Lori Loughlin is returning to the small screen just in time for the holidays.
With season two of When Hope Calls scheduled to kick off Dec. 18 on GAC Family, fans will watch the actress reprise her role as Abigail Stanton, whom she played from 2014 to 2019 on When Calls the Heart.
According to showrunner Alfonso Moreno, Lori's return just in time for a special Christmas episode was quite the gift.
"I've worked on season 5 and 6 [of When Calls the Heart] with Lori and worked closely with her. To be able to bring her back here was just in many ways seamless," he exclusively shared with E! News. "I established the character of Lillian [Morgan Kohan] coming into the town with Grace [Jocelyn Hudon] in a Christmas episode in [a past season]. She knew them already so it was seamless to bring her into this world. The first episode is organic in how she does come back and she fits in right away into this world."
Alfonso added, "It was just fun to bring them back. I could see again a lot of stories that I could be telling with Abigail in that world."
In what could only be described as some holiday magic, Lori's return was finalized rather quickly. When having a conversation with executive producer Brad Krevoy about creating a "really interesting" Christmas show, Lori and her character came up.
After chatting with Lori in September 2021, the writing process kicked into high gear leading to a festive kick off for season two nearly three months later.
When Lori made her way back on set, Alfonso said she was welcomed with open arms. "It was the first time I'd seen her in two or three years," he recalled. "From the first day, I think she just felt very welcomed and obviously knows this character and so I think she just had fun."
The executive producer, who has also worked on Drop Dead Diva and NCIS, added, "She's just such a pro that it wasn't particularly emotional so much as it was back to work."
Lori exited the original show in the wake of the college admissions scandal, and later plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud. She completed her two-month sentence in December 2020.
Another storyline fans can look forward to is the reunion between Jack Thornton (Daniel Lissing) and Abigail. "It was [Lori's] idea and I just thought it was fantastic," he said. "When you see it play out, I just feel like it really works on a lot of different levels."
Alfonso said he got "teary eyed" writing their scene and watching it being filmed: "I'm pretty sure, for the loyal Hearty audience, that they're going to be moved by it."
And according to Alfonso, there could be even more surprises in store that fans won't see coming. "We do plan to bring in other actors because it's just again, if bringing it means there'll be fun and great anticipation, you can bet we're going do it," he said with a chuckle. "These characters were in everyone's living rooms for so long. You got to know them. So why not bring some of them over?"
The new season of When Hope Calls premieres Dec. 18 at 8 p.m. EST on GAC Family.