Hallmark Reveals the Fate of ‘When Calls the Heart’ Season 9

The Hallmark Channel has renewed When Calls the Heart for a ninth season. The Season 9 renewal was announced by series star Erin Krakow during the Season 8 finale Sunday night, which saw Hope Valley rallying together to say goodbye and good luck to one of its own. Sharing the exciting news, Krakow quipped, “who knew even an extra-long season would fly by so quickly? But don’t worry: When Calls the Heart will return next year for another all-new season at Hallmark Channel. I can’t wait.”

News of the renewal came as little surprise, as When Calls the Heart has remained one of Hallmark’s most popular programs. Season 7 averaged 2.4 million total viewers, a number that grew for the Season 8 premiere back in February. At the time, Deadline reported the premiere averaged 3 million total viewers in Live+3 Nielsen data, at the time making the episode the most-watched original scripted show on ad-supported cable this year so far among total viewers and women 18+ and also making it the most-watched entertainment cable program of the week among women 18+.

“We are proud to have When Calls the Heart as a central part of our programming,” Michelle Vicary, EVP of Programming at Crown Media Family Networks, said in a statement obtained by TVLine. “It continues to captivate audiences with its amazing cast and storylines of love, community and optimism, and we are excited to continue the journey in Hope Valley for Season 9… The series has become appointment viewing on a highly competitive Sunday night [and] continues to climb in ratings year-after-year and is one of the top-rated shows in cable!”

The drama series first premiered on the Hallmark Channel back in 2014 and is based on the Janette Oke novel of the same name. Krakow stars as Elizabeth Thatcher, a young teacher who is used to high-society life, but now works in Hope Valley, a small mining town in Western Canada. The series also stars Jack Wagner, Pascale Hutton, Kavan Smith, Paul Greene, Andrea Brooks, Chris McNally, and Kevin McGarry. Season 9 will mark the third complete season without Lori Loughlin, the former Full House star who was written out of the show partway through Season 6 last year due to her involvement in the 2019 college admissions scandal. When Calls the Heart Season 9 is expected to premiere sometime in 2022.