A couple of years ago, before the premiere of A Godwink Christmas, I had the excellent fortune of interviewing Kimberley Sustad. I had been a fan of hers for quite some time, and this was a dream interview if there ever was one. Since that time, I have watched Kimberley indeed come into her own within the film and TV industry while still balancing her roles of being a loving wife and an energetic mother to two young children. Tonight (August 15th), the Hallmark Channel will be premiering her newest film, Wedding Every Weekend. In advance of the debut, she and I had the opportunity to speak candidly about the movie and life in general.

Kimberley Sustad Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Ryan Plummer

RH: Kimberley, it’s so great to chat with you today.

KS: Same here, Ruth. I don’t remember when we chatted last.

Paul Campbell, Kimberley Sustad Credit: ©2018 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Bettina Strauss

I think it was right before Godwink premiered. I know we’re both busy, so I’m glad we could make this work. This is a really special film coming up this weekend.

Yeah, just a regular old reuniting with Paul Campbell. Not bad, right?

Yeah, I talked with him recently too. We had a long conversation. 

Oh yeah? Because he loves to talk and talk and talk. {laughs}

Well, I asked him about the major issue concerning the first lesbian wedding in a Hallmark movie. So he probably talked about that a good fifteen minutes. I knew he had been fielding all those people on his Twitter feed. It had been full of a lot of other drama from other people, and he’s handled himself so well. That’s why we talked for a long time. 

Kimberley Sustad, Paul Campbell Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Ryan Plummer

This is where I luck out of not knowing how to use Twitter right. I don’t know where the original post comes from or…I think I have the retweet down and the heart, but other than that, I’m totally lost. I’m never on there. But I’ve heard all about it.

I personally think way too much has been made of it. Just my opinion. I mean, I understand. I’m not saying that people might be disappointed and upset. But we haven’t even seen the movie yet, and we don’t know exactly how it’s handled. We don’t even know exactly what’s going to happen. And it’s not the entire focus of the movie. I feel like people are missing the fact that it’s one storyline. Let’s look at the movie as a whole. To me, this looks like a beautiful movie. I’m so excited to see it. You and Paul Campbell are reuniting. My friend, Jaime Callica, is in it. I absolutely adore him. And I just connected with and interviewed Brandi Alexander. Then I think Jill Morrison is in it. All these Hallmark people are in it. 

Oh yes, Peter Benson, Geoff Gustafson.

Kimberley Sustad Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Ryan Plummer

Oh yeah! It’s like you have a lot of your Hallmark favorites in one movie. Plus, it’s written by a phenomenal screenwriter, Julie Sherman Wolfe. I love her. I’m just thinking, “Why don’t we at least tune into the movie?” There is one thing I always appreciate about Hallmark. I watch network TV too, and I see a lot of storylines that go against my personal beliefs, but I still watch them. At least with Hallmark, there’s no gratuitous violence, profanity, or bedroom scenes. So I’m pretty happy about that. Just my opinion.

I personally think it’s not going to be a problem at all. I’m not worried in the slightest. And even the people who are against it and being loud about it, I think they’re gonna watch it. And they’ll find out that it’s a story. The story is good, and it’s done really well. All the actors are great in it, and it’s going to be hard not to like, I think.

Paul Campbell, Kimberley Sustad Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Ryan Plummer

I honestly think you’re exactly right. I’ve talked with other people about it as well. I know some might say that they’re done with Hallmark, but being a When Calls the Heart fan, I’ve seen this kind of thing before. The Hearties get all upset because this character got killed off or whatever, and they say they’re never going to watch again. Then the next season rolls around, and they’re watching it as if nothing ever happened. I would not be surprised if what you said actually happens. Many who are complaining may just tune in out of curiosity. And they’re going to find out that really it wasn’t what they made it out to be in their minds. Really, I just wanted to tackle all that at the beginning. My feeling is that you are very discerning about the projects you do, and if you had a problem with this one, you wouldn’t have done it. 

Kimberley Sustad Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Ryan Plummer

You’re right. It’s a lovely, great story. As soon as I read through Julie’s script, the banter was just so fun that I thought, “Oh, this is a great Paul and Kimberley movie.” It’s exactly what I wanted. It’s light-hearted. I was really excited about the fact that it wasn’t Christmas because most of the things I do for Hallmark are Christmas. So I had a lot of fun filming. Probably one of the most fun movies I have ever worked on collectively, not just in the Hallmark genre. It was really fabulous. The cast and crew were just coming back after the pandemic. The controversy, I wanted to spend very little time on because…First of all, Paul has taken up the space there. He’s handling it well. But I just think there’s so much more to the movie than that.

Exactly! 

