From the moment Benjamin Ayres joined the Hallmark family, I was convinced he was someone exceptional. Last year, he finally granted my request for an interview (okay, I made several requests because I’m very persistent), and we instantly connected. Thankfully, Hallmark fosters the same admiration for Ben that I do, and this past weekend, we witnessed his 2020 Hallmark Christmas movie premiere, Cranberry Christmas. In addition to this, last week, when he happened to have a break from filming the latest installment of Chronicle Mysteries, Ben and I had a fun, informative conversation that I am pleased to share with all of my readers today.

Benjamin Ayres Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Pooya Nabei

RH: Ben, thank you so much for making time for this interview. I know you’re busy filming now.

BA: My pleasure. Thank you, Ruth, I just happened to have some time, and it’s great to chat with you again. Where are you right now?

Washington state. And where are you? Vancouver filming Chronicle Mysteries?

Chronicle Mysteries Behind-the-scenes

Correct, we are back filming another one of the Chronicle Mysteries. One thing I love about doing these is that a lot of the same cast comes back every time. Like Ali {Sweeney} and I know each other really well, and you just hit the ground running. And that means that so many of the uncertainties that come with starting the movie are already removed.

That’s great. And I think you’ve got Jason Bourque back directing, right?

That’s right. He did our first one, and I was really excited to see that Jason was brought back. It was awesome! We really liked what he did with the first one, and we’re happy to have him back. I actually knew him before. He directed one of the first movies {Termination Point} I did way back in the day with Lou Diamond Phillips and Jason Priestley.

Chronicle Mysteries
Behind-the-scenes

Yeah, I seem to remember that. Well, it’s good to see that you’re filming another Chronicle Mysteries film. I thought it was such a perfect series for everyone involved. Ali is amazing in it. It’s been a wonderful series for her. There’s just nothing like this series out there. And having the podcast as a part of it makes it so current. I loved the first four, and I am definitely looking forward to this one.

I’m really happy because it’s Ali’s vision, you know. She’s the one who pitched it. She’s so creatively involved. In fact, on the lunch break of the first one we shot, we came up with the idea for the one that we’re shooting now. So that’s pretty cool. They’re not from books. They’re just from the ideas that she comes up with. And then she works with Melissa {Salmons}, who writes all of them. There’s so much continuity in that, but it’s also very creative and collaborative for all of us. And Ali is such an awesome powerhouse to work with.

Oh, definitely. We will look forward to seeing that next year at some point, I’m sure.

Yeah, tentatively in February of 2021, but you know how those things go.

Cast of Cranberry Christmas

Exactly. But you’re also in a Christmas movie that just premiered this past weekend. Cranberry Christmas.

Yes, that’s right.

I was so excited when I found out that you were paired with Nikki {DeLoach} because I had heard she was in a movie, but I wasn’t sure of all the details of the Christmas movies this year.  Then I saw the Christmas preview show and got so excited! You and Nikki paired were just perfect!

Benjamin Ayres, Nikki DeLoach Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: David Astorga

I was so thankful. I even sent Penny Perry an email thanking her for pairing us up because it was her doing. She thought we would make a great match to tell the story of this mature couple going through this conflict, and I was just thankful and so happy to meet Nikki. We’ve become really good friends. It’s one of the best things about these movies. It’s like it all happens so fast, from getting the offer to shooting it to wrapping it to airing it.

Nikki & Ben

But one of the greatest things is that we get to make new friends. I didn’t know a lot about Nikki before shooting this movie, and she didn’t really know anything about me. Now we both have gone through this very intense experience. And this one was especially intense because neither of us had been back to work because of the shutdown. So the first week, the first few days, was such an intense experience. It was nerve-racking, and we were both anxious. All sorts of things were going on. But we went through it together, and we went through the script. We talked a lot about it. I don’t do this with every actor. But we talked a lot about our process as actors and how we approach the scene and the type of study that we have done. We discovered quite quickly that we used a lot of the same terminology and approached things from the same angle. That allowed us to get there much quicker.

That’s great to hear, Ben. She talked a lot about you and said that she has certain actors that she would like to work with again. While she would work with anybody again, of course, she has certain ones she has really connected with…and you’re on that shortlist. 

All righty!

She said she’s got Andrew Walker and Michael Rady, but now you’re on that list too. She said that once she discovered you had a sense of humor, that was when she knew right away that you both would connect.  

