Hallmark's First Lesbian Holiday Romance Friends & Family Christmas Hits the Mark

Over the last few years, Hallmark has slowly expanded the breadth of storytelling it chooses to invest in on its family of networks, which consists of Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries. Just this year, Hallmark’s slate of holiday movies — its most popular annual programming event — spotlighted characters not normally given center stage, from a boy with autism seeking to break a world record in A World Record Christmas to a visually impaired professor who adopts a guide dog in My Christmas Guide.

Hallmark has also made significant steps forward with queer-centric romances, a response to the 2019 controversy that arose it pulled a Zola ad showing two brides kissing. The company later apologized for pulling the ad and vowed to “better represent the LGBTQ community across our portfolio of brands.” The initial decision sparked backlash amongst viewers and advertisers, prompting the network to re-evaluate and reprioritize its programming mandate to be more inclusive and better reflect today’s world.

Though it’s taken some time, Hallmark has shown, especially through its recent holiday titles, that it is committed to diversifying its storytelling, notably LGBTQ-friendly love stories. Last year marked the first time a gay couple was at the forefront of a Hallmark Christmas movie in The Holiday Sitter, which starred Jonathan Bennett and George Krissa. This year, Hallmark moves the needle forward once more with its first lesbian holiday romance, the charmingly believable Friends & Family Christmas, led by openly queer actresses Humberly Gonzalez and Ali Liebert (who, coincidentally, directed The Holiday Sitter).

In Friends & Family Christmas, Gonzalez and Liebert portray two driven, career-minded young women — Daniella, a photographer, and Amelia, an attorney, respectively — who find themselves single at Christmastime because of varying circumstances. Naturally, their worried parents choose to set their daughters up, hoping that a blind date during the holidays will be the cure to end their singledom for the time being. The duo don’t exactly get along the first time they meet. (They never do in these movies; a Carol-inspired scene helps push them on the right path.) However, Daniella and Amelia soon see the mutual benefit of pretending to date each other — at least until Christmas Eve, which is when their unofficial agreement ends.

Social butterfly Daniella would be a welcomed plus-one at Amelia’s holiday work party, which would help solidify her place at the firm. Amelia would keep Daniella’s Christmas-loving family company while she busies herself in the lead up to a fundraising event for a local artist collective. The fake dating trope isn’t new to Hallmark movies, and it certainly isn’t the reason why Friends & Family Christmas stands out. Rather, it’s the refreshing way in which Daniella and Amelia’s relationship organically blossoms from strangers to friends to lovers that deserves notice.

As Daniella and Amelia spend more and more time together with their calculated visits and meet-ups meant to throw their parents off the scent, as is usually the case in a Hallmark Christmas film, their fake romance gradually turns into genuine attraction as they discover their distinct personalities may actually make up two halves of a whole. The obstacles they face aren't so much the lies they tell their family and friends about their relationship (though they’re a crucial aspect), but their own past struggles and experiences with life and love. Amelia is still scarred from a long-term relationship that ended a year ago after it became clear her priorities didn’t align with her partner’s, while Daniella prioritized her work and others’ happiness over her own.

When it comes time for Daniella and Amelia to confront their true feelings, the issues at hand aren’t trivial. After learning Daniella has just landed the chance to travel the world due to a new work opportunity, it reminds Amelia of why her last relationship didn’t work out. Her partner wanted them to see the world, but she wasn’t ready to. Afraid of history repeating, she decides to end the agreement with Daniella on Christmas Eve. It’s only when Daniella develops the film she took when she first moved to the city that she has a revelation: Her first meeting with Amelia wasn’t at their blind date; she had actually unknowingly taken her photo a year ago. It’s enough of a sign from the universe for Daniella to plan a romantic grand gesture that leads to two swoon-worthy movie-ending kisses.

What’s reassuring about Hallmark’s latest LGBTQ-led romance is how readily Daniella and Amelia’s friendship-turned-relationship is accepted by their families, friends, and colleagues, and the respect given to each of their journeys. Hallmark movies tend to be aspirational, but there is nothing unbelievable presented in Friends & Family Christmas. If a man and a woman can be the star of their own fake relationship storyline, why can’t two women — especially ones with great chemistry like Gonzalez and Liebert?

Friends & Family Christmas is a promising next step for Hallmark in its march toward more inclusive stories, and we hope there’s a lot more to come.

Philiana Ng is a Los Angeles-based writer covering TV, celebrity, culture and more. Her work has appeared in The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard, Entertainment Tonight, TV Guide, Yahoo Entertainment, and The Daily Beast, among others.