Kansas City is in its Lovers Era! Romance sweeps up Hunter King and Tyler Hynes in Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story, a full-on crowd-pleaser set in the Chiefs’ hometown, where football, holiday festivities and the NFL’s most famous mother, Donna Kelce, make for a winning combo.
Here, King gamely shares the secrets from the sidelines.
Tell us about your character. Who is this Alana?
Hunter King: Alana is a Chiefs superfan. She and her family are the biggest Chiefs fans you can imagine. They’re trying to win the Fan of the Year award, which is very important to her because her family’s legacy is they’ve been Chiefs fan for their whole lives, so it’s a big deal to her. Then she meets Derrick, who is the director of fan engagement and a little love story blossoms.
Is that an actual job? Director of Fan Engagement?
We were talking with the Chiefs and there are some [jobs] that are very similar between what’s happening in the movie. The fans will get to now see the behind-the-scenes reality of what the Chiefs fan-engagement department does. They’re on top of their stuff over there.
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Are you a sports fan in any vein?
I do love football. I don’t have a specific team, although now I feel like I’m becoming a Chiefs fan. [Laughs] How could you not right now, especially?! But I do love football. I grew up loving football. I grew up wanting to be a quarterback for some reason, and I was a Peyton Manning fan. A diehard Peyton Manning fan.
How is Tyler Hynes as a leading man?
Tyler’s amazing, he’s a Hallmark Pro. He’s so easy to work with and just bounce ideas off of. I feel like we work really well together. Just all of our little ideas like, “Oh, we can add this little thing,” and a nudge here and a nudge there. So he’s amazing.
Have you done a deep dive into his fandom?
Oh yeah. [Laughs]
Because they’re just like football fans!
His fandom is the best! The Hynies? The Hynies are dedicated fans. There were people that show up to set because they love Hallmark and are obsessed with the Chiefs and then they were like, “But also Tyler, where is Tyler?” And I don’t blame ’em. I get it; once you meet him, you get it.
You got to film at Arrowhead Stadium—how wild was that?
Oh, it’s the coolest thing. We went there to shoot some promo stuff and my mouth was just open, jaw on the floor the whole time walking around.
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You also got the full Hallmark experience of filming a winter movie in the dead of summer! I’m guessing you were sporting probably a Chiefs beanie, a Chiefs jacket, maybe a scarf. You’re piling it on, aren’t you?
Yeah, there’s a lot of knit. [Laughs] Sweaters, a lot of coats.
What is your secret for surviving that?
I’m still figuring it out! [Laughs] I always run hot. I sleep with it at like 62 degrees. I’m one of those people. So I am in the trenches over there just sweating and they’re like, “It’s cold, remember?” as the bead of sweat rolls down! So sometimes you take an ice pack and you put it in your pants, in the waist of your pants. And then there are these little fans that you can clip to your waistband that blow air up and that really does help. But again, you’re on your own once they start rolling and you’re just back to just sweating and immediately, it’s fans and waters and everything. But we’re making the best of it!
Hallmark Media
It must help that you’re also getting to rub elbows with some pretty cool people. Have you met Donna Kelce yet? Are any of the players appearing?
I have not met them yet, but I am so excited to meet Donna Kelce! And also Coach Andy Reid? I feel like I’m just going to fangirl. I’m just going to look at them. [Laughs] I’m already doing that with Ed Begley Jr., who plays my grandfather, and I’m just so excited. You have no idea. I love him. I keep telling him that, and I’m like, “I love you,” and he’s like, “Thank you, thank you” and then I’m like, “No, no, no. I love you.” He asked Tyler and me to run lines with him, and I was just sitting on the floor cross-legged like a little kid, just so excited. He’s just such a doll.
How do you usually celebrate Christmas?
I love to go to Disneyland around Christmas. And I usually make a bunch of desserts with my family. My sister Joey makes a great pecan pie around the holidays. So I just eat a lot from the holidays, is how I celebrate. [Laughs]
Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story, Movie Premiere, Saturday, November 30, Hallmark Channel
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