Amanda Schull Launches Hallmark’s Christmas Countdown With Festive Romance

Amanda Schull is kicking off Hallmark’s holiday season with snowy scenery, a matchmaking scheme and a romantic challenge that took some serious coordination: kissing Victor Webster while wearing skis. ’Tis the Season for Setups, which premiered October 16, launches the network’s beloved Countdown to Christmas marathon with a multigenerational love story set at a mountain resort. But the fun goes beyond the screen. In an interview with Joshua Maloni for Niagara Frontier Publications, Schull shared the real-life encounter that foreshadowed her casting opposite Barbara Niven, the four-legged visitor who became an honorary cast member, and why these feel-good movies mean so much to her.

A Christmas Getaway Turns Into a Very Complicated Setup

Schull plays Lexi, a buttoned-up event planner hoping to connect with her free-spirited teenage daughter, Piper, played by Verity Marks. At the urging of her boisterous mother, June, Lexi heads to a holiday resort for Christmas break.

Rather than simply relaxing, she ends up organizing the resort’s big celebration alongside Ridge, Webster’s adventurous ski instructor. He means well, but his lack of achievement has left him living under the disapproving eye of his more successful father, Dan.

The Parents Are the Plan, but Romance Has Other Ideas

Lexi and Ridge decide that pairing off their parents might make their own lives easier. With Barbara Niven as June and John B. Lowe as Dan, the matchmaking plot gives the supporting cast plenty to do, while the two organizers start developing feelings themselves.

It’s a setup made for romantic comedy, but Schull found something more substantial underneath. Both Lexi and June have past marriages to reckon with, and those experiences shape how they approach the future. For Lexi, the bigger question is whether being dependable has become a role she no longer knows how to escape.

Barbara Niven’s Airport Prediction Actually Came True

One of the sweetest behind-the-scenes stories began long before filming. During the height of the pandemic, Schull was traveling to Canada for work when she spotted a masked woman carrying luggage into an Air Canada lounge.

With distancing precautions in place, nobody was offering the traveler a seat beside them. Schull moved her belongings and made room. The woman turned out to be Niven.

A Small Kindness Became a Full-Circle Moment

The actresses introduced themselves and chatted. Niven suggested that perhaps they’d someday play mother and daughter. When they reunited for the ’Tis the Season for Setups table read, Schull reminded her of that encounter.

The collaboration lived up to its promising beginning. Schull enjoyed their time together, including the long drives to and from work. Their shared history adds a lovely off-screen connection to a film about mothers, daughters and changing family relationships.

Dancing, a Dog and One Awkwardly Positioned Kiss

The cast’s chemistry wasn’t limited to scripted scenes. Schull and Marks spent time dancing behind the scenes, trying out choreography and making videos in their green-room area.

For anyone who remembers Schull’s breakout performance in Center Stage, that detail feels especially fitting. Before her extensive acting career, she danced professionally with the San Francisco Ballet.

Victor Webster Brought an Unofficial Costar

Webster also brought something extra to the set: his dog, Nova, who accompanied him to work every day. Schull considered Nova an honorary cast member, even without an on-screen role.

Then there was Webster’s height. Schull joked that managing a kiss with her tall costar while they were both on skis was a feat. That’s the kind of logistical detail that rarely makes it into the finished holiday fantasy, but it’s fun to imagine.

Why Hallmark Still Matters to an Actor With This Résumé

Schull arrived at this Christmas premiere after a year that also included appearances in The Pitt and Spider-Noir. Her career spans the scheming world of Suits, the time-travel stakes of 12 Monkeys, and recurring roles in One Tree Hill and Pretty Little Liars.

Her Hallmark credits are substantial, too, including Love, Once and Always, Project Christmas Wish, One Summer, Marry Go Round and The Blessing Bracelet. Still, she hasn’t lost her enthusiasm for the genre.

The Audience Reaction Is Its Own Reward

Schull explained that she’s happiest on set and loves exploring why people behave as they do. With Hallmark, there’s another kind of satisfaction: knowing the finished film can bring happiness into someone’s home.

She said people are especially delighted when she announces a Hallmark project. Leading the first movie of Countdown to Christmas feels like an honor, not just another credit. The film opens an 11-week marathon of round-the-clock holiday programming.

The Secret Behind Her Effortless On-Screen Moments

Schull also shared how she prepares for her performances. Before filming, she develops backstories and imagines small moments from a character’s earlier life.

Once she steps onto the set, though, she tries to stop thinking consciously about that preparation. She wants it to inform the character naturally, not dictate every gesture.

Doing the Homework Makes Room for the Magic

She described those fully absorbed moments as a creative flow, when a take or even an entire working day seems to disappear. Sometimes she doesn’t remember a particular choice until someone mentions it afterward.

That spontaneity doesn’t replace preparation. In Schull’s approach, it’s what preparation makes possible: understanding Lexi well enough to simply inhabit the moment.

Her Holiday Drink Verdict Is Decisive

The interview also settled a seasonal question: Schull is firmly on team hot chocolate. She does have one qualification, though: powdered packets don’t always meet the standard.

During a Paris trip for a One Tree Hill convention, revisiting a tiny hot-chocolate specialty shop was on her wish list. She remembered discovering it on her previous Paris visit in 2014, complete with a curtain leading into the back room.

Snowy Movie, Sunny Christmas Memories

Eggnog inspires considerably less enthusiasm. Schull would rather have hot chocolate, and her personal Christmas traditions are often warmer than the film’s snowy Banff scenery.

She recalled playing outdoor soccer with her son and visiting the beach at Christmas in Australia, where December falls in summer. Surprisingly, despite her wintry screen adventures, she said she didn’t think she’d ever experienced a snowy Christmas herself. For viewers craving that mountain-holiday feeling, ’Tis the Season for Setups offers an escape, with repeat showings on Hallmark Channel and Hallmark+ during the seasonal celebration.