The Most Tragic Details About Your Favorite Hallmark Stars

The following article includes references to substance abuse, mass violence, and child loss.

Hallmark Channel is renowned for its feel-good romantic comedies, annual list of holiday movies, and roster of stars. As fans already know, the films are carefully crafted to bring viewers out of their doldrums by depicting a delightful world of bucolic small towns populated with gorgeous people, where love always conquers all, no matter the obstacles. 

Viewers may not realize it, but Hallmark holiday movies are typically filmed in the summer, with winter manufactured courtesy of Hollywood fakery. Yet for the films' stars, recreating Christmas allows them to experience the magic of the holidays during a whole other part of the year. "You get into the Christmas spirit because you literally walk into a winter wonderland each and every day," Hallmark perennial Alexa PenaVega told Today.com.

PenaVega and the other actors who appear in these made-for-TV movies tend to become associated with these emotionally uplifting projects, but their real lives aren't nearly as picture-perfect as those of the characters they play onscreen. The following Hallmark stars have experienced surprising tragedies.

Known for such Hallmark Channel fare as "Reunited at Christmas" and the "Curious Caterer" film series, Nikki DeLoach is also a mother of two. As she revealed in a gut-wrenching interview with The Retaility, during her second pregnancy, doctors told her that her unborn son had severe heart defects that would require open-heart surgery shortly after birth. "I knew that he had an 11 percent chance of surviving his first surgery at five days old, but we didn't know what condition he was going to be in when he was born," she recalled. 

As predicted, Deloach's son Bennet faced major health issues, undergoing that serious surgery days after being born; however, he beat the odds and survived. Still, the next two weeks were brutal for DeLoach, as she and her husband remained by their newborn's side. "They had to leave his heart open for a few days so I could literally see my son's heart beating outside his chest," she told People. 

Caring for her son forced her to pause her acting career. "I couldn't go to Canada and do a show for six months," she told The Retaility. "That wasn't an option. My whole career — everything that I had worked so hard to build my whole life — shifted. ... Everything stopped." Instead, she pivoted to writing scripts, which allowed her to work while remaining at home. As of late 2024, she has co-written four TV movies.

Before joining Great American Family in 2023, Cameron Mathison enjoyed a long association with Hallmark Channel. In addition to starring in numerous movies over the years, he co-hosted Hallmark's branded talk show, "Home & Family." Before shocking fans with news of the network change, he startled them with an announcement about his health.

In a since-deleted Instagram post, he revealed he'd been diagnosed with kidney cancer. "About a month ago, I had an MRI for some gut issues I've been having, and during that MRI they found a tumor on my right kidney," he wrote in September 2019 (via People). "It's consistent with Renal Cell Carcinoma ... or kidney cancer." He continued by revealing that the cancer hadn't spread to any other organs, and that he was "optimistic" about his prognosis. After undergoing surgery, Mathison was deemed to be cancer-free. 

Meanwhile, Mathison's personal life experienced further sadness in 2024, when he and his wife, Vanessa, revealed they were divorcing after 22 years of marriage. While the split was reportedly amicable, Mathison was clearly on unfamiliar terrain. Discussing the situation with Us Weekly, he admitted, "It's like a new chapter for everybody in our life. We're just trying to figure it all out."

Once known for co-starring in TV sitcom "Sister, Sister" alongside twin sister Tia Mowry when they were teenagers, actor Tamera Mowry-Housley joined the Hallmark family in 2019, starring in "A Christmas Miracle." 

The year prior to her Hallmark entry, Mowry-Housley and husband Adam Housley suffered a sad loss when their niece, Alaina Housley, was a victim in a mass shooting. While a student at Malibu's Pepperdine University, she was one of 12 people murdered when a gunman opened fire in a bar. "Our hearts are broken," the couple said in a statement they issued to CNN. "We just learned that our niece Alaina was one of the victims of last night's shooting at Borderline bar in Thousand Oaks. Alaina was an incredible young woman with so much life ahead of her and we are devastated that her life was cut short in this manner. We thank everyone for your prayers and ask for privacy at this time."

Mowry-Housely paid tribute to her slain niece in a heart-wrenching post she shared via Instagram. "We think of you daily. We miss you immensely," she wrote in the caption. "We love you. Forever." The Hallmark star further honored her niece by founding a charity in her memory, Alaina's Voice. 

If you have been impacted by incidents of mass violence, or are experiencing emotional distress related to incidents of mass violence, you can call or text Disaster Distress Helpline at 1-800-985-5990 for support.

Fans of Hallmark Channel movies will recall actor Peter Porte from "A Gift to Remember" and "Rome in Love," romance films that preceded Porte's entrance and unexpected exit from "Days of Our Lives." Porte was lucky to have acted at all following a serious accident he endured while riding his Vespa scooter in Los Angeles. Hit by a car, he was sent flying and came down hard on his ankle, completely shattering the bone. 

