Hallmark/Heavy Lucas’ future on “When Calls the Heart.”
Fans of “When Calls the Heart” were shocked last season when Elizabeth and Lucas broke up, and a romance between Elizabeth and Nathan seemed to be rekindling. Now with the season 11 premiere approaching on April 7, the cast is giving fans more clues about what to expect in Lucas’ future after things with Elizabeth cooled off.
‘I’m Happy … We Haven’t Tried to Shove (Romance) In,’ McNally Admitted
Chris McNally, who portrays Lucas on the show, spoke with Deidre Behar of ET about Lucas’s future in season 11. He said that despite Elizabeth and Nathan finding a blossoming romance in season 11, there won’t be a romance for Lucas this season.
“No, not in a romantic way,” McNally said when asked if Lucas finds happiness in season 11. “He’s really do everything in his power to save Hope Valley from the times that are changing and just the way that things are shifting landscape-wise with the town and the economy … So he’s trying to fight his way up this giant mountain and doing everything in his power to look out for Hope Valley… He’s focused on protecting the future… He is quite busy in that regard and I think that certainly helps him get through this period. But it’s definitely not an easy period because he’s just getting hammered from all different directions.”
Behar pushed a little more, asking if Lucas might find romance in the future with someone on the show.
“I think it would be too soon and I’m really happy that from a writing standpoint, we haven’t tried to shove that in and … explore it right now…” McNally said. “And in future seasons if there becomes someone else who maybe he’ll be even happier with…that’s great. But the time being, I really enjoyed this current trajectory.”
Lucas Won’t Fight to Get Elizabeth Back, But Nathan Will Think There’s Something Between Them
Behar asked McNally if Lucas would fight at all to get Elizabeth back.
“I think that Lucas has sort of reached the top of the mountain in his fight, and he sees at this point that no matter how hard he fights, you can’t change something that has something to do with the other person…” McNally said. “He takes a step back at this point and is, I think, internally struggling with being heartbroken but, at the same time, has so much empathy and compassion for Elizabeth and really wants her to be happy… There are some nice, tender moments where he talks to both Elizabeth and Nathan and says if there’s something that you want to pursue, don’t hold back on my account.”
He added that Lucas handles things maturely and already knows that something will happen between Elizabeth and Nathan. But Nathan’s not so sure.
McNally said there are “certain things that Nathan witnesses out of context that he’s kind of struggling with… Are they over or are they not? Where do I stand?”
In an interview with Behar of ET, Erin Krakow talked about how Lucas being in Hope Valley might make things complicated, but he just wants what’s best for Elizabeth.
“Lucas really wants what’s going to make Elizabeth happy…” Krakow said. “There’s sort of acknowledgment from Elizabeth and Nathan that Lucas’s presence in town might complicate things a little bit, but at the end of the day, Lucas just wants what’s best for both of them.
Lucas’ Past Will Revisit Him While He’s Governor
McNally told Behar that said Lucas is heartbroken but focused on his new job as governor and uncovering the mystery of who shot him, since he doesn’t remember anything about the attack. And beyond that, someone from Lucas’s past (Jeannette from season 6) will return and fans will get new information they didn’t know before.
And things will change a lot for Lucas, McNally added. First, he had to sell the saloon because it’s a conflict of interest with being governor. And he’s no longer with Elizabeth, so some of his ties to Hope Valley aren’t as strong as they used to be. But Hope Valley still is important to him and “he is very happy there,” McNally assured fans.
“Lucas is not going anywhere despite being governor,” he said.
McNally thanked fans for championing Lucas and Elizabeth.
“It’s great to follow these characters on (their) journey…” he said. “Nobody’s perfect and folks make mistakes, and I’m sure people can relate to being so sure about something and realizing partway through that there’s an aspect that doesn’t feel quite right. I hope they can see that Elizabeth nedds to be happy. She’s the hero of her show. If she has true happiness with Nathan, then I feel great about that…”
Behar asked him if he’s a fan of Elizabeth and Nathan.
“There’s a part of me that’s certainly disappointed,” he said, sharing how he was surprised when he was first told about the twist in the show. But at the end of the day, he’s happy with Lucas’s current storyline too.
“I’m just happy to be working on the show,” McNally said, whether Lucas is the love interest or not. “…At the end of the day it doesn’t matter, I’m happy either way.”
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