WHEN CALLS THE HEART’s Chris McNally Shares Details on Lucas’ Surprise Friend
By Movieguide® Contributor
WHEN CALLS THE HEART actor Chris McNally recently shared the emotional stirrings of the show’s leads, Elizabeth, Nathan and, of course, his own character, Lucas.
“Lucas knows Jeanette well,” McNally said about his character’s friend who visits him in Season 11, “and [he] does not trust her and…I don’t think he fully believes her reasoning for being there or her reasoning for being in Hope Valley. So because he doesn’t know what she wants exactly, he’s just nervous and wary of her and would rather she disappear and leave town as soon as possible. There’s definitely the fact that he’s reminded of…the life he used to lead in the past, and he’s made great efforts to change his ways and has made quite a bit of progress.”
A recent clip on WHEN CALLS THE HEARTS Instagram revealed that many hints have led up to Jeanette’s arrival in Hope Valley. There have been old photos shown, phone calls between Lucas and her in French and other times her name popped up.
McNally explained to TV Insider, “This blast from the past is inconvenient at best for him, and then there’s also the fact that he still cares for Elizabeth and cares for Elizabeth’s feelings and knows that he omitted parts of his story or parts of his past relationship with Jeanette, for whatever reasons that may be, and is concerned about Elizabeth finding out about Jeanette and what that might entail, I think, at this point.”
When it comes to a potential future with Elizabeth, Lucas will tread carefully.
“I think that he always puts Elizabeth’s feelings first, and her happiness is the most important thing to him,” McNally said.
“So if that means that she’s happy with someone else, then so be it, and in that case, I think he’d welcome a friendship with her though,” he said. “I feel like folks have all been in that position personally where you really care for somebody, but the feelings aren’t mutual, and it’s a difficult place to be.”
“So he’d rather have her friendship than not have her in his life at all, but so far in Lucas’s journey, there’s no one else that ticks that box for him and that he feels the same way about or even close to, so I think it’s tough,” he said.
As Lucas waits patiently on the sidelines, romantic tension is building between Elizabeth and Constable Nathan.
“I think Lucas is very aware [of their relationship]. I think that with all the history that has been built up between the three of them, he’s very cognizant [that Nathan is a] definite option. So I don’t think he’s surprised by it,” the actor said.
“I think that internally he knows that when it wasn’t right with Lucas and Elizabeth, that Nathan would be next or would be the final choice,” McNally explained. “So it doesn’t shock him, and I feel like he handles his situation pretty well. He’s decently good at keeping his emotions in check in that world and sort of, I don’t necessarily want to say, being a bigger man but like looking at the overall picture and saying we’re all adults here, and he’s expecting it.
WHEN CALLS THE HEART received several Movieguide® award nominations and an Epiphany Prize® for Most Inspiring TV Program, as well as several Teddy Bear Awards®.
Movieguide® recently reported on Season 11’s romantic happenings:
“Elizabeth’s fear that perhaps Nathan doesn’t have feelings for her anymore,” [Erin] Krakow said. “That moment on the steps is maybe the first moment in Season 11 where Elizabeth wonders ‘Oh did he just look at me?’”
…Krakow also revealed that there shouldn’t be any more love triangles this season.
“Not that we are going anywhere near a triangle again, but obviously it does complicate things a little bit to have Lucas around when she and Nathan are trying to kind of explore what comes next for them,” she said. “So, we’ll see how much time they’re spending in the same town together and what that looks like.”
For Elizabeth, Season 11 isn’t all about who her next man may be. It’s about self-exploration and hope for what lies ahead, too.
“Season 10 was a very challenging emotional time for Elizabeth,” Erin told Good Housekeeping. “A lot of self-reflection, a lot of trying to figure out what’s the right move and is she with the right person. Moving into season 11, it was important for me to explore the sides of Elizabeth that show her celebrating life a bit more and being open to those. There’s a real lightness and joy that comes with that.”
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