"I was lying there and the adrenaline was just pumping like crazy, so it didn't hurt like I thought it would. Then I was scoping out the situation and that's when I saw my ankle was on top of my foot. It was at this horrible position, and then I pressed on my calf and I felt a pop. It ended up breaking in four different places," he said in an interview with Soap Opera Digest.

The star required surgery, which forced him to pause his acting for awhile. He was forced to turn down several projects while he recuperated, but happily, Porte made a full recovery. He was excited when he was able to return to the Hallmark fold. "It really is like a family," he observed. "They take very good care of everyone."

Since making her first Hallmark Channel movie in 2010, Lacey Chabert has gone on to appear in upwards of 40 of them. If Hallmark ever starts handing our MVP awards, Chabert is definitely a lock!

While starring in so many feel-good TV movies must have rubbed off on her, Chabert experienced tragedy in 2021. As she revealed in an Instagram post, her beloved sister died suddenly and unexpectedly. "My beautiful sister, Wendy. Our hearts are shattered into a million pieces that I don't know how we will ever put back together again now that you're gone," she wrote in the caption, accompanying a school photo of her sister dated 1994. "We love and adore you more than we can ever say, and we will continue to forever and ever and ever. The shocking loss has left us, so broken hearted," she added. 

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Later, Chabert issued another post to reveal she was still in deep mourning. "I can't believe it's been over two months since I've been able to hear my sister's voice," she wrote, this time sharing a photo of herself and her late sister when they were young children. "I still reach for my phone 10 times a day to text or call her before I remember that I can't." During a subsequent appearance on the "You Are Beautiful with Lawrence Zarian" podcast, Chabert divulged that her sister's death had been caused by a heart attack.

Before making her mark as a Hallmark star, Josie Bissett had already gained fame as a member of the cast of "Melrose Place," one of TV's most successful primetime soaps. On Hallmark, though, Bissett has enjoyed big success recently by reuniting with her one-time "Melrose Place" co-star Jack Wagner in "The Wedding March," which has spawned three sequels, as of this writing.

Bissett was enjoying the perks of her Hollywood success, which included the beautiful home she shared with her family — until the entire place was consumed by flames. As Bissett recalled while appearing on "Oprah: Where Are They Now?" she was in her bedroom in June 2015 when she heard a loud noise. The propane tank in her backyard barbecue unexpectedly exploded. "The fire spread faster ... there was nothing we could do," she said, remembering how she watched helplessly as her home burned to the ground, describing the experience as "horrific." 

While losing her home and all her possessions was beyond traumatic, she learned to look at things in a new light later. "The silver lining is that I met Tom," she told First for Women, revealing that she first encountered her future spouse, Thomas Doig, when he was a neighbor while she stayed in a condo during her house's reconstruction.

As fans of Hallmark's Kristoffer Polaha know, he's the star of the "Mystery 101" film franchise and plenty of Christmas movies. Yet a freak accident in his youth threatened to derail Polaha's acting before it ever got off the ground.

While appearing on the "Billy & Justin" podcast, Polaha recalled walking in New York with a friend in 1997 when a nearby building exploded, leading him to be showered with shrapnel — including a piece of glass that sliced through his face. Polaha was rushed to the ER, where he received 120 stitches — most of them to his face. "Long story short, the fire marshal when we were in the emergency room said, 'You guys should have been decapitated ... you should not be here right now and the fact that you are is a miracle,'" he recalled.

With his face scarred, he feared his dreams of becoming an actor had ended. "I don't have the face for acting anymore. I'm done," he remembered thinking at the time. Over time, though, the scar became less noticeable and didn't hamper the successful acting career that led him to Hallmark. As Polaha explained in an guest column he wrote for The Hollywood Reporter, he's proud to be associated with Hallmark Channel's family-friendly fare. "As an actor, I am leaning into Hallmark because it's fun to sit with my seven-year-old and show him what I do for a living," he wrote.

Alicia Witt was known for playing the spunky teenage daughter of Cybill Shepherd's character on 1990s TV sitcom "Cybill" before eventually making her way to the Hallmark Channel. In addition to starring in various Hallmark Christmas flicks ("I'm Not Ready for Christmas," "The Mistletoe Inn," and "Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane," for example), Witt has also carved out a parallel career as a singer and songwriter. 

Sadly, Witt found herself in the headlines during the 2021 holiday season for a tragic reason. Having not heard from her parents for a while and being unable to get in touch with them, Witt decided to take action. "I reached out to a cousin who lives close to my parents to check on them. Sadly, the outcome was unimaginable," she wrote in a statement obtained by USA Today, confirming the heartbreaking death of her parents, Robert and Diane Witt, who were both found dead in their home.

