The Search Is On For Hallmark’s Next Leading Man In ‘Finding Mr. Christmas’ Season 2

“It’s a Winter Wonderland…. of stress and anxiety,” says contestant Robbie of his time on the new season of Finding Mr. Christmas.

On this holiday themed competition show, Hallmark has gathered ten men to compete in a series of festive challenges that will showcase their acting abilities, as well as their holiday spirit, as they vie to become the network’s newest leading man.

Jonathan Bennet hosts, alongside lead judge Melissa Peterman, and a calvacade of Hallmark stars making guest appearances as well. They include Hunter King, Ashley Williams, Kristoffer Polaha, and Alison Sweeney, among others.

Along with Robbie, the contestants feature fellows from all walks of life, including a social media manager, a bartender, a musician and a former NFL player, among others.

Bennett says that he and the creative team decided to change a few things up this season, including the tasks the men would face . “So what I learned from season one is that our hunks are here to have fun and to go for it. So we upped the intensity of our crazy festive face offs that are Christmas themed. I have them skiing downhill while having to do a scene. I have them hanging 30 feet in the air from a harness while having to do a challenge. I have them just pushing themselves even bigger and bigger and bigger than they did in the first season.”

Robbie explains his remark about the experience, saying, “I think when I first got there, I was stressed, because it means so much to me. I’m so passionate about this.”

However, he adds, “As we went on, I really got to know the guys, and that let me relax, because I realized I wasn’t there to compete against them. I was there to compete against myself. We all were helping each other out, really forming the community, which I think you’re going to see more as the season unfolds. And so that ‘Winter Wonderland of stress and anxiety’ melted away.”

Fellow contestant Angel reveals that he had a special reason for wanting to compete to be Mr. Christmas. “Well, I grew up in Venezuela, and I learned English by watching Hallmark movies every Christmas, so this was something of an opportunity that I had to take. I knew the challenges were going to be tough, but I’m a person who adapts to whatever comes my way, so I said to myself, ‘Ok, Angel, you got this. It doesn’t matter where you come from, just do your best. No matter what, you keep going,’ and that’s what I brought to the show.”

One of the toughest challenges, says another contestant, Marcus, was the very first one. “We pulled up to this ski slope and I was like, ‘no way we’re going to be skiing,’ and, yeah, we end up skiing. Most of us had never skied before. Then, it starts raining. So it’s like, ‘oh my gosh, what are we doing? Like, am I going to be able to handle this? Am I going to be able to get through this?’”

He laughs a little as he recalls, “The rain was just pelting me in my eyes and Jonathan was like, ‘Marcus, are you crying?’”

Most of the challenges put the men in totally unexpectedly situations, says contestant Drake, “They were something you couldn’t prepare for, no matter how much training and stuff you did,” but, he adds, “really all of them were so much fun though.”

What wasn’t fun, says Drake, were the elimination ceremonies. “Those were very, very tough. I mean, we built this brotherhood by going through these rough challenges together so it wasn’t ever easy saying goodbye to anyone.”

Marcus agrees, saying, “When we walked into that first elimination, it hit all of us, like, ‘Oh, this is really gonna happen. Somebody has to go home right now,’ and that part was tough.”

An admitted fan of reality competition shows, Drake says that viewers should tune in for that aspect of the series, but that Finding Mr. Christmas is ‘different.’

“With this, we’re not trying to show people in in the worst light. We want to everyone, to show their best side. So, yeah, we’re in a competition, but you’re also watching the friendship that forms with all of us. That’s really at the heart of it. And as someone who consumes a lot of competition shows, I wanted to be a part of, one that you can watch together and feel good about and see people rooting for each other. I feel like we need more shows like this in which competition and support coexist, because it can happen, and it really does on this show.”

‘Finding Mr. Christmas’ airs Mondays at 8/7c on Hallmark Channel, is available for streaming on the Hallmark+ app.