There’s magic in the air, and Jennifer Love Hewitt is totally feeling it.
The 9-1-1 actor is the star, director, executive producer, and heart and soul of Lifetime’s uplifting original movie The Holiday Junkie.
Hewitt plays Andie, a young woman whose business, Holiday Junkie, is hired to fill the Parker family’s large, lavish home with Christmas spirit while they’re away on vacation. But the holidays have extra significance and emotional weight for Andie this year, as she’s dealing with the recent loss of a loved one.
While she’s decking the Parkers’ halls, she encounters ruggedly handsome handyman Mason (Brian Hallisay), who has his own case of holiday heartbreak. Could these two possibly find peace, love and joy in each other? We won’t unwrap that present early.
Lifetime
That Hewitt and Hallisay make a merry match onscreen is no surprise, since they’ve been married since 2013. “I have known forever that I’m married to the dreamiest human ever, and it was so nice to be able to see him be dreamy every day in this movie,” Hewitt says. “I mean, he just crushed it. And I’m excited that all the women who love Christmas movies are going to have him to sort of drool over for the Christmas season, which is nice.”
There’s a lot more of Hewitt and her family in The Holiday Junkie. The film is partly inspired by her business, Holiday Junkie, which designs greeting cards, apparel, decor, and much more for special occasions throughout the year. Two of her three children make brief appearances in the movie. Several longtime friends, including Greg Grunberg (who appeared with her in The Client List), have roles. Some 9-1-1 cast and crew pitched in, too. She even performed and cowrote an original song, “Christmas Magic,” for the film’s soundtrack.
Hewitt also drew inspiration from her mom, whose passing left a void in her heart that is still deeply felt during the holidays. “My mom definitely was a holiday lover,” Hewitt says. “She was just magical as a person. My mom was the kind of person where literally you’d walk in with her into a restaurant, and if she didn’t leave with 20 new friends, something’s wrong with those people.”
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Hewitt’s found comfort and joy in sharing her mother’s traditions and zest for life with her own children.
Making such a personal movie was a rewarding experience for Hewitt. “I definitely had to think about it. I was like, ‘Do I want to put all of this out there?’ But it felt like it was time,” she says. “It also felt like it’s just so much of who I am. My family is just who I am, and so it was like, ‘Well, if I’m going to be open and I’m going to be vulnerable and I’m going to share about myself, then it has to be us, because that’s my No. 1 thing.’”
And what does Hewitt think of the festively flamboyant apparel that is donned — usually with a nod and a wink — during holiday gatherings? “I love an outfit that represents pretty much any holiday, so I’m down with an ugly Christmas sweater,” Hewitt says. “I personally support them. I do think that they’re needed as a Christmas tradition and that they are fun.”
The Holiday Junkie, Movie Premiere, Saturday, December 14, 8/9c, Lifetime
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