The Hallmark Channel staple, led by Erin Krakow, is returning for another season!
Hope Valley is sticking around.
In news that will surprise no one, Hallmark Channel has ordered an eighth season of its popular hour-long drama, When Calls the Heart. The pickup was revealed Sunday following the season 7 finale by leading lady Erin Krakow, who made the announcement in a special video.
"From my heart and home to yours, I am thrilled to announce the all new season 8 of When Calls the Heart coming next year," Krakow said in the message. "We can't wait to see you back in Hope Valley."
While it's unclear when production will kick up again with the current coronavirus pandemic affecting productions worldwide, there is still a lot to look forward to when season 8 does return to the airwaves.
Sunday's season 7 finale ended on a bit of a romantic cliffhanger when Elizabeth (Krakow), after mistakenly believing that Nathan (Kevin McGarry) had been shot, hugged him when she saw that he hadn't been. And Lucas (Chris McNally), watching from afar, could only look on. With Elizabeth landing a publishing deal and being well on her way to success, will she get closer to making a decision between Nathan and Lucas?
ET's Deidre Behar caught up with Krakow, along with McGarry and McNally, over Zoom to get their reactions to returning for another round.
"I hope more of the same, and that we'll get to continue to deepen these relationships and storylines," Krakow said of what she hopes season 8 will bring. "I'm so glad that the show continues to resonate for so many people -- even in its seventh season. It's amazing and it's a real gift to all of us that we get to continue to work on a show with such longevity."
The 35-year-old actress, who is also a co-executive producer on When Calls the Heart, admitted there is a feeling of "relief" knowing that the show will be back. "And I'm also so excited because I feel like we still have a lot more stories to tell," she shared. "Our cast and crew are some of my best friends. And so I'm really looking forward to getting to spend more 16-hour days together."
McGarry and McNally, who joined the series in season 6, were equally excited about the series' future.
"We didn't sink the ship, so that feels pretty good," McGarry joked. "I think it's great. I think it's amazing to be part of something that has moved and touched so many people. Like Erin said, coming on to a cast that you really genuinely like and it doesn't even feel like work. With season 8 going, it's just gonna be... I'm very happy. I'm very happy to keep going with this story and this cast."
"I'm very thankful and grateful," McNally said. "For me personally, I'm very grateful to be able to have a job again this year... whenever we are able to with COVID. But I'm just very appreciative. On the other side of that, I'm excited because, like Kevin said, it doesn't feel like work. I think everybody on this show gets along very well. And you're really just going to hang out with your friends and do something that we all really love to do. I'm thrilled."
To stay up to date on breaking TV news, sign up for ET's daily newsletter.
RELATED CONTENT:
