‘Project Christmas Wish’: Meet Amanda Schull, Travis Van Winkle and the rest of the cast of the Hallmark film
Like every year, Hallmark Channel and its sister network Hallmark Movies & Mysteries are all set to make Christmas even merrier with its roster of holiday films. Among them is ‘Project Christmas Wish’
‘Project Christmas Wish’, directed by Jeff Beesley and written by Joie Botkin follows Lucy, who for years, has played Santa Claus to her small town's community. As she grants a little girl's wish for a "Christmas like it used to be," she unexpectedly finds her own wishes coming true.
Let’s take a look at the film’s star cast:
Amanda Schull as Lucy
The 42-year-old American actress and former professional ballet dancer is best known for her lead role in the 2000 film ‘Center Stage’, and for her recurring roles on the American television series ‘One Tree Hill’, ‘Pretty Little Liars’, ‘12 Monkeys’, and ‘Suits’ -- she was promoted to series regular for the show's eighth season.
Schull received a scholarship to Indiana University for ballet, which she attended at age 17. During her sophomore year, she attended the San Francisco Ballet School Summer Intensive. After Schull's year-long scholarship ended in 1999, she continued as an apprentice. She was cast in the starring role of Jody Sawyer in the 2000 film ‘Center Stage’ while still an apprentice. In April 2006, Schull retired from San Francisco Ballet.
Travis Van Winkle as Lucas
The 38-year-old American actor made his television debut in a December 2004 episode of the Fox sitcom ‘Quintuplets’. Since then, he has appeared in shows such as ‘That's So Raven’, ‘Malcolm in the Middle’, ‘The O.C.’, and ‘7th Heaven’. He is best known for films like ‘Accepted’, ‘Transformers’, ‘Meet the Spartans’, ‘Friday the 13th’, ‘Rites of Passage’, and more. In October 2020, it was announced that Van Winkle had been cast in the main role of Cary on the third season of the Netflix thriller series ‘You’.
Averie Peters as Max
The child actor, born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in Canada made her acting debut with ‘Project Christmas Wish’. Peters is a dancer and a participant of musical theater. She was set to perform in Winnipeg’s Rainbow Stage in ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and The Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre’s ‘Sound of Music’. Unfortunately, due to the coronavirus pandemic, both shows were canceled. Peters was a background performer in Hallmark’s ‘A New Year’s Resolution’, and ‘Christmas By Starlight’. She was a body double in ‘Flag Day’ and starred in an online Samsung commercial ‘Cherish The Moment You Love’.
Amy Groening as Joan
The Canadian actor and producer made her debut with 2011’s ‘Father’s Day’. She later performed in 20th Century Fox's ‘Goon’, and Space Channel’s show ‘Todd and the Book of Pure Evil’. She was also part of the show ‘Backpackers’. She has been part of several television films like ‘Horizon’, ‘The Secret Ingredient’, and ‘My One & Only’.
Micaela Lozano as Reporter
The 23-year-old from Chihuahua, Mexico, is known for her work in the 2018 film ‘J.T. LeRoy’, the American horror anthology television series ‘Channel Zero’, and the film ‘Traveler's Fate’.
‘Project Christmas Wish’ will premiere on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel on Sunday, December 20, at 10 PM/9c.