Ben & Nikki

You know, it’s an interesting thing too. Because this was such an intense situation on set, there was almost this pressure for me to have to be funny. It wasn’t until our second week of filming when we got into the groove of working in these new conditions and trusting everybody in the process that we really started to have a lot of fun. And it was interesting just because of the way the script worked out; more of the dramatic relationship stuff happened in that first week. And then in weeks two and three, it happened to be more of the lighter stuff at the barn location. So when we were shooting weeks two and three, it almost felt like we were shooting a different movie. We were a bit concerned about continuity because weeks two and three felt like we were in more of a big rom-com than a dramatic story of a struggling married couple. But thankfully, it all came together.

Well, I was excited to see the movie, and it didn’t disappoint. Of course, I’ve been excited to see all the new Hallmark Christmas movies. I don’t know how Hallmark has been able to make forty Christmas movies during COVID, but they did it!  I thought if they could do twenty, I’d be happy. And with this one, I loved the premise because it was dealing with a married couple. Granted, it’s a married couple with struggles and separation, but I love the fact that the movie deals with a married couple. There’s not enough of those stories out there. 

Benjamin Ayres Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: David Astorga

When we were making this movie, I remember thinking…you know, oftentimes with the regular Hallmark movies, they are very heartfelt, light, and fun. But I remember thinking when we were making this type of movie…well, I just think every couple that’s out there that’s married will want to watch this movie. And if anything is going on in their relationship, it’s going to bring them together. Possibly, they’re even going to talk about some things. That hand grab that they have throughout the film will be much more impactful than just the meet-cute of a regular Hallmark film with two couples meeting each other for the first time. We were very cognizant of this film’s seriousness and reliability, and we were very pleased and proud to get to tell the story. Especially considering we’re both married and we both have kids, and we both have businesses outside of the industry, and we know how hard that is to juggle sometimes. So we brought a lot of history to it and enjoyed the process quite a bit.  I think the fans will appreciate seeing this story and how we told it in the Hallmark world.

Nikki DeLoach, Benjamin Ayres Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: David Astorga

My mom and I have talked about the film, and we both loved watching it together. It was different, and it was great to see. Hallmark knocked it out of the park with all four movies this weekend, and Cranberry Christmas was very special. Your movie aired on a perfect weekend. All of them were out of the box a little bit. I love how diverse Hallmark is becoming and how they’re changing things up a bit. Not that there’s anything wrong with rom-coms, but I love variety.

That’s right. If you do forty Christmas movies a year, year after year, you can’t keep doing the same one. So now we’re getting to the point, you’ve got tell stories that a are bit different. And if these do well–and we hope they do and audiences respond–then we’ll keep pushing the needle a bit and keep changing and morphing and growing, which I think is ultimately what we all want. I  think that’s where we’re heading, and that’s pretty exciting.

Nikki DeLoach, Benjamin Ayres Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: David Astorga

Exactly! Well, I think your partnership with Nikki went exceptionally well, and we hope for more from you two in the future. 

Thank you, and we’re also excited. Another thing that happens is if people like a couple on screen, the fans will request another one, maybe a sequel. That’s what people have said for years with my movie with Julie Gonzalo. After Falling For Vermont, the fans kept requesting another movie. And we would think, “Well, what is the next step? What’s going on with the couple now?” The obstacles are done now, so we can create some obstacles, but it’s sort of like they live happily ever after. But with Cranberry Christmas, it’s a married couple, and immediately. You start wondering what happens next. They got everything they wanted, but they made sacrifices to do so. So what does it look like next? It’s quite easy for us to continue telling this couple’s story, and I think we’ve already been talking about that. So that’s exciting too. And it’s warranted in this world, as you mentioned. They already have the history.

Nikki DeLoach, Benjamin Ayres Credit: ©2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: David Astorga

Exactly! It would be great to see a sequel! You two were outstanding in this movie. And we can hardly wait till Chronicle Mysteries next year! So how did you keep yourself occupied during the shutdown?

Well, I have two kids, so that was not hard. It was very busy. By the time June came, we had realized nobody really knew how long this was gonna last. You see, in the first couple of months, I was very creative. I was playing around with some fun content stuff. I don’t know if you saw the “Isolation Series.” It was a zoom series I made with Rachel Boston.

Oh yeah, I remember that!

