Bethany Joy Lenz stars as Rebecca Clarke on Hope Valley: 1874, airing every Thursday on Hallmark+.
The One Tree Hill alum revealed the surprise family member who’s also on the show.
Bethany Joy Lenz is passing the acting bug to her nearest and dearest.
With new episodes of Hope Valley: 1874 (a.k.a. the prequel to When Calls the Heart) airing every Thursday on Hallmark+, fans can watch Joy back on the small screen in a leading role. She appears as single mom Rebecca Clarke, and she’s not the only member of her family on the show.
Fans can see her 15-year-old daughter, Maria March, pop up on Hope Valley: 1874 as Vivian Doyle, the daughter of a local prospector in the Western frontier, according to a March 21 interview with People. Joy couldn’t help but gush to the outlet about how special it is to have her daughter with her for this project.
“We're having so much fun,” she told the publication. “It’s such a dream job.”
Joy insisted that Maria (who’s currently a high school student) had to earn her place on Hope Valley: 1874.
“I made her audition,” Joy added. “I was like, 'You're not just giving her a free part. She needs to earn it. It has to be something that you actually would cast her for.' So I made her audition.”
Now that fans know how Maria is woven into Hope Valley: 1874, they can keep an eye out for her next appearance this season. And if you’re wondering how Joy feels about working alongside her daughter, well, she couldn’t be more excited.
“[Maria’s] doing a great job," Joy said. "I'm really proud of her. It's a beautiful story, and I'm so happy.”
We’re excited to see how Joy and Maria’s storylines get folded into one another’s in Hope Valley:1874!