Behind-the-scenes
Wedding Every Weekend

I think if we take both sides, then it’s all dealt with. I trust that. I know he’s doing a good job of battling that. But also, let’s not distract from the others. For every one really loud voice, there are ten other interested parties who want to sit down and watch the movie. Suppose it brings up questions of any kind for anybody, and they’re willing to have those conversations. In that case, this should be an interesting ride. It’s not like we don’t see this. It’s everywhere we go. If anything, it’s handled even lighter than the Hallmark version of it might normally be. It’s definitely handled lighter than what we see on cable or network TV. I know they’re set apart for specific reasons, but I don’t think we can corner an entire network into expectations that we might have when it comes to inclusiveness or diversity. That’s kind of my two cents on that.

Paul Campbell, Kimberley Sustad Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Ryan Plummer

Overall, it’s such a fun, beautiful story. And it’s such a great premise. I don’t feel like I’ve seen this at Hallmark before. Four weddings. They end up going to all four, and it’s really fun how they discover each other at each wedding. It’s fun and hilarious and could happen. It reminded me of those 90s rom-coms that we love and that are so fun. All those obstacles are there, and it really strayed from the formulaic traditional Hallmark movie. When I was talking with the producer, she said, “I want to let you and Paul know that I want this to be a traditional rom-com. I don’t want to slice that from the movie. So go ahead and have fun with it.”  So that was really awesome. I think Hallmark’s headed not only in the direction we were talking about before with all the inclusiveness but also just back to that 2012 era where things were funnier. I don’t know if you remember back to Nine Lives of Christmas and Bride For Christmas. Things like that. Those films were really funny. And this one was written that way and they didn’t change it. They saw where it could go, and they were open to it. And I thought that was really great.

Kimberley Sustad Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Ryan Plummer

Kimberley, I just love hearing your perspective and how clearly you stated everything. Very simple and very succinctly. That was really good to hear. So thank you. I know I’ve been looking forward to this one. This was the first time you guys had been back on set since the pandemic if I remember right. I remember seeing posts and thinking, “Wait a minute! They’re already filming!” And the turnaround on this film was amazing! It seems like you just finished it! 

I can’t believe it either. It really stressed me out. I haven’t seen it yet, actually. I will be watching it with everybody on Saturday. But the network tells me that they’re head over heels for it. So I’m hoping that’s the case, but the turnaround time definitely made me nervous. I was like, “How do they possibly find the story in the editing room?” I guess they did it, but it makes me nervous. But there was so much in there. We shot so much.

Wasn’t your movie one of the first productions to come back?

It was the very first.

Kimberley Sustad Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Ryan Plummer

Wow! I couldn’t believe it when I saw Paul posting pictures about being on set. 

Yeah, and then they made him take them down. {laughs} I kind of followed suit the next couple days, and they were like, “I don’t think people know we’re in BC.” We had moved to phase three. A lot of people aren’t even there yet. Part of phase three of the reopening of the economy was the film industry. So this movie was actually talked about with Paul and I in March right before the shutdown happened. And then everything shut down, and I just assumed because it was for summer and we were supposed to be filming this in March, I thought, “Well, we won’t be doing that one.” Because they clearly needed it for the summer. But as soon as it opened up, I got a phone call from Hallmark, and they’re like, “We want to do this. Our crew’s still ready. It’s fully prepped. Will you do it?” I was like, “Yes, of course! I’ve been in quarantine with my five- and three-year-old for the last three and a half months! Absolutely!” You know what I mean? I was trapped in the corners of my house with two small children. I absolutely will risk COVID-19 right now.

Kimberley Sustad, Paul Campbell Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Ryan Plummer

Oh my goodness, I can imagine. I know that everybody was basically in lockdown all over the place, but we were very blessed because we live in the country. My daughter and my parents and I live on five acres. I really have nothing to complain about. I always felt for those who had small children. That had to be really hard. I can’t imagine how challenging it must have been to keep them occupied. 

I guess everybody still has their own challenges. I think we’re gonna feel the economic impact of this for a very long time. We’re not even there yet. The worst is yet to come. But it was tough with the playgrounds shut down. There was a part of me that was like, “Well, welcome to my life, everybody.” With two small children, it’s not like we go to restaurants. We work our lives around our kids’ schedules. And my life doesn’t matter. So we always kind of dance around our two dictators in our house. It wasn’t like there was a ton changed for us. But the activities that you might do to go kill some time were not available, so that was tough. We like taking them to Science World or the aquarium. We would hang out all the time to see Helen, the rescue dolphin. But there was none of that available. And when it was raining, there’s only so many muddy puddles you can play in and so many jumping adventures you can go on without wanting to throw yourself off a bridge. I don’t know. We got through it. We survived, and I really hope we don’t go back there. I know it’s scary. The numbers are rising again. And I get it that people are kind of over it. But I’m just hoping we don’t go back there again.

Paul Campbell, Kimberley Sustad Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Ryan Plummer

I’m with you. About the time I started complaining, I realized how blessed I was to have my parents with me and my daughter, who is seventeen. It could have been so much worse. I’ve just chosen to focus on all the positive things. 

