Lori Loughlin returns to acting with "When Hope Calls Christmas". Image Source: Deseret News
A recently released teaser of an upcoming television special, "When Hope Calls Christmas", marks the return of actress Lori Loughlin to acting after the actress and her husband, fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli, were involved in the college admissions bribery scandal in 2019. The two-hour Christmas special will debut on December 18th, 2021 on GAC Family, a recently launched cable network.
The actress was seen reprising her role as Abigail Stanton alongside Carter Ryan, who played the role of her adoptive son, Cody, in preparation for the premiere of the GAC Family show’s second season. According to the source, "Everyone on set is very excited about having Lori back. The crew is aware of the scandal she went through, but strongly believes she deserves a second chance."
The source revealed that the actress is equally excited and thrilled to come back to the sets and start doing what she loves. The source also shared that Lori feels happy to be around people from the industry. "In meetings and calls, she’s been so sweet to everyone and has always been respectful, so it’s exciting for everyone involved. There have already been conversations about future projects with her down the line", the source added.
According to sources, there have been mixed reactions to the actress’ return. Some fans are happy to see Abigail and Cody's characters return to the world of 'When Calls the Heart', but others are not so happy to see Lori return after her involvement in the college bribery scandal.
According to an indictment in the US District Court in Massachusetts, actress Lori and her husband Mossimo Giannulli were arrested in March 2019 after various wealthy parents were accused of allegedly cheating on the ACT and SATs and bribing college coaches (William ‘Rick’ Singer). At least 40 people have been charged in a large-scale college entrance exam cheating operation aimed at getting kids admitted to elite colleges as recruited athletes regardless of their athletic talents and assisting potential students in cheating on their college exams. Other known personalities that were involved in the scandal include actress Felicity Huffman and businesswoman Jane Buckingham.
Lori Loughlin and Massimo Giannulli were accused of paying $500,000 to college coaches for their daughter's admission. Image Source: Vanity Fair
After a lot of backlash from the media and the public, the couple decided to plead guilty to the charges in May 2020. The charges the couple pled guilty to were about them paying $500,000 to have their daughters, Olivia Jade Giannulli, 22, and Isabella Rose Giannulli, 23, as crew recruits, so they would be admitted to the University of Southern California, even though neither of them participated in the sport.
As a result, Lori Loughlin was sentenced to two months in prison, a $150,000 fine, and 150 hours of community service, whereas Mossimo Giannulli received a five-month prison sentence, a $250.00 fine, and 250 hours of community service. The actress’ sentence ended in December, while Giannulli's ended in May.
According to the Mercury News, Lori Loughlin is still on probation, although she was granted permission to film in Canada by a federal judge in Boston in September. "Ms. Loughlin thinks she will be travelling for around one week" after being assigned a new project, according to Ms. Loughlin's letter to probation officials.
Loughlin was last seen on TV in Season 6 of Hallmark Channel's hit series When Calls the Heart as Abigail, before being fired due to her role in the college admissions controversy. When Hope Calls is set in Brookfield, a village on the western prairie in Ontario, Canada.
Brookfield conducts a Christmas event as one of three contestants in Harper's Bazaar's search for America's #1 Country Christmas Town in When Hope Calls: A Country Christmas, Part 1. The entire town is focused on capturing the essence of Christmas for the photographer's lens, but residents are not living in the spirit of the season behind the scenes. A stagecoach enters the middle of the commotion, and Abigail Stanton and her son, Cody (Carter Ryan), step out, bringing a disturbed kid to Lillian's (Kohan) orphanage.
Brad Krevoy, Brian Bird, Michael Landon, Jr., Alfonso H. Moreno, Kaitlyn Greenough, and David Anselmo serve as executive producers for When Hope Calls. Kym Crepin is the show's producer. W. Michael Beard and Michael Shepard are the supervising producers. Bradley Walsh is the director. Alfonso H. Moreno creates the spinoff series.
Lori Loughlin's daughter Olivia Jade Giannulli and Isabella Rose Giannulli. Image Source: The Mercury
Actress Lori Loughlin’s daughter Olivia Jade is currently competing on Dancing with the Stars Season 30 and is paired up with professional dancer Valentin Chmerkovskiy and is already in the top 10. Talking about Olivia and Val, there were rumors that the two dance partners were more than partners, to which Olivia shared on her social media, "Hey guys, I just want to clear the air before this goes any further or this video blows up anymore. I'm just going to be super blunt and straight up, and just say that Val and I are not hooking up. We've never hooked up. This is a complete rumor; we are genuinely good friends and I adore his wife."
