Erik Athavale

[00:00:03] [SPEAKER_01] Hi, I'm Bramble Jam and I love Hallmark movies. I'm Dan and I despise Hallmark movies. I'm Eric and I've read the scripts for several Hallmark movies. And this is the Deck The Hallmark Podcast. Deck The Hallmark, it's this podcast. Friends host this podcast. We hope you like this jolly podcast. Oh, it's a big day, Bramble Jam. It's a big day for us. It's a big day. As founding members of the Eric Atavale fan club, this is a big day for us.

[00:00:41] [SPEAKER_01] Especially the U.S. chapter. I'm sure in Canada it's just like a wildfire. We don't have any. It's crazy. We don't have any say over that. But this is a big day for us. This is really exciting. Even though I believe you went on Girls Gone Hallmark first before you went on our show. Just that. Is that right? I'm sorry, guys. I believe the proper terminology is Decky Award nominated podcast Girls Gone Hallmark. Well, that's true. That's right. Yes, yes, yes. They are. They did. They have. Didn't they win one year? They got more wins than we did. They won last year. They have more Deckys than we do.

[00:01:10] [SPEAKER_01] We've never won one. So, you know, I mean, it shows you what. That's tough. We're not even good in our own business. We're really bad. We're really bad. Eric, welcome to the show. We're so happy to have you. Thank you. This has been a long time coming. We talked last year about doing something like this, but I'm excited that we're. Yeah, we couldn't afford you then. The rider was crazy. I fell on hard times. That's right. We were supposed to send him a comb for his mustache. I love how. It was a weird.

[00:01:36] [SPEAKER_01] In this scenario, it's not that we had a good year and could afford him. It's that you had a bad year and now we can. And now you met our number, which is fair. That was really nice of you. Eric, I don't want to heap too much praise on you, but you're kind of our favorite character actor around here. Your hallmark's Christopher Walken, and I think you just are fantastic. And every time we see you're in a movie, we get excited about it because if the movie's not good, we know you're still going to be doing a thing. You know what I mean? And so for us, it's really cool that you're here. We appreciate you joining us.

[00:02:07] [SPEAKER_00] Thanks, guys. I don't know what I did to deserve that, but I'm certainly not going to turn it down. I really appreciate that. Thank you so much.

[00:02:13] [SPEAKER_03] No, absolutely. Before you were Hallmark's Christopher Walken, you were a child. You were born at one point. That's right. And you did baby stuff and child stuff. What were you? Where were you born? What were you like as a child? And kind of when did you realize you liked performing?

[00:02:30] [SPEAKER_00] Yeah, sure. I was born in Windsor, Ontario, which for Americans is across a bridge to Detroit. Very quickly moved to a place called Thompson, Manitoba when I was like six months old. Did not make the move myself. My parents came along. My oldest sister came along, lived there for most of my elementary school years, and then moved to Winnipeg, which is where I'm based now, and have lived here all but one year of the rest of my life.

[00:03:00] [SPEAKER_00] I went to, I've lived in Thailand and taught English there for a year, but besides that, I've been in Winnipeg for a very long time. What was I like as a child? I was a lot. Probably, probably won't surprise anybody, but in Thompson especially, and then later on in Winnipeg, I just didn't have a, I didn't have an outlet for it. I came to acting a little bit later,

[00:03:25] [SPEAKER_00] had gone into theater and university, and then changed course for various reasons, and then came back to it about, I want to say 12, maybe 12 years ago, decided to give it a go, and in film and television, and luckily, people keep paying me to do that.

[00:03:43] [SPEAKER_01] If you think we're just going to skate over, went to Thailand and taught English for a year, you're crazy.

[00:03:48] [SPEAKER_00] Let's do it. That's it. Hey, I put it all out there, guys.

[00:03:51] [SPEAKER_01] No, I appreciate it, and you know, you didn't move at six months old by yourself, so you're taking handouts, and that's fine. I mean, it's each his own, but you- It's the Canadian way. What brought you to Thailand for a year of English? Was it mission work? Was it just like, this is a sweet paying gig? What was it?

[00:04:13] [SPEAKER_00] Well, I mean, we might hit on this a couple different times, but my parents were both educators. My dad was a guidance counselor in a junior high, and my mom was an elementary school teacher who focused on special education, and both of them were kind of getting to retirement age at about the time that I had a pretty formative breakup, and my mom's advice to me was, I think you need to get out of the country and do something on your own and be independent

[00:04:40] [SPEAKER_00] and have a real great experience, and one of the ways that she and my dad were looking at their retirement plan was they were going to quit their, or retire from their nine-to-fives, but then do teaching engagements in other countries. So she had a stack of books of like different brochures of where you can teach English in other countries across the world, and she said, you know, some of these need an education degree, which I didn't have, but I

[00:05:07] [SPEAKER_00] had two years of an education degree under my belt, so I was somewhat familiar. She said, some of them have higher or lower restrictions, so why don't you go through them, research the ones that you want to do, and maybe apply and see if that's a way that you can kind of get this escape, and I took the first book, and it was Thailand, and they said yes, and I left. Wow, just like that. How about that? Just like that.

[00:05:30] [SPEAKER_01] Man.

[00:05:30] [SPEAKER_00] Literally, between the month of the conversation and the flight, we're about a month apart.

[00:05:36] [SPEAKER_01] That is some breakup. Did you break up with them, or they broke up with you?

[00:05:41] [SPEAKER_00] You didn't do it right here. Yeah, geez. What did I open? I want to say it was mutual for pride.

[00:05:49] [SPEAKER_01] For pride. I love that. That's a great answer. Good answer. You know, I'm an educator for 20, I've been an educator for 20 years, Eric, so I mean, like, I get it. So props to both your parents. I mean, a full career of that is something. That's fantastic.

[00:06:02] [SPEAKER_00] Yeah, they had some great adventures in their retirement that still kept them close to what had driven them for their entire career, so I thought that was great.

[00:06:10] [SPEAKER_03] I love that. I imagine that was a pretty big year. Like, what did you take away from that year in Thailand?

[00:06:21] [SPEAKER_00] That eventually I was going to get over the breakup. Yeah. Also, you know, my parents, it's funny, I lived on my own for about two years before that in my parents' house because they had already started part of that retirement plan. They were working in a place called Arviat Nunavut, which is, if you look at a map of Canada and you look at where Winnipeg is, keep going north. Wow. You're so sweet to think that we would know where Winnipeg is. Okay.