I don’t know how you could have a daughter that age, Ruth. You look like you’re twenty-five.

Thank you, Kimberley. But I’m forty-six. But I’ll take your compliment. Actually, my mom and I have both taken this time to get healthier. I know some people gained weight during this time, and some used it to get healthy.

Kimberley & Husband

I actually started out really healthy. Before the shutdown, I was in better shape than I’ve ever been in. Then March hit, and funny enough, my girlfriend and I were gonna do “dry March.” We had this set in February that we were doing these little monthly goals. And I was like, “Yeah, I can take a break from alcohol for the month.” And she was like, “Yeah, me too. Let’s do it.” And then COVID hit, and it was March 13th. I was like, “Oh my gosh!” My husband’s business just lost fifty percent of its clientele in one week. And this movie and another show I’d been working on, Supernatural, were shut down. We didn’t know when we were gonna work again. I didn’t know what to expect, but at the same time, all I wanted to do was drink a massive glass of red wine. But we were thirteen days into this “dry March.” It was like the worst month ever for this! We made it all the way through, but after that, it kind of went downhill for me. But I just started my healthy regimen Monday again.

Yeah, I understand. I was starting to not be as healthy there for a while. But now we’re healthier than we ever were. I’m sure you’ll get back on it.

Oh, I am. We’re back on the bus.

So, in addition to Wedding Every Weekend, is there anything else upcoming that you can mention?

Well, I’ve already dropped that a sequel of Nine Lives of Christmas is coming. That’s happening. That’s a pretty big one. I think if everything goes well, we’ll see if we’re able to film that this fall so that it can be out this Christmas. We don’t know, but I think we’d like to try.

I heard that news, and it’s so exciting. We love Nine Lives of Christmas. A sequel would be amazing. 

Fingers crossed it happens this year.

Thank you so much for chatting with me today, Kimberley. I’m going to be promoting Wedding Every Weekend and just ignore the negativity that comes through. I’m planning to live tweet. 

Kimberley Sustad Credit: ©2018 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Bettina Strauss

That’s great, Ruth, thank you. I think the truth of the story is of value and honesty. It’s something we can all appreciate and take away from the movie. I think a story like this is needed right now. There’s some really special rom-com comic relief. And I think people will see that. I’m not concerned that it will be taken any other way. I’m not really concerned about people’s stories being told. I think that’s what we have to do as actors. We have to tell stories. I think these are valid conversations within our family, no matter what side you’re on because those stories are all around us. It’s even dealing with racism. Whatever it is, you have to have that dialogue, even at an early age. No matter what your personal views are, boycotting or putting walls up against it or pretending it’s not there doesn’t help. It doesn’t matter what you believe or what religious area or corner that you come from. This is a dialogue that needs to happen for humanity. There’s no reason to put people in a corner anymore or to make people wrong for the sake of being wrong. You know, we’re all wrong to a certain degree at some point. I just don’t see that anywhere in the Bible. I don’t see at any point the person that Christians are following ever made anyone wrong in that sense. He went after the religious leaders. They were the people that annoyed Him the most. Or people like the ones that are loud on Twitter who are like, “You’re getting it wrong.” I feel like those people are putting up walls between them and I. And that pisses me off more than being loving to everyone.

Kimberley, I’m so glad you said all that. I love hearing your perspective on the issue. It really resonates with me, so thank you. 

Well, I’m glad too. And just remember that it’s really only a few who are loud on Twitter who are making all the noise. I’m excited to share this movie with everyone, and I just know it’s going to be great.

Chatting with Kimberley again was just like conversing with a friend I hadn’t seen in a while. We were able to pick up right where we left off, and she couldn’t have been more gracious, kind, or complimentary. I know that Kimberley is a woman with firmly rooted values who will consistently speak her truth. On more than one occasion, she has stepped in as an encouragement to me. Her views resonate with me most, and I would heartily renew an in-depth discussion about an extensive variety of topics with her because she is such an incredibly generous listener and one who is not afraid to speak her mind in compassion and love without any blabbering or tomfoolery. She possesses a splendid sense of humor; I can hardly wait to see her comedic timing opposite Paul in tonight’s upcoming film.

I hope that all interested parties tune to the Hallmark Channel tonight (August 15th) for the premiere of Wedding Every Weekend. If you feel so inclined, take a moment to visit her links below and consider following her via your preferred social media platform. (I highly recommend Instagram since that is where she posts more often than not.)  I am grateful to the Hallmark network for regularly featuring her in leading lady roles (where she fits quite naturally). Merely the fact that a sequel to the triumphant Nine Lives of Christmas is in the works boggles my mind with more creative bliss than I can tolerate. I can hardly wait for tonight’s premiere and beyond!

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