has To Say About Candace Cameron Bure's Departure

Hallmark Channel fans were shocked when Candace Cameron Bure announced that she was leaving the network to sign an exclusive deal with GAC Family. Over a decade, the former "Full House" star appeared in more than two dozen Hallmark movies, including "A Shoe Addict's Christmas," "If I Only Had Christmas," "Switched for Christmas," and "Journey Back to Christmas," per IMDb. She also appeared on the channel as librarian Aurora Teagarden in the "Aurora Teagarden Mysteries" series.

In 2022 Bure decided to move to Hallmark's biggest competitor. According to US Weekly, GAC Family's content focuses on faith and family, which played a role in Bure's decision to join the channel. "I'm very excited to develop heartwarming family and faith-filled programming and make the kind of stories my family and I love to watch," Bure explained in a statement to the public. "I am constantly looking for ways that I can inspire people to live life with purpose. GAC fits my brand perfectly; we share a vision of creating compelling, wholesome content for an audience who wants to watch programming for and with the whole family."

Bure isn't the only actor who chose to jump ship. Trevor Donovan, Danica McKellar, Jen Lilley, and other stars have also moved from Hallmark to GAC. Yet Hallmark's boss doesn't seem too concerned about losing some of its biggest stars.

Although several of its stars have left for GAC Family, Hallmark's Lisa Hamilton Daly is excited about the network's future. The executive vice president of programming spoke at the Television Critics Association press conference about the departure of Candace Cameron Bure, Danica McKellar, and more — and she doesn't seem too worried (via Yahoo).

"We've kept a lot of our talent under options, say for Christmas movies. We're looking for new talent all the time. I think there's a lot of talent out there that we've worked with in the past that GAC is now working with, but I think that we also are constantly trying to evolve the talent pool that we're working with," Daly said. "We have, I think, retained almost everybody that we're really excited to have."

President and CEO Wonya Lucas pointed out that many of its stars work with other networks and streaming services, including Netflix and Lifetime, but the family atmosphere keeps them coming back to Hallmark. "They have a great relationship, and that's the secret sauce we have as Hallmark," she added.

As the network looks to the future, Hallmark has already announced its "Countdown to Christmas" and "Miracles of Christmas" lineups for 2022. These will include its first Christmas movie centered on an LGBTQ couple and Lacey Chabert's record-breaking 12th Hallmark Christmas movie, per Variety.

Despite losing some of its mainstays, the Hallmark Channel has managed to hold on to quite a few of its most popular stars. Lacey Chabert — who has appeared in almost 30 movies for the channel – signed an exclusive deal to star in and executive produce movies and other content for Hallmark and its other platforms over the next two years, according to Variety. "My experience at Hallmark, a home to me for over ten years now, has been wonderful, and it's beyond rewarding to create characters and develop stories that resonate so strongly with viewers," Chabert said. "I'm also incredibly grateful to Crown's programming team for supporting me as a producer and empowering me to develop and star in projects that bring my passion and creative vision to life."

Other actors who have signed deals with Hallmark include Chabert's "Mean Girls" costar Jonathan Bennett, as well as Holly Robinson Peete, Andrew Walker, Heather Hemmens, and Luke Macfarlane, per CinemaBlend.