Luke Macfarlane and Peter Porte are coupling up for Hallmark this fall

Jul 10, 2023

Following his starring role opposite Billy Eichner in Bros, Luke Macfarlane is due to appear in another gay-flavored romance.

Notes of Autumn will star Ashley Williams, Luke Macfarlane, Marcus Rosner, and Peter Porte. The house swap movie sounds a little like that Kate Winslet-Cameron Diaz movie, The Holiday.

Macfarlane will play Leo, a writer living in rural British Columbia who’s hit a creative slump. He decides to swap homes with his best friend, Ellie (Williams), a pianist who lives in the city.

As they swap locations, Leo hits it off with Ellie’s friend, Matt (Porte), while Ellie finds romance with Leo’s neighbor, Sam (Rosner).

As the name suggests, it will be set against a fall backdrop and is part of Hallmark’s ‘Fall into Love’ program.

“The journeys of these characters and the paths their relationships take are handled with tenderness, compassion and explored in meaningful ways,” said Bart Fisher, Vice President, Programming, Hallmark Media. “This movie celebrates the fall season in a fun, contemporary way and has something for everyone.”

Although Bros faltered at the box office, gay romances on the small screen have found audiences.

The first seasonal Hallmark movie to prominently a same-sex couple was The Christmas House in 2020. However, the characters were not the leads.

It followed this last year with The Holiday Sitter, which starred Jonathan Bennett (who also played a gay character in The Christmas House!) and George Krissa.

Netflix has also dipped its toes into the genre, with its 2021 Single All The Way. Prime Video has also scored good figures for its recent Red, White and Royal Blue.

Fans of 80s pop may be interested to know that one of the executive producers of Notes of Autumn is Debbie Gibson.

“I’m so thrilled to have a creative voice during such an exciting time in Hallmark Channel’s programming,” Gibson said in a statement. “This is a special story that celebrates how love can blossom in the most unexpected ways.”

This is not Gibson’s first work with Hallmark. She starred in the 2016 original movie Summer of Dreams, and the 2018 sequel Wedding of Dreams. She also executive produced both of those movies.

Notes of Autumn will premiere on September 16th.

Macfarlane recently announced he’d become a dad for the first time.

They’ve had a daughter.