[00:06:47] [SPEAKER_00] If you look at the map of the United States and you find Fargo, imagine there's something above that.

[00:06:53] [SPEAKER_01] Okay. Wow. Fascinating.

[00:06:55] [SPEAKER_00] Imagine a land above that.

[00:06:57] [SPEAKER_01] The real Great White North is where they were headed.

[00:07:00] [SPEAKER_03] Our producer's pulling up a Canadian map, which is super kind. This is really helpful.

[00:07:04] [SPEAKER_01] We have it on the big screen where we can see it. Oh, that's awesome. This is, yeah, Arviat. Okay. Yeah, Winnipeg, great.

[00:07:08] [SPEAKER_00] So Arviat is in Nunavut, which is the territory above Manitoba, which the province of Winnipeg's in. I feel like I've lost 50% of your listeners of two times.

[00:07:18] [SPEAKER_01] That's kind. 50% is kind.

[00:07:21] [SPEAKER_00] But they are, they were very far up north when we were having this conversation. So I was living on my own, but still, you know, it was mom and dad's house. It was, you know, it wasn't, it wasn't the real experience. And that was, I think, the biggest thing for me is I was alone in a foreign country and had to figure it out on my own. And so a lot of, a lot of the, the lessons that I learned there were no matter how badly you screw it up, you're going to be okay. That's good.

[00:07:50] [SPEAKER_01] I love that. That's just good advice in general. So basically in 2011, 12, 13, somewhere in there, you decide, I think I'm going to do this. I'm just going to act. What, what leads you back? I mean, so many people that we have on here, it's like, well, I was in a production of Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. And I was Mr. Tumnus's understudy. And I was five years old. And from that point forward, I got one applause line and that was it. That doesn't sound like your story.

[00:08:17] [SPEAKER_01] It sounds like you liked it, but it wasn't really like the, on the front burner, so to speak. And then all of a sudden it became that. What was that like? What was the impetus for that?

[00:08:27] [SPEAKER_00] Yeah, I was, I had gone, I was the star in my high school drama class. I don't mind.

[00:08:33] [SPEAKER_01] I mean the stud, this guy. Humble too. What was the role that made you the star?

[00:08:41] [SPEAKER_00] Oh, I, you know, there was, there was no specific big production. We did a lot of like smaller. One act. One act kind of things. But, you know, I was very good and I had done some children, a little bit of children's theater here locally. So I went into university, even though I went in with an education major, I did a theater minor and was intending to either go into theater or be a theater teacher, one or the other. And ideally, you know, at that time, both.

[00:09:11] [SPEAKER_00] I had a professor. The short version is I had a professor who in a performance class made me feel like I was a bad actor. Oh, no. And yeah. And so that stuck with me. I, I, I'm very hard on myself by nature and took it really personally. So I thought if this expert says I'm not good, they must be right.

[00:09:32] [SPEAKER_00] And so I walked, you know, I did walk towards marketing, which was a bit of a blessing because I had and still have a pretty great career in marketing and advertising. And I've been very fortunate. So I didn't, you know, I landed on my feet, obviously. But for 15 years, approximately, I just said, I don't, I don't think that was for me. And it was never meant to be until I went to visit a friend of mine in New York.

[00:09:59] [SPEAKER_00] And he and his, his then wife, no, sorry. Still white, still white. Wait a minute. Dan was going to follow up on that too. Yeah.

[00:10:09] [SPEAKER_01] So when you guys, when you guys, when you guys broke up, like, was it a note? Was it more in person?

[00:10:15] [SPEAKER_00] They were married at the time. I was doing the mental math of where they married. They were definitely married at the time. And I misspoke. And they still are. We love that. We love that. I am. He and his wife were living in New York, paying their bills off of acting income. And, and, and both of them were, you know, neither of them were living in penthouses and this and that, but they were doing it. They were doing it. This very blue collar job that I've kind of learned that acting is. They were doing it and they loved it.

[00:10:43] [SPEAKER_00] And I was on a flight on the way home with my wife after hearing their stories of what their experiences were like. And I turned around to my wife and I just said the words, you know, I just gave up. Um, and she had no idea what I was talking about. I don't think because I didn't give her context, but I, I enrolled at a local acting studio for classes the week after we landed back home. And, uh, and my career started shortly after that. So I've been doing this for since then.

[00:11:10] [SPEAKER_01] So I just, I did math in my head, Eric, and you said you did marketing for 15 years and this for 13. And I, and that was after university doing some quick math, even though it's not on your IMDB, how old you are. And I'm just, if you're not watching on finally TV, he looks younger than me. Like you look like you couldn't possibly have had all of that happen to you in your life. I'm not being kind. I'm just being honest. Like you don't look old enough for that. Like, am I getting the math wrong here? Am I getting it wrong?

[00:11:38] [SPEAKER_00] No. Good, clean living, man. I could clean the linen and, and a good skincare routine.

[00:11:43] [SPEAKER_03] I love it. I love it. How about that? So you, uh, you start taking some acting classes and then where do you go from there? Like, do you get a, a manager who's getting you some auditions or, or are you just grinding and trying to be like, I can, I can do this and trying to, trying to just find places where you can.

[00:11:59] [SPEAKER_00] Yeah. Yeah. So I have managed to do everything that I've managed to do based in Winnipeg, um, which is a, which is a smaller market within Canada. Um, and an even smaller market when it comes to acting within Canada. Um, but my timing was actually pretty good because, uh, Winnipeg and Manitoba's film industry happened to be growing just when I like exponentially growing just when I started exploring this as, as an option.

[00:12:29] [SPEAKER_00] Um, that's pure coincidence. I didn't have the foresight to say, I, you know, I see it on the rise here. So I'm going to jump in while it's getting hotter. Um, just, uh, out of sheer coincidence that happened. So I, um, I got a commercial about a year after I started taking classes, like a very small commercial for, uh, a local, uh, outfit and started booking, uh, small roles without an agent.

[00:12:55] [SPEAKER_00] Uh, and this is, I think the only market in North America where that actually happens and, uh, probably, uh, not a great thing, but it was an entry point where I was able to actually see more of, uh, a side of the business that a lot of actors who, uh, have that, that buffer don't get to see necessarily. Uh, I got an agent, I got wise and got an agent, uh, several years later when, uh, more work was coming my way.