I hired a writer that I’d worked with before, Jeremy Boxen. He wrote a movie that I did years ago {Cottage Country} with Malin Akerman and Tyler Labine. I said, “Hey, man, listen, if you could come up with some story idea that would take place via zoom that’s a rom-com, I’m gonna cast it.” I had never worked with Rachel, but she just happened to reach out because she thought I was doing some funny videos on Instagram. And I was like, “We should do something together one day.” After I talked to Jeremy, I asked her, “Hey, do you want to do this? I’m going to try to create a pandemic series type thing.” And she said, “I’m down.” So we did four or five of those. I got Drew Scott from the Property Buddies on one of the episodes.

Mr. and Mrs. Ayres

And at that time, June came, and I was like, “We’ve been locked down for too long.” So we loaded up the vehicle and drove from Toronto to Vancouver. We took our time, and it took about two weeks to drive across. We were just rolling through Calgary or somewhere in the Rockies, and I got the call about Cranberry Christmas. It was the right call to be heading west because after that, I found out Chronicle Mysteries was also coming back. So we’ve been busy with the kids. Lots of hikes, a lot of stuff, staying active, and homeschooling, of course! We were just trying to stay sane through all of it. I was happy to get some work.

Chronicle Mysteries
behind-the-scenes

I remember that “Isolation Series” you were doing. I don’t know if I saw all of them. I need to look them up. But I remember all the creativity that was out there. It’s great that you were able to keep yourself occupied, and you were creative and busy. 

Yeah, and it was nice to be able to make something immediate. Oftentimes, you make it, and then you have to wait for it to air. Sometimes that takes years.

I can imagine. So in the future, what are your plans for Christmas?

We are just finishing up Chronicle Mysteries, and then we’re loading up and driving all the way back to Toronto. We’ll take out time. We’re going to drive back home.

Ayres Family

That’s excellent news, Ben! So do you have any other prospects for filming once you get past the holidays?

Yes, there are a couple of things that aren’t confirmed. And auditions and ones I’m waiting on. It looks like we might be shooting back here in Vancouver if it works out. It’s very busy for actors right now because everything is starting up. Everybody’s in contention for everything at right, so things are fast-moving now. But it’s also great because there are so many opportunities.

I can imagine. Well, so cool to hear about all this stuff happening for you, Ben. Thanks for Cranberry Christmas, and we’re looking forward to Chronicle Mysteries. Stay safe as you drive back home.

Thank you, Ruth. And thanks for your support and the support of all the fans. Excited to hear what everyone thought of Cranberry Christmas and excited to share Chronicle Mysteries with you next year!

I cannot imagine a more down-to-earth Hallmark leading man than Ben. To look at him, you’d probably never dream he is an actor because he is remarkably authentic and particularly humble while coming off as totally “normal.” He is a husband and father first, and he simply relishes the privilege of being able to act for a living, thus pursuing his passions and doing what he loves. While he and I have only spoken a couple of times at this point and have never met in person, there are those people with whom you click from the beginning, and Ben is one of those people. No wonder he and Nikki got along so well. But in truth, I don’t believe there is anyone who wouldn’t treasure Ben and savor the experience of working with him. While he may appear unassuming at times, never underestimate the intensity he can deliver to the screen. If you haven’t watched him in Chronicle Mysteries, I hope you get a chance to watch the first four while anticipating the fifth. Moreover, the profundity he added to Cranberry Christmas and his character is such an extraordinarily ephemeral quality that cannot be manufactured in a Hollywood studio. In short, Ben’s talents and abilities are limitless, and he comprehends that there is a time to be humorous as well as a time to be sober both on and off the screen. His gratitude is perpetual as he continues to have the opportunity to work while being blessed with the family, friends, and associations he has–something he never takes for granted. Furthermore, I tend to believe that is the real secret of his success.

If you did not have the opportunity to watch Cranberry Christmas, be sure to watch out for its next airing on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries (November 3rd and many more times throughout the season, I am sure). If you are in Canada, be sure to catch the Canadian premiere on the W Network November 8th. In addition to this, if you are not following Ben on social media, I would invite you to check out his links below and follow him if you are so inclined. While Ben is definitely easy on the eyes and quite dashing, he also can handle any humor thrown his way. Likewise, whenever Ben appears in a project, you can rest assured that it will be something worth watching and rewatching (more than once, I’m sure). I appreciate the phenomenon that brought us Cranberry Christmas, and I can hardly wait to witness more magic from him and Ali in the new year! 

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