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Hallmark Channel receives GLAAD nomination for The Christmas House

By Sarabeth Pollock

UNSPECIFIED LOCATION - JANUARY 28: In this screengrab, actress Josie Totah, actor Jonathan Bennett and actor/performer DJ Shangela Pierce speak during the 32nd annual GLAAD Media Awards Nominations announcement on January 28, 2021. (Photo by GLAAD/Getty Images via Getty Images)
UNSPECIFIED LOCATION - JANUARY 28: In this screengrab, actress Josie Totah, actor Jonathan Bennett and actor/performer DJ Shangela Pierce speak during the 32nd annual GLAAD Media Awards Nominations announcement on January 28, 2021. (Photo by GLAAD/Getty Images via Getty Images) /
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The Hallmark Channel comes full circle after The Christmas House was nominated for a GLAAD award for Outstanding TV Movie. The movie is the first Hallmark original movie to prominently feature a same-sex couple.

The GLAAD nomination is welcome news for Hallmark as the network continues to add diverse stories to its impressively large slate of original holiday programming. The Christmas House star Jonathan Bennett was on hand to help announce the nominees.

The network came under fire in 2019 after pulling ads for Zola, a wedding planning website, that featured a lesbian couple exchanging a brief kiss during their wedding ceremony. While similar scenes featuring a man and woman had aired with no issue, Hallmark pulled the ads after backlash from conservative groups.

Hallmark quickly apologized and committed to doing better with their commitment to diversity, and a year later they are being recognized for that work with a GLAAD nomination.

Hallmark Channel’s The Christmas House portrays a very real LGBTQ+ struggle

The Christmas House is the story of parents Bill and Phyllis who invite sons Mike and Brandon to return home for the holidays to transform their home into the spectacle known as “the Christmas House” among neighbors and the community.

Little does the family know, there is trouble brewing beneath the surface as Bill and Phyllis have decided to sell the house amid marital issues, Mike’s job is at risk and Brandon and his partner have been trying to adopt a child to no avail.

Bennett plays Brandon, who is married to Jake (Brad Harder). They face the same struggle as so many LGBTQ+ couples as they try to adopt a child, and in the end it’s their love for each other, and the love from their family, that helps them keep going in the face of so much adversity.

The Hallmark Channel was able to turn a major media mea culpa into a happy ending and their commitment to bringing more diverse stories to life is exactly what needs to happen so that more families can enjoy holiday programming featuring stories that they can relate to.

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There are 10 movies nominated in the Outstanding TV Movie category, including another Christmas movie from Lifetime.  Winners will be announced during the GLAAD Awards’ virtual ceremony in April.

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