[00:13:21] [SPEAKER_00] Um, but, uh, slow, you know, the, the, the path has been, uh, slow and progressive, but has gained momentum over the last few years. So the joke that I, the joke that I offer is that it's been, I've been doing this for 12 years and about five of them have been fruitful.

[00:13:38] [SPEAKER_01] Well, I, you said it's been picking up. Do you, if you could guess, cause I counted based on IMDb, which could be wrong. How many, if every episode counts as its own of a television show counts as its own appearance since 2020, Eric, how many appearances on television or in the, in TV movies have you made according to IMDb? Do you, do you, would you, could you guess?

[00:14:04] [SPEAKER_00] Uh, I mean, it's upper, it's a 20 for sure. Um, but I don't, I don't have a good guess. I'm going to guess, I'm going to guess, I'm going to guess 25. Five.

[00:14:12] [SPEAKER_01] It's 51. Whoa. Now you have 14 episodes of a show called acting good, which, which, so even if you take that out, which I don't know how big of a, I don't know what that is, but 37, including some, some of the best homework movies ever made. Also some theatrical releases, which I have to talk to you about. So in the last five years and you don't leave Winnipeg, like this is a, I've got a family and I've got a marketing job and I'm going to schedule my appearances around all of that.

[00:14:41] [SPEAKER_01] I'm not going to Vancouver. I'm not going to Toronto. I'm not going to LA. You're just in Winnipeg and popping up 10 times a year. Is, am I getting that correct? Uh, partially. Okay.

[00:14:53] [SPEAKER_00] Um, so, so the haven't left Winnipeg is not necessarily by choice. It's a nomadic profession. I've just been fortunate enough that there's been enough activity in Winnipeg, uh, to keep me busy. Uh, but I do have, I don't think I can talk about it today, but I will be sure to let you guys know in the next month or two. I do have a show that I shot out of Montreal. It's a U S based comedy, uh, and, uh, that shoots in my, please don't do the math here

[00:15:18] [SPEAKER_00] to try to unveil it, but I'll, I'll let people know, uh, uh, when that credit is coming up through social and I'll be sure to reach, reach out to you guys. So I can't, you know, I, I and a few other actors in, in Manitoba, just like actors in Toronto and Vancouver do travel from time to time, but the majority, the vast majority of the work that I've been able to do, uh, I've been really lucky to be able to do within driving range of my house.

[00:15:41] [SPEAKER_03] That's awesome. That's unbelievable. That's the dream right there. It is. That's incredible. This, your story is so lovely. Um, mainly because at one point someone told you that you couldn't and now here you are. That's right.

[00:16:05] [SPEAKER_01] How do you like me now?

[00:16:06] [SPEAKER_03] How do you like me now? Have you, have you reached out and been like, Hey, suck a duck? Like look at all these, like your boys over here getting 50 credits since, since 2020. Um, I am, I like, I, I feel like more than 10 cause 2025 just started.

[00:16:22] [SPEAKER_01] That's true. That's 51 credits in four years.

[00:16:24] [SPEAKER_03] I mean, we've been talking for 15 minutes. I feel like this is probably something that you haven't done, but I will give you the time if you want to, but right now you want to call that teacher out by name. Now that's got to feel like. It's got to feel pretty good. Like to just be like, I'm actually doing this thing, which I was told that I can't do.

[00:16:41] [SPEAKER_00] Yeah. It does. It feels. Thanks for saying that. Uh, it, it feels really great. And in true Canadian fashion, instead of going back and knocking on their door and saying, how you like me now, I, I passive aggressively appear on podcasts and tell that story.

[00:16:57] [SPEAKER_01] Is there a teacher you want to thank since you're here? Uh, no, none comes to mind. Um, so I, like I, you do have a few early credits from Hallmark early on that are, I think pretty small parts. And I, you know, we're, we're a little bit, I want to make sure I have time to talk about the stuff I want to have time to talk about. But early on you're auditioning for all of this. Yes. Like you're, you're, you're just going on.

[00:17:26] [SPEAKER_01] And I usually ask, do you have a, uh, like a particularly bad audition you'd like to share. But if you're, if, if you are, you know, maybe you go into every audition and you're your own worst critic. Maybe that's not something that you clock as a, as an actor. Cause you just think, oh, I'm like, they're all bad, you know? Yeah.

[00:17:43] [SPEAKER_00] I, you know, I, I actually, uh, most of my auditions have been okay. I haven't had a disaster audition. I, I can think of one or two, not in the Hallmark sphere where I walked in and I did my thing and, uh, literally it just didn't register on the director's face. Like that, like even in the room, I've had a couple of those, but it wasn't because I was exceptionally bad. It just, you know, I didn't do anything. Yeah. It wasn't their thing. Uh, probably wasn't my thing either. Uh, the ones I'm thinking of, but no.

[00:18:11] [SPEAKER_00] Like, you know, I'm for the record, I'm still auditioning. Uh, every, every film that you're seeing.

[00:18:16] [SPEAKER_01] You still have to audition for Hallmark, Eric? Yeah.

[00:18:20] [SPEAKER_00] I mean, that's the, Hey, that's the job. That's the job. That is, that is honestly, I know this, I'm ripping off a Brian Cranston meme right now, but that is the job. My job is to go in and tell them within this cast, within this ensemble, here's the version of this character that you've asked me to read that I think would fit in that world. And it's their job to say, I think that'll fit in. So yeah, I know humility.

[00:18:46] [SPEAKER_00] I'm not trying to be it's, I love that part of the process of me saying, I've got an idea for this. And then saying, we love that idea.

[00:18:53] [SPEAKER_01] So, so many Hallmark movies I want to talk to you about, but you mentioned Brian Cranston and he worked with Bob Odenkirk for quite a while. And then you worked on nobody. One of my favorite action movies of all time. And you were there, like you were on the set of that film. Um, I just, I know we've got plenty to talk about where you're going to be amazing. I promise you, I have to just hear like what that was like.

