‘When Calls the Heart’ Airs Without Lori Loughlin Revealing What Happened to Abigail

Sunday’s episode of the Hallmark Channel‘s When Calls the Heart revealed how Lori Loughlin‘s character was written out of the show after the channel dropped the Full House star when she was arrested for her role in a college admissions scandal.

In the episode, Erin Krakow’s Elizabeth Thatcher Thornton said Loughlin’s Mayor Abigail Stanton left Hope Valley and headed to the East Coast to help her ill mother. Loughlin did not appear in the episode.

Back in April, when Hallmark and executive producer Brian Bird confirmed Loughlin would no longer appear in the show, Loughlin had already filmed scenes for upcoming episodes. However, Entertainment Weekly confirmed those scenes were edited out, which is why fans did not get to see Abigail one last time.

“Life throws all of us painful curveballs, and the only way to survive is to walk right through them with courage, grace, a forgiving spirit, and most of all, hope,” Bird wrote on Instagram April 10. “Many of you have wondered what the future holds for our cast and crew, and for the citizens of Hope Valley. Your care and concern means the world to us, and the best way we can thank you is to encourage you the way you encourage us because… Hope always lives here.”

“We are saddened by the recent news surrounding the college admissions allegations,” Hallmark parent Crown Media said in another statement. “We are no longer working with Lori Loughlin and have stopped development of all productions that air on the Crown Media Family Network channels involving Lori Loughlin, including Garage Sale Mysteries, an independent third-party production.”

Back in March, federal prosecutors arrested Loughlin and her husband, designer Mossimo Giannulli, for allegedly taking part in a nationwide college admissions scam. Loughlin and Giannulli were accused of paying $500,000 in bribes to have their daughters Olivia Jade and Isabella Rose listed as crew recruits to the University of Southern California, even though they did not participate in the sport. The couple pleaded not guilty to the charges.

In addition to losing her role on When Calls the Heart, she will also reportedly not be asked to play Aunt Becky again in the final season of Fuller House. Netflix and series producer Warner Horizon Television did not comment on the report.

When Calls The Heart also stars Jack Wagner, Martin Cummins, Pascale Hutton, Kavan Smith, Paul Greene and Andrea Brooks. Another episode will air Monday at 8 p.m. ET.

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