Further investigation revealed that the heating system in her parents' home wasn't functioning and hadn't been for some time. When temperatures dropped during a cold snap, Alicia's parents were unable to keep warm. The coroner's report subsequently revealed that 87-year-old Robert and 75-year-old Diane's deaths were due to "probable cardiac dysrhythmia" because of the cold, reported People. Alicia detailed in a Facebook post following he parents' death, "Every time I offered to have something repaired for them, they refused to allow workers into their house. I begged, cried, tried to reason with them, tried to convince them to let me help them move. ... It was not for a lack of trying on my part, or the part of other people who loved them."

Jodie Sweetin was just a kid when she skyrocketed to fame as Stephanie Tanner on hit sitcom "Full House," launching her on a career path that led to numerous Hallmark Channel movies (including her "Jane Mysteries" movie franchise). Sadly, though, Sweetin also endured the struggles often associated with child stardom. She succumbed to the lure of drugs and alcohol, and wound up spiraling into a 15-year period of substance abuse. "I wanted to prove that I could get more trashed than anyone. There were times I did so much coke, I'd be there laying there, getting sick and thinking 'I'm going to die.' But I didn't care," she admitted to Us Weekly. 

A particularly low point came when she snorted meth in the bathroom while attending the premiere of a film starring "Full House" co-stars Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. As she recalled, she was masterful at holding herself together so that casual observers had no idea of the extent of her drug use. "It was hard for people to believe I was doing that much drugs," she said. "I look at photos from that event, and I didn't even look strung out!"

Sweetin ultimately turned her life around when she learned she could lose custody of her children. "From that day forward, I threw myself into going to AA [Alcoholics Anonymous] and avoided people who do blow off their coffee tables," she said. The star has been sober since 2008.

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

Niall Matter has become a Hallmark Channel fan favorite, thanks to starring opposite Candace Cameron Bure in the "Aurora Teagarden Mysteries" movies and appearing onscreen with country music legend Dolly Parton in the Hallmark film set in Dollywood, aptly titled "Christmas at Dollywood." Prior to his career taking off, Matter worked on oil rigs in his native Alberta during the summers in order to support himself while launching himself as an actor in Vancouver. 

That plan hit a huge snag when Niall Matter was in a life-changing accident on an oil rig. According to Matter, he nearly died while inside a drilling rig cab that was crushed. "They had to rip me out of there. It was pretty awful. It was horrific actually," he recalled in an interview with the Chicago Tribune. "I got to the hospital and the doctor immediately wanted to amputate my right leg." Thankfully, physicians were able to save his badly damaged leg, but his recovery was long and difficult. "It took me about six months to learn how to walk again," he recalled. 

Thankfully, acting wasn't out of the cards following his recovery. "I came back to Vancouver [and] ... after a month of working as a bartender I ended up booking my very first lead role," he added. "I have not quit working ever since."

Vancouver-based Mamie Laverock got her start as a child actor, appearing in TV series including "Psych," and "A Series of Unfortunate Events." That led to her being cast in a recurring role in Hallmark Channel hit series "When Calls the Heart" as Rosaleen Sullivan, beginning in the series' first season in 2014 and then returning for the 10th season in 2023. 

In May 2024, Laverock was in a Vancouver hospital being treated after she fell from a fifth-story balcony. Her injuries were so severe that she was placed on life support. "Her body has been shattered. She has undergone two 11-hour surgeries with two doctors working on her, a three hour surgery and another surgery today," her family wrote in a GoFundMe effort they launched. "Her recovery is unclear at this time but she is alive and is showing signs of improvement," the family added.

Laverock made a miraculous recovery, revealed in a brief video she shared to Facebook a few months later in which she thanked fans for all the cards they'd sent her. Meanwhile, another Facebook post featured a photo of Laverock using a walker to get around, indicating that her healing journey was well underway.

Alexa and Carlos PenaVega have carved out a rare distinction for themselves at the Hallmark Channel in that they're the only real-life spouses who regularly co-star in Hallmark Channel movies as each other's love interests. Having married in 2014, the couple started a family with the arrival of their first child two years later. They went on to have two more kids and in 2023, they excitedly announced they were expecting a fourth. 

When the big day finally arrived, the couple took to Instagram to share the devastating news. "There are never the right words to say when it comes to a loss," they wrote, revealing their daughter, whom they named Indy, had been stillborn. 

Less than two months later, the couple discussed their tragic loss during an interview with Fox News. "It doesn't make sense. It's beyond understanding. Because after it all happened, obviously we were devastated. It was heartbreaking," Alexa said, crediting their faith for carrying them through such a difficult experience.