Ashley Williams Hallmark/YouTube
Hallmark is in the love market with their newest dating show about parents helping their adult children find love.
Hosted by Ashley Williams, the network released a trailer on Tuesday, December 17, for Small Town Setup, which follows different sets of small town parents with an adult child who needs help finding The One.
According to the sneak peek, each person looking for love while living in a big city gets help from their loved ones who are curating three potential matches by their hometowns. Either the participants end up with love in their small town or they go back to the big city — AKA the plot of most Hallmark films.
“What would you do if your entire family and your hometown set you up to find love? You’re about to find out,” Williams, 46, teased in the clip. “We are going on a romantic adventure with heart, hope and a hefty dose of small town magic.”
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Williams hinted at some successful matches throughout the season, adding, “People might actually fall in love. It’s like a Hallmark movie, but real!”
Hallmark is largely known for their cozy holiday movies and shows but they are slowly venturing out into reality TV. In October, Hallmark debuted Finding Mr. Christmas, which followed 10 men as they competed in various festive challenges to showcase their acting skills and holiday spirit.
The show was hosted by Jonathan Bennett and Melissa Peterman as one contestant was sent home each week until three — Ezra Moreland, Hayden Maher and Elijah Malcomb — remained for the finale. Moreland ultimately ended up winning the first season and walking away with a better understanding of himself.
“I had one goal: to just be my total self and have a positive effect on anybody watching,” Moreland, 31, exclusively told Us Weekly this month. “In the first couple of episodes, I remember the judges saying, ‘We haven’t really seen your personality. We don’t really know Ezra.’ And that night, after being told that, I’m just going, like, ‘This is tough. There’s so much going on. There’s the competitive edge in the air and I’m kind of reserved for the most part.’”
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Moreland was grateful for the chance to get in touch with his feelings.
“I wanted to be my outgoing, funny, goofy, emotional self. And in this environment that was not easy,” he continued. “So to see myself breaking down and to have a chance to show the world how much my family means to me — and it’s kind of tough to watch yourself cry on TV — but it was a very proud moment. I’m so happy with that.”
After winning the show, Moreland starred alongside Jessica Lowndes in Happy Howlidays, which premieres on Hallmark Channel later this month.
“Jessica [was] just helping me step by step along the way,” he shared. “And our two characters, what we go through, there’s just so much heart and it’s very uplifting. And [our] two dogs fall in love in this movie! It’s the sweetest thing you’re ever gonna see. It’s just everything Hallmark.”
Small Town Setup premieres on Hallmark+ Thursday, January 2.