[00:19:17] [SPEAKER_00] Uh, it was, it was great. You know, a lot of my experience with nobody was vicarious because my, uh, my part while informative in that movie, I'm really proud of it. It's tiny, but it's really good movie. Um, so I'm really proud of the involvement that I had there and the opportunity that I had, but it was small, but, um, every, almost every single person who worked in that movie from the hair and makeup department, from the costumes department, uh, the crew, the stunt

[00:19:45] [SPEAKER_00] coordinators are people in this community that I've worked with over and over. So the, the stories that I, you know, it wouldn't be, uh, firsthand knowledge, but the stories that I've heard about their experiences with Bob and Christopher Lloyd and RZA on that set have been like phenomenal. Everybody, they were a class act. And if it's a testimony at all to Bob Odenkirk and what he brought to this community, he just

[00:20:09] [SPEAKER_00] wrapped on nobody too, which also filmed again in Winnipeg and, uh, a film called, uh, uh, Oh, what's it called? Uh, normal. Um, that I believe it's called normal. If I misquoted that, then somebody get at me in the comments. Um, but, uh, he, he, back to back, he filmed two features in Winnipeg and, uh, uh, was, you know, curling at the local curling club and doing charity performances. He's, he's a great guy.

[00:20:39] [SPEAKER_00] He was great on set, really approachable, really friendly, and, uh, certainly proved to be a great ambassador for the city.

[00:20:45] [SPEAKER_01] It's a fantastic movie and you're great in it. Like you really are. And I can't wait to see you on nobody too.

[00:20:53] [SPEAKER_03] Yeah, I don't think so. Oh, he's, he's shrugging. He's not saying no. This is true. He's just shrugging.

[00:20:58] [SPEAKER_00] I can't wait to go watch nobody. Yeah.

[00:21:01] [SPEAKER_01] I can't wait to see you at the theater to see nobody too.

[00:21:06] [SPEAKER_03] In the nobody too theater. Yeah. That's right.

[00:21:08] [SPEAKER_01] That's right. That's right.

[00:21:10] [SPEAKER_03] Um, let's talk a bit about Hallmark. What was, do you remember your first, uh, Hallmark flick and how it came, came to be?

[00:21:17] [SPEAKER_00] I think it was Christmas Connection. Uh, I, I don't quote me on that if there was an earlier one, but I'm pretty sure it was Christmas Connection. Um, and, uh, I had a small role as a shopkeeper, uh, director with Steven Monroe, who I would work with again, uh, on, uh, winter holiday, winter getaway, winter getaway.

[00:21:34] [SPEAKER_01] Yeah.

[00:21:35] [SPEAKER_00] Uh, with, uh, the lovely Nazneen contractor, who's a good friend and, uh, um, had a great experience on that. Um, but those early, you know, I will say those early credits, I hadn't quite found, uh, as, as artsy fartsy as this might sound, I hadn't quite found my Hallmark voice yet. So I was very happy to be there and trying to fit into the proverbial woodwork of a Hallmark movie.

[00:22:02] [SPEAKER_00] Um, and while I'm proud of it, it certainly started to pave the way of me being more comfortable on those sets and doing some of the roles that I think are a little bit more memorable and more indicative of what I love to do.

[00:22:15] [SPEAKER_01] Well, I can tell you this, and this is just my, my take, but I do have a question in this, Eric, you know, I would love to know when you found that. I think, have you seen a movie called galaxy quest by any chance?

[00:22:26] [SPEAKER_00] I'm very, I'm, I have, I, I'm sure I saw it. I can't remember it well, but I am familiar with galaxy.

[00:22:32] [SPEAKER_01] It's one of my favorite, favorite movies. Sam Rockwell in that movie is this character actor that is not supposed to be like the short version is, is he's in over his head. He's not supposed to be there. And he's hysterical in, in a, in a, you know, in the movie, there's all of these big names, but then Sam Rockwell, who now is a big name himself. He just kind of steals it by doing this very eccentric thing that really fits in the ensemble and does it perfectly.

[00:23:00] [SPEAKER_01] That's kind of like his name's guy Fleegman in that, but guy Fleegman, the guy Fleegman role, which is so hard to do and make memorable. Like movies that we like, I've seen 500 of these. I may be of like 20 of them. I like a Hallmark movies and movies that we hold in high esteem around here, crashing through the snow, love strikes twice holiday hotline, like Santa, Santa summit.

[00:23:24] [SPEAKER_01] These movies that like are the exception to the rule, like all of them involve you doing your thing in these haunted wedding, all these movies. So Christmas cookie catastrophe. Okay. Well, they're not all, uh, uh, you like my, my question is, is when did you find that group? Cause you're not the same character in all of these movies, but you do have like, even in

[00:23:51] [SPEAKER_01] Christmas on called, like you have this very distinct mustache more than the current mustache you have now. It's a really funny role with these people arguing in this neighborhood, but where did you find that groove? You said, I hadn't found the groove yet on Christmas connection. Like where, when did you find it? And, and, and start to really get it.

[00:24:08] [SPEAKER_00] Yeah. I, I can't pinpoint it to time. Um, I think the confidence of getting a few roles, um, and getting some stuff under my belt and realizing that I could take slightly more and more risks in auditions, not just in Hallmark auditions, but other auditions and bring a little bit more and be a little bit more out there, uh, gave me confidence to try more stuff in the room. But I would, I would point to Jeff Beasley, uh, who directed a number of the, uh, the movies that you, uh, just mentioned.

[00:24:38] [SPEAKER_00] And in fact, Haunted Wedding, uh, and Christmas on call were the ninth and 10th project that he and I have worked on. Wow. Um, he's, uh, he's really found a niche in Hallmark as being the guy who can bring humor out, uh, like nobody else. He's just, he's, his, his repertoire is really, um, incredible. And he really believes in the actors in this community in particular, but also in the Hallmark stable of actors of being able to give them material that they haven't traditionally had in Hallmark movies of being able to actually go for laughs and stuff.

[00:25:08] [SPEAKER_00] So, uh, I think when Jeff started not only, uh, taking a shine to what I brought in the room, but encouraging me to, uh, to, to push it a little bit further when I would have callbacks with him, uh, in auditions and he'd be like, you know, lean into that. Let's do more of that. Uh, and really show Hallmark what we can do with this. You know, at first I needed somebody to hold my hand and say, this is okay. And then now I get to go in the room when, when I'm, uh, auditioning or doing a callback with Jeff and show him that without him having to ask it.

[00:25:36] [SPEAKER_00] Um, so I, I would point to him as being a catalyst for that.

[00:25:41] [SPEAKER_03] Do you, uh, remember the first character that you played on a Hallmark movie where you were like, that's, that's a really fun one. That's a fun character that I created to, to live in this space.

