Hallmark’s latest Countdown to Christmas film, “A Keller Christmas Vacation,” premieres on Sunday, November 9, at 8 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Central (with encores airing throughout the season.) The movie stars Jonathan Bennett, Brandon Routh, and Eden Sher. Read on to learn all about where the movie was filmed and see behind-the-scenes cast stories.
‘A Keller Christmas Vacation’ Was Filmed in Europe on a Riverboat & in Austria, Bulgaria, & More
“A Keller Christmas Vacation” was filmed on location in Europe, Eden Sher revealed in an Instagram post. “I shot a Xmas movie for @hallmarkchannel in real life Europe on a real life riverboat & had a magical time & made lifelong friends,” she wrote.
Bennett wrote on Facebook that the movie was filmed “in Vienna, Salzburg, and along the Danube.”
Sher shared her own behind-the-scenes photos and videos from some filming moments.
Here are a few more specifics about filming locations:
- Vienna, Austria: A figure skating scene was filmed here and inspired a challenge for season 2 of “Finding Mr. Christmas,” Bennett told Soaps.com
- Salzburg, Austria: A Christmas Market scene took place in a redecorated market square, Moviedelic noted.
- Salzburg, Austria: You’ll notice some landmarks like Hohensalzburg Fortress, Mirabell Palace, Getreidegasse, and Salzburg Cathedral, Moviedelic noted.
- Cruise scenes were on the Danube River
- Sofia, Bulgaria: A scene was filmed at the Bankya Mineral Baths, 4Filming noted.
In an interview with Forbes, Bennett joked that the goal of this film, which he co-wrote, was for “the Kellers to be like the Griswolds of Hallmark.” He also revealed that he based the movie, in part, on his real family.
“Ok so this is based on a real dysfunctional family,” he told Forbes. “I based it on my own family and all of the quarrels that me and my siblings get into. So I think there’s a realism to it that lends itself to having this family together more, and hopefully taking more and more colorful trips.”
Bennett said something similar to EntertainmentNOW: “It’s based on my own family’s vacations. There’s a lot of truth to it, and I love it so much.” And he loved having Routh play his brother since, he said, people always ask if they’re related.
“We finally made it happen,” Bennett said in an Instagram post about the film.
Bennett told Forbes that Routh is very different in real life from the older brother character he plays in the film.
“The thing about Brandon’s character being such a butthead in the movie is that this is so unlike Brandon,” Bennett said. “In real life, he is probably the most kind, gentle human being you’ll ever meet, so it was really fun for me when we started doing some scenes to see Brandon be the butthead version of Brandon, because that’s not who he is.”
Meet the Cast
Hallmark’s synopsis for the movie reads, “Christmas this year is going to be a little different for the Keller family, as parents, Anne and Ben, buy their three adult children – oldest son, Cal, middle son, Dylan and daughter, Emory – a river cruise down the Danube River from Germany, through Salzburg, to Vienna touring beautiful European Christmas Markets and towns along the way. The one problem? The very different siblings, who are each going through their own personal life challenges, have naturally gone in separate directions over the years and the idea of spending 10 days cooped up on a river cruise together makes each Keller child cringe for their own reasons. But they say “yes” because that’s what families do, never expecting it to turn out to be a glorious once-in-a-lifetime experience full of missed connections, new friendships, stunning vistas, relationship upheaval, budding romances, shipboard games, family bonding, and a secret that brings them all together in time for Christmas
Jonathan Bennett stars as Dylan. He’s a favorite among Hallmark fans, with film credits include “The Christmas House” franchise, “The Groomsmen” franchise, the “Cherry Lane” franchise, “Wedding of a Lifetime,” “The Holiday Sitter,” “Love at First Glance,” “Christmas Made to Order,” and currently hosting the reality series “Finding Mr. Christmas.” Outside of Hallmark, his credits include works like “Mean Girls,” “Dancing with the Stars,” “Celebrity Big Brother,” “Battle of the Decades,” “Halloween Wars,” and much more.
Brandon Routh stars as Cal. Routh is well known for his role as Superman in Bryan Singer’s “Superman Returns.” But he’s also a favorite among Hallmark fans for his adorable duo of cat-themed films: “The Nine Lives of Christmas” and “The Nine Kittens of Christmas” opposite Kimberley Sustad. Routh’s numerous credits include “Partners,” “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World,” “Unthinkable,” “Table for Three,” “400 Days,” “The Flash” (Superman/The Atom/Ray Palmer), “Legends of Tomorrow” (Ray Palmer/The Atom), and more.
Eden Sher stars as Emory. Her credits include “The Middle,” “Jane the Virgin,” “Sons & Daughters,” “Party Down,” “The Middleman,” “Sonny With a Chance,” “Weeds,” voicing Star Butterfly in “Star vs. The Forces of Evil,” and more.
This is Sher’s debut Hallmark movie, she told TV Fanatic. “If this was the typical experience, boy oh boy, everyone who’s not in Hallmark movies is missing out. It feels like I want to gatekeep it… I want to just do this forever,” she said.
Also starring in the movie, according to IMDb, are:
- Anand Desai-Barochia
- Frederic Brossier
- Harry Ditson
- JR Esposito
- Bettina Kenney
- Charlotte Krempl (Mia)
- Laurel Lefkow (Anne)
- Nigel Whitmey
- Jill Winternitz
The movie was directed by Maclain Nelson.
