Sisters Heidi and Sophie have grown estranged after their mother’s passing in A Season of Promises. But when their father experiences a health scare, the two are forced to put their differences aside and reunite as a family. Speaking with Pop Culture Planet’s Kristen Maldonado, Brooke D’Orsay, Ali Liebert, and James Denton opened up about bringing the heartfelt family story to life, building their on-screen chemistry, and finding plenty of laughs along the way.
Before playing sisters in A Season of Promises, D’Orsay and Liebert met on the set of Deck the Halls on Cherry Lane. “Thankfully, Ali and I met [when] she directed me in Cherry Lane in 2024, so we already had rapport. I just instantly was like, she's just the coolest. I was so impressed with her. The way she handled a set. We had a baby on that set. That's never easy,” D’Orsay shared. “So I just instantly fell in love with her. When I found out it was you playing this and the character's a comedian, like, it just couldn't have gone to a better person, actress. You were perfect for this, so, yeah, I was thrilled. It was just like jump in the stream and go.”
“So mutual,” gushed Liebert. “We had worked together before and I was so excited to be on the other side of the lens with you.”
That existing connection helped the actresses bring their characters’ complicated sisterly relationship to life. “Our characters are so different. For the comedy and the friction and their different coping mechanisms in the world, these different women [were] written very clearly and that was really fun to play those opposites,” said Liebert. “Where Heidi is a straight line, Sophie's like a Tasmanian Devil circle. I think those types of opposites create enjoyable performances, for sure.”
Meanwhile, Denton plays Ed, the sister’s father, whose health issues bring the family back together. As the daughters worry about his well-being, they take matters into their own hands. “I have a health scare in the beginning of the movie and that prompts them to go, ‘Okay, what's going on with dad?’ They think part of my problem is that I'm dissatisfied or sad and I need somebody in my life. That motivates them to go drag me out there and have some fake dates to get ready and coach me,” explained Denton. “The coaching scenes are hilarious. Then there's, of course, the makeover scene where I look like a typical Midwestern guy. They shave me and do my hair and have people come to the house and do a manicure. It's really cute.”
Liebert was quick to praise her co-star. “He's so funny. He's an amazing, amazing good sport. It was funny,’ she laughed. “I liked your makeover montage.”
While A Season of Promises delivers plenty of laughs and romance, the film also explores the complex emotions that come with grief, estrangement, and finding your way back to each other. “[It’s] serious subject matter because they have been estranged since my wife, their mother's, passing. You feel a lot in this movie. That's one thing I noticed when I watched the screener. It's a real roller coaster because there's some very touching, poignant, sad moments about what the two of them went through in their grief,” reflected Denton. “Then it's really obviously happy and fun off and on throughout, so I think people will love it.”
Catch A Season of Promises airing November 8 on Hallmark Channel.