[00:25:57] [SPEAKER_00] Um, the first, wow. Probably, you know, I want to say maybe it was winter getaway. Um, because, uh, there were, there were aspects of that character. You know, I, I, I think Hallmark is experiencing a bit of its own renaissance, which might, uh, be something that you guys have glommed onto in terms of some of the, that you said that you liked. A lot of them are, are newer movies and they're not necessarily territory that Hallmark would have gone before.

[00:26:24] [SPEAKER_00] And they don't showcase the kind of ensemble casts that Hallmark is really, uh, embracing now. So, you know, when I look back at some of the earlier stuff, the role of a Hallmark supporting actor was really to kind of fit into, uh, the tapestry behind the two leads and to let them shine at the forefront. And now it's to amplify, uh, what those leads are doing. And that's when that turn happened to be happening around that time with winter getaway.

[00:26:51] [SPEAKER_00] So the role of the concierge in the hotel who happens to be around and give sage advice could have been one of those roles that, you know, you just kind of say the lines and get out of everybody's way. But, you know, I made, I decided to make the choice that he's, he's the guy who enjoys all this thing, the things that this, this mistaken identity guy doesn't actually enjoy. Uh, and that was just something that I think brought out a different color in that character.

[00:27:18] [SPEAKER_00] And I think the, um, you know, I, I look for those opportunities and Hallmark roles now to be, not to try and steal focus or to, to take the shine away from the main story. I don't want to, uh, detract from that. We're all there to tell one story, but to amplify that story so that there's other points of interest just besides, you know, my, my ex-wife or my dead wife isn't here anymore.

[00:27:41] [SPEAKER_01] And I'm loved other things that are happening too. That's right. Believe it or not. Uh, Eric, that's fantastic. I, you are not solely in Hallmark movies. I mean, you were in other stuff, violent night. You're in also other TV Christmas movies that are not made by Hallmark or for Hallmark. Uh, we've covered them occasionally. Sometimes you'll reach out and tell us how much you enjoyed it. Uh, even, even if it is, uh, uh, less than stellar review for, for the film.

[00:28:09] [SPEAKER_01] Um, you, which you're great about, do you notice like, what are the big differences? Like Hallmark has set quite a standard and we hear often about how it's amazing how they have this thing running like a machine, this 15 day shoot, they get all this stuff done. And then I've talked to, you know, cinematographers who are working on movies that aren't made by Hallmark. And it's like, you know, it's a different, different experience. And I know that you appreciate all of the experiences that you have.

[00:28:36] [SPEAKER_01] Do you, are there, is there a difference monetary or otherwise not for in your pocket, but like on the set and in what you're allowed to do between working on a Hallmark Christmas movie and a Christmas movie that may find its way to the Roku channel or be acquired by prime or just be shown in Canada. But also what was your net, uh, take home last year? Yeah. I don't care about gross after the taxes. Cause I know Canada kills you on the taxes.

[00:29:02] [SPEAKER_00] That's right. They really do guys. They really do. It hurts. It hurts.

[00:29:07] [SPEAKER_01] It hurts that you would go to net, but, but, but, but how's that healthcare? You can do gross. How's that healthcare treating you, Eric? You're, you're fit as a fiddle. Pretty good.

[00:29:14] [SPEAKER_00] I break, I break a bone every year just so that I can take it off. Well, you have to get, you have to make it back.

[00:29:19] [SPEAKER_03] If I'm going to give it to you, you got to make it back. I get it. I get it. Anyway, go back to Dan's nice question.

[00:29:25] [SPEAKER_00] Um, what was the good? No, I'm just kidding. Uh, I, I don't know if the budgets are that drastically different. Uh, to be honest, that's, that's outside of my, uh, uh, of what I care to find out. Quite frankly, I, I'm just there for the day guys. Um, but what I, what I really, what I really feel is a difference, uh, and that you really feel it on set, you feel it from the moment that you get the script is that Hallmark knows

[00:29:50] [SPEAKER_00] its voice, uh, perhaps better than any of these other folks that are, you know, I, I, I'll say dabbling. I don't mean that disrespectfully, but this type of movie and especially that season is what Hallmark has built their media empire on. And other people have added that to what they do. So whether, you know, without naming names, whether it's another network or whether it's another streamer that has decided we're going to do Hallmark style movies, they're chasing

[00:30:20] [SPEAKER_00] the market leader and Hallmark's got, whether it's written or unwritten, um, a playbook that everybody understands, you know, how Christmassy Christmas needs to look, how many references need to be in a movie for you to know that it's a Christmas movie. Um, and they, you, everybody's, um, it's not for everybody. I think that's fair to say, but for those of us who buy into it and enjoy being in and making

[00:30:47] [SPEAKER_00] those movies, it's really clear to us what we're all building towards in there. And I think that really helps for the smooth sailing when you're on set with, uh, with a Hallmark movie in particular.

[00:30:58] [SPEAKER_03] Um, in 2023, you did two movies back to back, uh, with the Santa Summit and Holiday Hotline that were quite, quite the back to back, but also two characters that stole the show and both were so distinct and both felt so lived in and were both so wonderful. And I, I just, that was when we really were like this guy, this guy is really doing something

[00:31:25] [SPEAKER_00] right. Uh, I'm still bitter. I didn't win the deckie for that year. Well, yeah, and you should, and you should be.

[00:31:30] [SPEAKER_01] You guys were, you were robbed. I don't even know who won it. That, that, that's crazy. Do you remember? Do you have their name down?

[00:31:36] [SPEAKER_00] Do I remember? Uh, yeah, I do. Uh, but you know, again,

[00:31:41] [SPEAKER_01] Who was it? We can look it up, Eric. Just tell us who was it. Oh yeah. Well then feel free to look it up.

[00:31:47] [SPEAKER_04] This guy.

[00:31:59] [SPEAKER_03] Was it, is it on us that we didn't like that? That was like a, a standout to us or did you feel it like in 2023, did you start to feel like, um, maybe a

[00:32:09] [SPEAKER_01] little bit more for each other in 2023, which is really hysterical.

[00:32:13] [SPEAKER_03] Did you feel like last, uh, well, yeah, I'll say last year, 2023 was like, Hey, things are really starting to, to move a bit in this space. And I feel like people are starting to notice that I'm actually doing fun stuff with these characters.

