Virgin River’s Prequel About Mel’s Mother and father: Cameos, All the things to Know

The Virgin River universe is rising with an upcoming prequel — however how will the present reintroduce followers to Mel’s mother and father?

The beloved household drama, which premiered in 2019, follows the lives of residents residing in a small city in Northern California, together with Mel  (Alexandra Breckenridge) and her love curiosity Jack (Martin Henderson). The collection additionally stars Colin Lawrence, Annette O’Toole, Tim Matheson, Benjamin Hollingsworth, Sarah Dugdale, Zibby Allen, Marco Grazzini, Mark Ghanimé and Kai Bradbury.

Mel’s sophisticated private life has at all times been on the forefront of the collection, however a Christmas particular in season 5 kicked issues up a notch when she discovered the id of her organic father, Everett (John Allen Nelson). Season 6 explored the duo’s budding relationship, in addition to supplied flashbacks revealing how Everett and Mel’s mother, Sarah, first met. The perception into their love story paved the best way for an enhanced story in prequel type.

“What we’re exploring extra in season 6 [of Virgin River] is who Everett Reid is, what his backstory is, what his connection to Virgin River was when he met her mother after which additionally what it’s immediately,” showrunner Patrick Sean Smith instructed Deadline in December 2023, noting that the season would discover the “relationship of Everett with the city in addition to Everett and Mel.”

Maintain scrolling for all the things to find out about Netflix’s Virgin River prequel:

When Will the ‘Virgin River’ Prequel Premiere on Netflix?

The spinoff is presently being developed by Smith, who has been a showrunner on Virgin River since season 5. Smith teased the present’s progress in December 2024, telling TVLine, “I’m writing it as quickly as I get off [the phone] with you, so we’ll see. Fingers crossed!”

What Time Interval Would the Prequel Discover?

Based mostly on the flashback seasons from season 6 of Virgin River, the prequel would return to the Sixties. Smith elaborated to Deadline in December 2024 about his plan to “nonetheless communicate [to] and really feel related to problems with immediately” regardless of being a interval piece.

“That’s what Virgin River itself has finished fantastically in its steadiness of not being so boxy but in addition having one thing to say that also issues,” he mentioned concerning the “romance-forward” and “character-based” growth of the Virgin River universe.

Who Makes Up the Solid?

Virgin River season 6 launched Callum Kerr because the younger model of Everett whereas Jessica Rothe performed younger Sarah. Followers of the fictional small city can most likely anticipate to see extra of characters corresponding to Bert (Trevor Lerner), Connie (Nicola Cavendish), Doc (Tim Matheson) and Hope (Annette O’Toole) — if no more.

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Will Robyn Carr’s Books Play a Position?

For the reason that authentic present is based mostly on Carr’s ebook collection, the prequel will comply with in these footsteps.

“Every ebook was specializing in one couple and increasing the world exterior of it, to place Sarah and Everett within the foreground of their very own story, whereas populating, as Virgin River has, the world with supporting characters and different relationships — however all nonetheless operating it by the romance lens — to me, is what defines plenty of what an growth of the present and the franchise could be,” Smith instructed Deadline.

The screenwriter elaborated whereas talking with Us Weekly, “And it felt like Mel’s organic mother and father as having the depth of this epic romance that might be ebook worthy. [Something] that would span time, that may very well be star crossed and will have a being pregnant and a toddler and a father that desires to be part of that. And all the things simply felt like a novel technique to discover a pair on this by the lens of this present in a method that we haven’t seen earlier than.”

What Do We Know About Everett and Sarah’s Love Story?

Virgin River defined to Us that Mel’s mom died when she was 11 years outdated, but it surely wasn’t till season 5 that she discovered the id of her organic father. Mel discovered of Everett by love letters he as soon as despatched her mom, though he initially pretended to not know who Mel was when she first confronted him. He finally returned with a music field that featured Sarah’s voice.

“[The prequel would] broaden Sarah and Everett’s story extra whereas additionally increasing and studying extra concerning the historical past of Virgin River,” Smith shared with Us in December 2024. “One reference that was made within the pilot that had by no means actually been explored earlier than was Hope says that the McCrae Cabin is a spot that individuals inside 50 miles know all about, which suggests there she has a form of household legacy to this space that we haven’t actually gotten to scratch the floor of.”

Smith mentioned that the Sarah and Everett flashbacks are a leaping off level.

“After we dedicated to the concept of introducing Everett, it felt like an incredible alternative as any individual who we all know has resided within the space however has sort of eliminated and remoted himself from the group to have this historical past and have this relationship to this city and to this space,” he defined about having an “alternative that we may introduce a brand new couple, which the present has finished pretty constantly over the course of the seasons, and never inherit one other couple that we now have to maintain servicing within the current.”