Part Two: Laura Osnes and Aaron Tveit Give the Romance Its Heart
The biggest reason the movie works is the connection between Laura Osnes and Aaron Tveit.
Both performers bring extensive musical-theater experience to the film, and that background gives their scenes a distinctive quality. Hallmark officially highlights both stars in the movie and even features them performing “Winter Wonderland” together for the film.
Osnes gives Anna an effortless warmth. She isn’t written as someone who needs a prince to transform her life. Instead, she already has a strong sense of compassion and community. What makes her relationship with James interesting is that she challenges him without trying to change him into somebody else.
Tveit, meanwhile, gets to play a character whose polished exterior hides considerable uncertainty. James initially carries himself with the confidence expected of a prince, but underneath that confidence is someone questioning whether he can live up to the responsibilities waiting for him.
That vulnerability gives the romance something to build on.
Their chemistry works particularly well because their relationship isn’t presented as instant perfection. There is room for teasing, disagreement, curiosity, and gradual understanding. James has to become more open, while Anna discovers that there is considerably more beneath the formal exterior of the man she has met.
The supporting cast adds another layer of warmth. Victoria Clark plays Gabriella, James’s mother, while Tom McGowan appears as Ed, and Krystal Joy Brown is also part of the ensemble.
Victoria Clark in particular brings a theatrical presence that complements the leads. Having several performers with Broadway backgrounds gives the movie an unusually musical-theater-friendly energy, even though it remains firmly within the Hallmark Christmas-romance tradition.
That combination is part of the movie’s charm. It feels polished without losing its cozy personality.
And then there are the musical moments.
The decision to bring Osnes and Tveit together for “Winter Wonderland” feels almost tailor-made for audiences who appreciate performers who can do more than simply deliver romantic dialogue. Their voices add another dimension to the relationship, turning the Christmas atmosphere into something viewers can hear as well as see. Hallmark itself has promoted the song as part of the movie’s presentation.
For many viewers, that combination of romance and music is exactly what makes the movie so rewatchable.
