Summary

Collider’s Perri Nemiroff recently visited the set of The Way Home for Season 3.

While there, she got the opportunity to chat with Andie MacDowell about what to expect from the new season, which kicked off on January 3rd.

MacDowell teased a new side of Del we’ll see this season, discussed how learning about where Jacob’s been changes things, and loads more!

[Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for The Way Home, Season 3, Episode 1, “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet.”]With The Way Home Season 3 now underway, we’re rolling out snippets from our visit to Port Haven – or rather, to the hit Hallmark series’ Toronto-based set. Last night we unveiled some of our conversation with Chyler Leigh, and now it’s time to put the spotlight on the Landry family matriarch, Andie MacDowell’s Del.
Del has her world rocked in the biggest possible way right at the top of Season 3. After decades of wondering what happened to her son, Del finally gets the answer and, of course, the answer is out of this world. Not only is Del reunited with Jacob (Spencer MacPherson) in the first sequence of the season, but Kat (Leigh) and Alice (Sadie Laflamme-Snow) also reveal where he’s been and what they’ve been up to. After all this time, Del finally knows about time traveling via the pond.
In between scenes on set, MacDowell took the time to sit down for a chat to dig into how being let in on this secret that Kat, Alice, Jacob and Elliot (Evan Williams) have been carrying impacts Del in the new season.
Get Ready to See a New Side of Del

“This year gave me the opportunity to dive into her vulnerability.”

We began our chat by comparing MacDowell’s experience playing Del in Season 3 to previous seasons. Here’s the key difference she isolated:

“This year there’s a lot of stuff that happened where I needed to feel very vulnerable, so that was something different that I got to tap into. Even though I’ve had a couple of places, in general, that wasn’t Del’s MO. I feel like this year gave me the opportunity to dive into her vulnerability and to see a softer side of her because of Jacob and everything that happens. It’s a different piece. I mean, he’s back, so it’s different. Obviously, everybody knows he’s back from last season, but he’s back, so it’s a different part of her that I got to reveal.”

Fortunately, Del’s able to put her focus on rekindling her connection with Jacob because, finally, things with her and Kat are in a good place. MacDowell explained:

“We don’t have that sort of animosity towards each other in Season 3. I’m trying to think if there are any scenes where we are harsh on each other. Maybe occasionally, just like a mother and a daughter might be, but I don’t think it’s an overall feeling. I think there’s so much else going on that that wasn’t something that the writers brought it into this season.”

Image via Hallmark

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Leigh also revisits meeting her husband in an audition, learning her work can make a difference via ‘Supergirl,’ and more!

However, that doesn’t mean it’s smooth sailing for Kat this season, or for Alice. But, that’s a win for MacDowell who loves watching her co-stars making the most of the show’s more emotional beats.

“I love watching Chyler in her emotional scenes. I think she’s so good at that. She loves to dive really deep into those. I got to see her in the pond, and seeing her do that, I know she loves all that. I love watching her be so happy doing all that stuff. And Alice, I love watching Sadie. I had to do some emotional scenes with her this year, and watching her do that and how beautiful her work is. Most of the time, we just see her being sweet and innocent, but it was nice to see her have to dig in and do a deep, emotional scene, so that was a lot of fun for me to watch, as well.”

That Highly Anticipated Del & Jacob Reunion Scene? It Was Easy Work for MacDowell

“There’s a lot to take in in a very short period of time.”

Image via Perri Nemiroff

As for her own personal work, MacDowell’s enjoyed putting to use a particular skill she’s be honing her entire career, the ability to weave in and out of different emotions. Here’s how she put it:

“One thing that’s evolved in me and in my craft and what I do, because I’ve been doing it for a long time, is the ability to just feel emotions without even thinking about it. It used to be such a painful reaction. Now I just kind of fly in and out of emotions without a struggle. I feel like it’s a muscle that I’ve used so much that it’s really comfortable. It’s like being an athlete or something. You run a lot, so running for you becomes something that you really feel good at.”

One example of a time when that skill came in handy? It’s when MacDowell filmed a scene fans have been waiting for for two seasons – Jacob and Del’s reunion.

“It’s so funny because you think to yourself, ‘Oh, this is challenging.’ Then they say, action, and there it is. It’s interesting for me, that’s how it feels. Plus, I had to take in what he was wearing. Little things, you know? Because I don’t know where he’s coming from. I don’t know anything. So I had to take in the whole image of him, and that was interesting. That gave me something to work with because it’s very confusing. Not only do I have to accept that my son has been in a different time, but is standing right in front of me in clothes from the 1800s. There’s a lot to take in in a very short period of time, and doing the scene, it made it really easy, honestly.”

How Does Del Feel About the Pond and Time Traveling?

It seems as though it’s going to be a complex situation for Del.

One thing that might not be as easy? Del’s experience processing the existence of the pond and embracing what it’s capable of.

“There was a part of me that wanted to cling to the idea, and it’s in there, but occasionally I waver from it – I wanted to cling to the idea that she thought it was a bad idea, and there are scenes where you feel that, the danger of it, the trouble that it’s caused us, the trouble that it could continue to cause us.”

We’ll find out if the pond stirs up more trouble when The Way Home Season 3 continues. Episode 2 airs on Hallmark Channel on January 10th at 9 pm ET/PT. It will be available to stream the next day on Hallmark+.

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The Way Home

Three generations of strong and independent women living together in the small farm town of Port Haven embark on an enlightening journey none of them could have imagined as they learn how to find their way back to each other.

Release Date

January 15, 2023

Creator

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