Daniel Lissing is open to discussing returning as Jack Thornton on When Calls the Heart

Daniel Lissing left the role of Constable Jack Thornton on Hallmark Channel’s When Calls the Heart over three years ago. His character, also the husband of schoolteacher Elizabeth Thornton, was killed in a mudslide offscreen, leaving Elizabeth, played by Erin Krakow, to grieve, to have his child, and carry on alone. But now, Lissing is returning to the character he played for five seasons but on a different show and network as Jack Thornton will show up in Brookfield, the fictional town on When Hope Calls, on December 18th.

When Calls the Heart fans are ecstatic at the thought of seeing Jack again, even if only briefly when he appears with Lori Loughlin who is also making a return as a WCTH character, Abigail Stanton. Lissing, when speaking to Entertainment Tonight, called his short scene on When Hope Calls a “really nice, poignant way to say goodbye to this character.” But is it goodbye?

Daniel Lissing admits he’s open to discussing how Jack Thornton could return

When the question of”Is this goodbye” was posed to the 40-year-old Australian actor by reporter Deidre Behar, his response might surprise #Hearties as When Calls the Heart fans are called.

"Behar: Is it really goodbye, or do you think that the door is open to a return in a more frequent capacity?Lissing: I have been approached in casual ways from people that are involved with these projects like “let’s do something more, and I’m like how? If you can give me a good way to do it that makes sense then I’ll be open to listening. So who knows what will come, but I’ll just leave it at that.”"

Characters rise from the dead all the time on television. TellTaleTV provides a list of twenty-three and how they returned. Granted, some of these are supernatural resurrections, but the viewers didn’t see Jack Thornton die or his body for that matter which left some strings untied. And we don’t know for certain that Elizabeth saw it, either. It’s possible that the man buried wasn’t Jack. Perhaps the damage done was too much for a visual identity to be made. There’s always the amnesia angle, i.e., Jack has had amnesia for three years and finally regains his memory.

And then there’s also the possibility of bringing him back in dreams and flashbacks for Elizabeth, especially as she grows closer to Lucas Bouchard. She could begin doubting her decision as she’s not certain she’s ready to move on from Jack. Of course, there would be issues that would create some questions. But honestly, When Calls the Heart fans loved Jack Thornton so much they would most likely be willing to accept any type of plausible reason to bring his character back.

There are so many possible ways to return Daniel Lissing to When Calls the Heart, and the fact that Lissing is willing to listen should give fans some hope that they haven’t seen the last of the Mountie in the red serge.