The Hallmark star talks to ET about her new film and offers early teases to the upcoming season of 'WCTH.'
Erin Krakow has weddings on the brain! In her latest Hallmark Channel romance, the When Calls the Heart star and network staple stars in The Wedding Cottage, where Krakow plays wedding guide creator Vanessa Doyle, who has the tall task of convincing an uninspired artist and owner of a wedding cottage, Evan Stanford (Chesapeake Shores' Brendan Penny), to renovate it in time in order to host a dream wedding for a contest-winning couple.
Filmed just outside of Vancouver, near the When Calls the Heart compound, the love story charts the main characters' "oil-and-water" dynamic as it gradually evolves into an enchanting romance and their prejudices about each other begin to thaw.
"It's really refreshing to get to see more of a glimpse into what these relationships might look like and getting to see them solidify maybe a little bit earlier in the movie so that we get to live in that dynamic with them and enjoy the romance. And we get to see that in The Wedding Cottage," Krakow told ET ahead of the film's Saturday's premiere. (Watch ET's exclusive sneak peek from The Wedding Cottage above.)
"I think it's really exciting to see all of the ways that Hallmark is growing and making change in their programming, in movies and the series world. They're continuing to evolve, of course, in really positive ways," she added.
Pay a visit to Krakow's Instagram page and it's filled with behind-the-scenes shenanigans on the set of The Wedding Cottage with Penny and her castmates. The actress noted that the process of making this particular film, directed by Hallmark veteran Terry Ingram, is wholly reflected in those silly Instagram videos. "It was great. I have zero complaints. It was just so much fun," she recalled of the experience. "I would go home at night feeling like I'd just taken a core class because my abs would hurt from laughing. We all just got along really, really well."
As Krakow explains, this Hallmark film adds a "different" flavor when it comes to romance and relationships when compared to her previous movies.
"They're all a little different, right? But in this case, what I really appreciated was getting to see just how much their dynamic changed over the course of one movie," she said, speaking specifically to Vanessa and Evan's journey. "We really got to see Vanessa and Evan in lots of different situations together. Their feelings evolved, the way they spoke to each other changed, how helpful they wanted to be to each other. There's a lot of growth throughout the movie, and so their changing relationship became like another character within it, and that was really fun to get to explore."
The location itself, a "charming" cottage not too far from Vancouver, was also enough to make the experience memorable for Krakow, who marveled at the home's original decor and atmosphere.
"This home was just full of the most gorgeous tapestries and antiques," she remembered, "and we had to be super careful not to mess anything up, especially because our incredible art department and set dec team had to really break down the look of the home. They were installing some wallpaper just to peel it away again to make it look like it was in really rough shape. But they had to be super careful about the way they did this, to maintain the beauty and integrity of this home. It's so stunning. It's just so charming. I felt like I was in a storybook."
Without veering into spoiler territory, the ending to the film also leaves open the possibility of a sequel. Krakow acknowledged conversations about a potential follow-up film did take place amongst the cast and crew.
"It certainly crossed people's minds. There was a lot of talk of, 'Oh, I wonder if there could be a sequel,' or, 'It feels like there's more to this story,'" she revealed. "So I would be thrilled to continue living in that world. And if there's a will, there's a way. So we'll see if the movie resonates for the fans. If they love it and they want more of it, they should speak up and tell Hallmark because we're a part of a network that really listens to their fans. If that's important to them, then yeah, let us know."
While Krakow strictly put on the acting hat for this film, she's been an executive producer on When Calls the Heart for the majority of its run. Content with her extracurricular responsibilities on the beloved drama, she's "gently" considering exercising her producing muscles outside of the series, and possibly even directing or writing.
"The acting and producing on When Calls, it takes up a lot of my time. I was sharing with Brendan the other day that this has been refreshing and really challenging for me -- to just show up, do my part as an actor on The Wedding Cottage and then step away and let everyone else handle post. It took a lot of surrendering, just going, 'OK, no, I don't have any control over this. I don't have any say. I'm just going to show up, do the best I can, and then set it and forget it,'" she admitted. "But producing has been really enjoyable for me on When Calls. And I would certainly be interested in exercising a new muscle with directing or maybe even writing someday. That's something that is of interest to me, absolutely."
Segueing to When Calls the Heart, Krakow credited the Hearties for digging in for the long wait to July 30 when season 10 officially kicks off.
"It is quite the countdown and I got to give it to our fans! They are sticking with us, they're loyal and they're super patient, because we are all aware that this is a particularly long wait between season 9 and season 10. What I can say is, it's really going to be worth the wait," she promised. "It's an incredible season with a lot going on -- some new characters, some new romance, some drama. There's some really funny moments. There's a new baby coming. There is a lot happening in season 10. It's a big season and we're reaching our 100th episode. I feel it is, and I hope it is, worth the wait for our very patient Hearties."
As for the aforementioned 100th hour, Krakow agreed it's increasingly more rare to reach the milestone. "I am so grateful, because you're right, it is a harder thing to achieve with shorter seasons, as we have," she said. "We're super lucky to have the support of a network who believes in us and in the longevity of our show and hopefully, we can make it to 150 episodes or 200 episodes. Let's go for it; make it happen."
And what awaits Elizabeth and Lucas as they embark on their journey as an engaged couple in season 10 following Lucas' romantic proposal? "I can say that in true Lucas fashion, he sets up a very romantic and elegant date night for them. So there's that to look forward to," Krakow teased, adding that the pair also "do some wedding cake tasting."
With the new season still three months away, Krakow and her When Calls the Heart family are gearing up to begin work on season 11, with filming being eyed for a late June start.
"Our showrunner is hard at work. I know that production is getting things in motion to get started. As always, I'm looking forward to getting back to Hope Valley and reuniting with our cast and crew," Krakow said. "It's going to be another very exciting season. And it's also going to be really a unique experience for us that season 10 will be airing while season 11 is filming. So maybe I can get more people to live-tweet as it airs. I'll invite them over. I'll say, 'We're going to have a cast game night' or something, and then trick them all and say, 'You have to live-tweet! That's the game.'"
The Wedding Cottage airs Saturday, April 15 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Hallmark Channel.
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