[00:32:28] [SPEAKER_00] I think I was surprised by people noticing it, but there was definitely a feeling that I had while, uh, reading for it and auditioning for it. I had a really, I had a really specific view for Dasher, uh, and, uh, Santa's summit of being my, my, my thought was, it would be very interesting for me as a viewer to watch somebody the way I watch Hallmark movies, be in a Hallmark movie, which is to be

[00:32:53] [SPEAKER_00] the person that says, come on, uh, to the lead in that Hallmark movie. And the line is right there where Dasher gets to say, you gotta, you gotta snap out of this and like, look at what's going on. Um, so I, what I really, I took that line from Russell Hainline and really lean into that as kind of the inspiration for the character of he sees the forest for the trees, um, for, for, uh, um, Jordan's character, uh, in, in Santa's summit, um, the Roger character

[00:33:23] [SPEAKER_00] and holiday hotline, uh, for sure. I saw, again, it was one of those characters that could have just been there to provide the, the exposition and context of what was going on. So the viewer can follow along with this dual personality, but I saw the opportunity for there to be a small love story between him and the lead and the call center, uh, platonic, but still a love story. And, um, and so, you know, as much as I want to take credit

[00:33:49] [SPEAKER_00] and I do, uh, for the performances, if it's not on the page for that to be there, it's so much harder for that to come out. And so I think this shift of the hallmark is taking and embracing those stories that have these, again, these characters that really amplify the story as opposed to just, uh, filling in the blanks has allowed a person and a performer like me to step into those roles and really make them everything that, that we possibly

[00:34:13] [SPEAKER_01] can. Uh, who, uh, are the, like, what are the kind of movies that you like? Like what movies do you enjoy? What comedic actors do you find to be like extraordinary? If you

[00:34:24] [SPEAKER_00] have any off the top of your head? Yeah. Oh, wow. Um, the movie, I, the genre of movies that I like is pretty wide. So I, you know, I, I can't turn around and say I'm an action movie guy exclusively or this or that. Um, all of my comedy inspiration or at least my formative comedy inspiration comes from Chuck Jones, Looney Tunes. Oh, wow. Okay. Um, so, you know, everything that I aspire to, I don't think I've hit it yet, but everything I aspire to in both

[00:34:52] [SPEAKER_00] timing and big wild takes, as well as small moments, you can find you, I am ripping off, uh, the coyote and the road runner constantly, constantly. And I make no, but that, that is to me, one of the best examples of comedic timing that we have on film. Um,

[00:35:15] [SPEAKER_01] Did you get to watch SCTV, uh, growing up at all?

[00:35:18] [SPEAKER_00] I did. It wasn't as big of like Saturday night live was a bigger part of my, ironically, um, terrible Canadian. How dare you? Yeah. Yeah. I know. That's tough for you. It was just, it was more, it was more formative. Like the Phil Hartman. Yeah. That was what I kind of grew up on. Uh, I came to SCTV a little bit later, um, in, in my, my quote unquote comedy discovery, but, um, yeah, sketch comedy has always been, uh, something that I've,

[00:35:46] [SPEAKER_00] uh, gravitated towards improv comedy was something that I discovered a little bit later in life. And, you know, anytime that I'm in LA or New York, my wife knows we're taking at least a day or two to go to one of the theater, whether it's UCB or groundlings or second city. Wow. And I feel like you'd fit right in there. I feel like you'd love that. Uh, I, I really would. Uh, I would, I would love the opportunity at least to, uh, to be there. Yeah. Well, you're only in your twenties, uh, best of my

[00:36:12] [SPEAKER_00] math. So I think you still got time. You're no Melissa. That's right. Casting. I'm only in my twenties.

[00:36:17] [SPEAKER_01] You're no Melissa. You're no Melissa Peterman. That's what I learned in 2023. Uh, uh, I've heard before, but if you're gonna, if you're, Eric, I gotta be honest. I was wondering how you lost. And then you see Melissa Peterman, like Fargo, Melissa Peterman, like, you know, sitcom, sitcom comedy, royalty, Melissa Peterman. That's pretty good company to be in. I would say it's very good company to be in. And we don't

[00:36:42] [SPEAKER_01] vote. We don't vote on the thing. Full disclosure. We don't vote, but there's the flaw in the process. That's why neither of us has won. But what's what, what's why that's probably it. I'd still vote for

[00:36:52] [SPEAKER_03] Melissa. And I thank God I want that on the record. I don't want her to get mad at us.

[00:36:56] [SPEAKER_01] If you watch her in the first hall at the Holly, which is what she won for. Yeah. And then you compare that. The problem is, is you had two movies. I think if we, if you had, if all of your star wattage was behind one movie, I think the fact that you were in two probably cost you. That would be my guess, but Melissa Peterman, that's pretty good. And I would wager to say you finished second. And I have no way of finding that information out, but I would wager to say you

[00:37:20] [SPEAKER_00] finished second. So there is, there is no shame in losing to Melissa Peterman. No, no kidding.

[00:37:26] [SPEAKER_03] 2024. You were in a haunted wedding and Christmas on call. Now, the thing that I love about those two movies is that you got to kind of flex your, a little bit more rom. That's right. You added some more rom to that com in both of those movies, which was a big win for us, the viewers. And I have

[00:37:48] [SPEAKER_03] to be honest, both in both cases, I cared so much about your rom, um, that I kind of forgot about what the, the, what the, the main love stories were in both of those. Cause I was so invested. Um, that that's gotta be great, right? You're, you're getting to kind of flex the rom muscles, which, um, you clearly have. And what is it, but also you're adding the calm to that, which a lot of times

[00:38:18] [SPEAKER_03] these movies don't like the love stories are the love stories. And then if there is comedy, it's happening around. And so I loved both of those stories so much. And that had to be such a fun experience for you to kind of get to do, um, uh, at this point. Yeah, it was great. And,

[00:38:34] [SPEAKER_00] and I'm glad that folks like you who, uh, digest these, uh, so often notice that cause it was a shift. I was very, I was very excited. Those were my first two hallmark onscreen kisses. Um, and, uh, they let me kiss the girl. Um, it was really, really nice. Um, and, and, uh, as a vote of confidence guys, come on. Yeah. Yeah. You're a happily married man. This is above board

