Jonathan Bennett Returns to ‘The Christmas House,’ Hallmark’s History-Making (Literally!) Holiday Franchise

The annual parade of dozens — perhaps hundreds — of brand new Christmas movies has become of the great American traditions. These movies, the majority of them premiering on cable networks like the Hallmark Channel, are united by a formula and, more importantly, a feeling. Their goal is to comfort audiences, first and foremost. But who says you can’t make a little history while providing audiences with cozy holiday cheer?

That’s exactly what Hallmark did when it premiered The Christmas House during its 2020 lineup of holiday fare. The ensemble film made history by putting a gay couple front and center in a Hallmark holiday movie for the very first time. The Christmas House was part of an unexpected and unintended wave of queer content, all of which hit the networks and streaming service during the 2020 season. America’s favorite holiday pastime fundamentally changed to better reflect America as it actually exists — and a lot of really great movies were made in the process.

As one of the two gay leads in The Christmas House, Jonathan Bennett was — and remains — at the center of it all. He’s fully aware of the importance of The Christmas House. After all, how many Hallmark actors can say that their script and jacket from their holiday movie are now part of the Smithsonian archives? It is not hyperbole to say that The Christmas House made history. The film is part of a literal archive of queer history curated and preserved by the world’s largest museum!

When you’re part of a genre-redefining experience like that, it’d be hard to turn down the chance to come back and do it all again. And that’s what The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls is: it’s a chance for the entire cast to come back and show what happens to a modern family after the happy ending that’s guaranteed at the end of every Hallmark movie. Jonathan Bennett is back along with his TV husband Brad Harder, ready to show the next chapter in Brandon and Jake’s life together. Decider got the chance to speak with Bennett about his return to the newest Hallmark franchise ahead of The Christmas House 2′s debut — and just like last year, Bennett remains enthusiastic and honored to be part of this history-making holiday series.

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Decider: Let’s talk about the response to The Christmas House last year. Where did you watch it? Did you watch it live?

Jonathan Bennett: Yes, I watched The Christmas House live with my sister and my nieces and nephews, and our close friends and my fiancé in our house at Palm Springs. It was such a special moment because I didn’t know that I was going to be getting proposed to a couple days later.

To be an actor that got to be part of a history-making movie and to play a role that was history-making in the Christmas movie space, with my soon-to-be fiancé next to me at our home was just such a magical “art imitates life” moment. Christmas House is all about family in 2021 and what that looks like, and a gay couple that are in love and wanting to start their own family. And little did I know I was just moments away from taking a step towards creating our family.

What was it like returning to The Christmas House? And speaking of art imitates life: didn’t your partner in the film, Brad Harder, adopt a child during the production of the first one?

He literally adopted their second child during the hiatus between the two movies. Our Mitchell family has a cast group chat that goes all year long because we really do have the dynamic of an actual, real life family. Everything from Treat [Williams] being the dad to me and Robert Buckley being brothers who just want to screw with each other the whole time — like, the group chat goes on all year. So when we all came back as a cast and had our first cast dinner before filming, it was like we had never left and we picked up right where we left off with a deeper connection and a deeper relationship with each other than we had the previous year, just like real family. I think that’s what Christmas House 2 is all about. It’s about taking the relationships in the family to a deeper level.

Where do we find a Brandon and Jake in The Christmas House 2?

Brandon and Jake come home for the holidays and they want to kind of create their own family unit and their own new traditions in their family with their two adopted children that’s separate from the giant Mitchell family traditions. And I think it’s so important because that’s what a lot of couples go through at the holidays, wanting to be able to do their own thing while balancing the traditions of the larger family unit.

There are also plot elements that are so unique to the gay experience. What was it like when you read some of those scenes and realized you were going to be talking about this stuff in a Hallmark movie? 

When when I read that scene where Brandon has a moment with Jake where he’s talking about how gay couples have to be perfect because otherwise they’re going to get the dirty looks, I literally started crying. I’m so proud of Hallmark Channel for being pioneers and not telling just gay stories, but telling real stories. And I think that’s what sets Hallmark Channel apart from everyone else.

The other reason I started crying is because I identified to this beyond measure as an actor who’s been a gay actor in Hollywood for over 20 years. That line really resonated with me, because the pressure in Hollywood to succeed is monumental for a straight actor. When you’re a gay actor, the pressure is over the moon because you feel like you have to compensate and make up for the fact that you’re gay. And that was a huge part of my early 20s. I wasn’t out publicly at the time, so the pressure I had to be this guy that Lindsay Lohan fell in love with [in Mean Girls]. I felt like I had to overachieve, to be a better actor, so I would get the roles because I was afraid if they found out I was gay, I wouldn’t get the roles.

The film also explores Brandon’s relationship with his brother, played by Robert Buckley. They have a dynamic that very much hinges upon Brandon being confident enough to know who he is and the inherent bravery it takes to be gay publicly. It’s wild that I’m talking about this in terms of a Hallmark movie.

Isn’t it nuts?

It’s so great. How did you and Robert Buckley develop this sibling rivalry onscreen? Did they notice that vibe between you two on the set of the first and amp it up for the sequel?

There are a few times in an actor’s life when they get to work with an actor like Robert Buckley and have an instant chemistry that’s undeniable. From the moment we met, we had this brotherly competition to us that just was organic. It was immediate. In the first one, everyone noticed how much we acted like real brothers. Like, all we’re trying to do is either scare each other, or screw with each other. And when it came time for the sequel, I think the writers in Hallmark noticed, “That’s a fun dynamic we haven’t really explored that is true and organic. Let’s focus on that.” I think it’s a really smart idea because it shows what a real family is.

This is how much we act like real brothers: Robert knew I was getting ready to do a shirtless scene in a movie after this that I had to get ready for and I had to be really strict on my diet. So Robert would go and get chocolate croissants and muffins that you can’t not eat from this amazing bakery and put them on my chair. And I was like, “Who are these muffins from? Why does someone keep putting muffins with my name on them?” And then Robert just turns me and goes, “Oh, it’s almost like someone knows you have a movie coming up and doesn’t think you have the self control to not eat it.” My jaw hit the floor! So that Sunday when he was watching football, I had to have a whole box of doughnuts delivered to him to make sure that he went off his diet as well. So the rivalry we have is so fun. Robert and I said to each other, rarely in an actor’s career, you get this organic, brotherly chemistry that just happens and it’s just undeniable when you watch us together.

Your rivalry in the movie is, on the surface, about who gets to be the king of Christmas. As an actor, now that you’ve done two Christmas movies back-to-back, how do you feel about being associated with the holiday for the foreseeable future?

I mean, I am never gonna turn down the title of the king of Christmas. I definitely won’t let Robert Buckley take it.

Do you see a Christmas House 3 in the future?

In my opinion, I 100% think there will be a Christmas House 3 because I think the Hallmark Channel just needs more of the Mitchell family. They look like what a family in 2021 looks like and the fans have become so attached to these characters. They identify with these characters because they aren’t perfect. The family isn’t perfect. The family has quirks and they try to put on the perfect Christmas, and what we learn from them is that the perfect Christmas doesn’t exist — but what doesn’t make it perfect is what makes it beautiful. And I think that’s the heart of the Mitchell family. You fall in love with them just like you did the Griswold family. They aren’t perfect, and that’s what makes them beautiful.

The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls premieres on Hallmark on Saturday, December 18 at 8 p.m. ET

Watch The Christmas House 2: Deck Those Halls on Hallmark