[00:39:03] [SPEAKER_00] here. It's above board, everybody. It was totally, I got, I, she saw the paycheck. My wife saw the paycheck. Um, it was, it was nice that hallmark also saw me go in the room and audition for those roles and say, I can do this too. And that they saw that vision. So, you know, they weren't writing in a kiss for Roger in the call center. That would have been a very different movie, uh, about, um,

[00:39:29] [SPEAKER_00] about workplace ethics and stuff like that. So, but it fit in these, in these movies and you needed, you needed to be able to buy into those love stories. Cause like I said, those stories are broader and there's more going on and we want to be able to amplify and get as much out of that cast as possible. So I was really excited to be, uh, doing that. One of the things that I've really loved though, is that it was really the best of both worlds. So traditionally the romance is just,

[00:39:55] [SPEAKER_00] you know, the leads in the movie are having the romance and everybody else is dancing around them. So to have, and I'm, I'm really flattered by that to have a secondary romance that the audience can actually get invested into is great, but these supporting characters get to have so much fun and get to be a little broader and get to be a little, a little bit wilder than the leads have traditionally been allowed to be. And I think that gap is closing. Um, but boy, did I get to dance

[00:40:21] [SPEAKER_00] around the fringes in both of those movies and have a blast in, in doing that? So.

[00:40:25] [SPEAKER_01] I used to watch, you know, these movies in the 20 teens and go, the supporting cast was here for maybe five of the 15 days. But when I watched the movies now, particularly the two that we just referenced Christmas on call, well, Christmas on call has got like eight or nine storylines, but like a holiday hotline and haunted wedding and a Santa summit holiday hotline and haunted it seems like supporting is supporting in the purest sense, but you're there for a lot of that film.

[00:40:54] [SPEAKER_01] How many days are you shooting on these movies?

[00:40:57] [SPEAKER_00] Yeah, it's probably not as many as you think really because Hallmark as, as this efficient machine, um, you know, the short answer is somewhere between three and seven and I might, you know, plus or minus one or two. Um, but like that's, that's not a typical, um, but Hallmark as a machine is so good at pinpointing efficiency and locations cause they have to be because with 15 day shoot,

[00:41:24] [SPEAKER_00] you just got to make it happen. And big set moves just don't play into that. So, you know, um, I will say that we got, uh, uh, I might be too in the weeds in here, but there's a big set piece at the end of the Santa summit, um, where, uh, everybody's on stage and, uh, you get a quick shot of Dasher in the crowd. Um, that, that was an extra shoot day that, um, the producers and

[00:41:54] [SPEAKER_00] some of the crew fought for me to get on to that. I wasn't originally supposed to be into that. And, uh, one crew member in particular, Nathan, uh, who, uh, might hear this someday. So I want to make sure I acknowledge him, talk to, uh, the producers at Inferno and said, I think Dasher needs to be in this final piece. Cause I think based on what we've done over the shoot, the audience

[00:42:18] [SPEAKER_00] will want to say goodbye to them. And, and they bought in and what I was charged with from, uh, Lisa, who was one of the producers at Inferno when she, uh, approved that request was I better get at least one extra laugh out of this. Uh, and we did that. Man, that's awesome. Is it rapid fire time?

[00:42:35] [SPEAKER_03] Um, yeah, I drew really quickly before rapid fire Sanjay mustache. That was your call, right? That was, that was your call. The stache. Did you have to fight for that? The mustache was my call. Um,

[00:42:47] [SPEAKER_00] did they push back at all? We, they did not push back because it was, uh, I was on another set that had established the mustache. So it was either a mustache or no Eric and they, yeah.

[00:43:00] [SPEAKER_01] No, I'd like, so you're really throwing it around there. Like you don't get the, you get the stache and Eric or neither, but it couldn't have been that comedy he was shooting in Montreal. Maybe that was the other set he was on. We don't know. And we wouldn't even, we wouldn't even know where to

[00:43:14] [SPEAKER_03] begin. There's no way to find out. And we couldn't be like, we don't have enough time.

[00:43:19] [SPEAKER_00] Yeah. Fair enough. Um, yeah, that was, that's the answer to that. I think I love it. I love

[00:43:25] [SPEAKER_03] that so much. I love that character so much. I had a lot of fun with it. Oh, let's rapid fire. We're just going to ask you three questions. It can be about anything you got to answer quickly. If you want to go ahead, Dan, if I'm going to eat one meal in Winnipeg, what am I eating?

[00:43:41] [SPEAKER_00] Uh, you're going to Clementine's, uh, which is a brunch spot. Um, and, uh, and you are having who you're having literally anything on the menu. You can't miss Clementine's got it. Shout out.

[00:43:54] [SPEAKER_03] Um, what skincare, uh, regimen do you do? And can you help me out? Uh, grown alchemist. Absolutely.

[00:44:03] [SPEAKER_00] Anything my wife buys for me and puts on my counter and says, use this because your skin needs it.

[00:44:08] [SPEAKER_03] Yeah. Could she send some down to South Carolina? Yes, she can. Thank you. Of course. Absolutely.

[00:44:14] [SPEAKER_01] Right. An online shopping wizard. I love it. Uh, pitch me how you would pitch Hallmark for you to be

[00:44:20] [SPEAKER_00] the lead in a rom-com for them. You're tired of handsome guys, right? Handsome's boring.

[00:44:31] [SPEAKER_03] Well, I'll just say this. If they're, if they're, uh, if they're hiring Tyler Hines, I don't see why they can't hire you. No kidding. Same amount of hands. Six of one, half dozen of the other. That's exactly right. That's exactly right. Um, are you a sport boy? And if so, what's your sport?

[00:44:45] [SPEAKER_01] Uh, love basketball. Oh, do you? Oh, we, I coached basketball for 20 years and he's a big NBA guy.

[00:44:51] [SPEAKER_03] Me and, um, another actor. I don't know if you know him, Antonio K-On, we host an NBA podcast

[00:44:56] [SPEAKER_00] together. Oh really? Yeah. I didn't know that. I'll have to check that out. You gotta, you gotta go on

[00:45:00] [SPEAKER_01] the pod. You can come on. We can talk basketball. Yeah. Love it. Love it. Fantastic. Um, what, uh, what's, we don't do guilty pleasure TV cause our entire job is watching Hallmark movies, but what's the thing when you're not the marketing guru or you're not coming up with the next quirky character for Hallmark, what's the thing that you and your wife sit around and you watch or you binge on Netflix or whatever you guys have up there in Canada, Netflix, Canada. I don't know what it's called.

[00:45:26] [SPEAKER_00] Yeah. Uh, no, we have no. Yeah. Netflix is a, like a global thing guys. Yeah. I know. Um, yeah, I don't, I, I don't know. Um, we watch a lot of stuff, uh, and none of it's, none of it's particularly bad or embarrassing kind of stuff. Um, I'm trying to think of the last thing that we watched that were like, I can't believe we're watching us and loving it. Well,

[00:45:48] [SPEAKER_01] what are you watching right now that you're loving? It doesn't have to be. We just,

[00:45:51] [SPEAKER_00] we just finished day of the jackal. Okay. Oh yeah. I hear it. It's really good. With Eddie Redmayne. Yeah. Yeah. With Eddie Redmayne. And it was excellent. And I think my wife isn't usually into tense stuff like that, like that, you know, edge of your seat stuff, because she gets stressed out quite a bit more than I do. Um, but she loved killing Eve and there was something about the cat and mouse relationship in that's inherent in both of those shows that we tend to watch together a lot. And, and, and that works for us. So I would, I would say those two shows in

[00:46:20] [SPEAKER_00] particular are things that we've enjoyed watching together. Uh, last question. If you're going to compete,

[00:46:24] [SPEAKER_03] in any, um, a reality competition show, which show would it be? And do you think you would win?

[00:46:30] [SPEAKER_00] Uh, I, I don't even know what show it would be yet. And I don't think I would win.

[00:46:36] [SPEAKER_03] Let's, uh, maybe we can go on like, uh, let's go on the amazing race together. You and me.

[00:46:40] [SPEAKER_00] I would, Oh, I would love, I would love to do that. Survivor is not for me. I think I want to be a survivor guy. And I know deep in my heart, I'm, I'm bailing.

[00:46:50] [SPEAKER_03] I've been really into survivor. I came to the show late and I know enough about myself to know that I wouldn't make it, but there is a part of me that's like, I think I could do it.

[00:46:59] [SPEAKER_01] I have no desire. Amazing race. Yes. Survivor. No, no, I'm good. Thanks.

[00:47:03] [SPEAKER_00] I will say, and this is mostly, uh, to shill for the network that brings us here together. Uh, season two of finding Mr. Christmas. Uh, I think I would be a great dark horse candidate.

[00:47:16] [SPEAKER_03] I would love for you to be a contestant on it and then just be like, he's, he's already

[00:47:21] [SPEAKER_01] done the thing with no comment, uh, necessary from you, Eric, I can already tell you based upon the results of season one, you should have been in season one. Um, Eric, we talked about this a week ago and I forgot to remind you before we started today. And if you don't remember, we can come back to this, but we like to spotlight a charity of the, uh, of the guest choice at the end of all of these interviews. And we're going to give a hundred bucks to it and tell

[00:47:47] [SPEAKER_01] you all to give money to it. Well, that sounded very underwhelming. Wow. We're not made of money here in South Carolina. Is Fran just finding this out? Yeah. He's just, he is just news. It comes directly from my paycheck. Eric, do you have a charity in mind for us, sir?

[00:48:01] [SPEAKER_00] I, I do. And can I, do you have a few seconds for me to? Yeah, go for it. So, uh, when I said yes to this podcast, this was one of the biggest reasons for it. And I had a great conversation with my wife, uh, as you guys know, and as your listeners are finding out, I'm always really nervous about like appearances like this. So I don't always say yes. Uh, but I've been wanting to do this with you guys for a while. And the idea of this kind of charitable

[00:48:29] [SPEAKER_00] support that you guys add is, is what put me over, over the top on this. Um, and, uh, your timing great. Um, although you're not going to feel that way in a second, my father passed away in September and, uh, it's been a rough couple months. Um, but he was really fat. Thank you, man. Uh, he was really philanthropically minded and he was a board member for save the children

[00:48:54] [SPEAKER_00] Canada. Um, and so if it's all right with you, I'd love if you guys can give, uh, that a hundred dollars, uh, in my father's name, which I'll text you a shook a tub lay, uh, afterwards, um, to save the children Canada after this appearance. I, that would mean a lot to me.

[00:49:10] [SPEAKER_01] An absolute no brainer for us, Eric. Uh, I can tell you this, first of all, really sorry for your loss. He sounds like an amazing, amazing man. And you were lucky to spend your life with them. Um, and having you on this podcast, Eric, every time we talk about anything good, you do in any movie, one of the first things out of your mouth is how someone else directed it. Someone else wrote it, someone else acted in it. So it is very clear that whatever giving spirit your father had is alive and well in you. And, uh, so thank you. Thanks for, for saying that. And thanks for being here.

[00:49:39] [SPEAKER_01] You're a lovely, lovely human. And we'd love to have you back, uh, back here on the pod. Let's do it.

[00:49:43] [SPEAKER_03] For sure. Let's do it. I'd love it. I will say you are going to have to win a deckie first to come

[00:49:48] [SPEAKER_01] back. So that's like, we'll see how it goes. If we can't see last minute, it's because we did book

[00:49:52] [SPEAKER_03] Melissa Peterman. Yeah, it's not, it's not, you know, the worst part of this all is, you know, who was on, uh, finding Mr. Christmas last year? Melissa Peterman. Uh, yeah, I do. So that's tough. That's tough. It just keeps, keeps happening. It keeps happening. Just keep on coming. Oh, that's tough. Uh, this was so much fun and a long time, uh, coming and it can't, it can't,

[00:50:15] [SPEAKER_02] are you, have you done this before? Let's wrap it up. We'll be back next time with another one. Until then we're the first to wish you a Merry Christmas.

[00:50:21] [SPEAKER_01] Deck the Hallmark is a Bramble Jam podcast is produced by Aaron Shea. For more information on Deck the Hallmark, you can go to deckthehallmark.com. For more information on the Deck the Hallmark family, you can go to bramblejamplus.com. Deck the Hallmark is presented by Philo TV. For a free trial of Philo, go to philo.tv slash DTH. You're about to hear some ads that help keep

[00:50:47] [SPEAKER_03] the lights on here in the old studio. Thanks for listening or don't listen. It's really up to you at this point. It's at the end of the show. I mean, you're listening to me. Hi, but here they come. I promise they're coming. Yep. Here they are. Happy day. Happy day.

[00:51:03] Happy day.