With Hallmark's Countdown to Christmas 2018, love and Kellie Pickler are coming to town

Kellie Pickler found a Hallmark-style love story of her own.

The "American Idol" finalist became head over heels with acting on the set of “Christmas at Graceland,” a part of the channel’s annual (and wildly popular) Countdown to Christmas. 

Yes, the most wonderful time of the year is already here: Hallmark Channel begins unwrapping 22 new movies Saturday (8 EDT/PDT)    with "Christmas at Pemberley Manor," while Pickler's “Christmas at Graceland” premieres Nov. 17 (8 EST/PST).  

As usual, Netflix, Lifetime and Freeform will also release original Christmas movies for the holiday season.

The Hallmark Channel sees a big boost from its Countdown to Christmas programming, according to Nielsen data. From the start of last year's Countdown through Dec. 31, the cable network averaged 2.4 million same-day viewers during prime time, well ahead of its average 830,000 for the first 10 months of last year.

In "Christmas at Graceland," Pickler, 32, plays Laurel, a single mom who gave up her singing career for a more stable life in business. So the Chicago business exec ventures to Memphis, Tennessee, her hometown, with the intention of acquiring a small bank. But reuniting with a former love could thwart her plans.

Just as some Hallmark heroines are afraid of taking a risk on love, the singer/talk show host – who competed on "Idol" in 2006 and won "Dancing with the Stars" in 2013 – was nervous about her first starring role. 

"I was terrified, because my greatest fear is disappointing people," she says. "so, I was like, 'I don’t want to disappoint anyone.' "

When Pickler was offered the Hallmark project, she was in disbelief. "I’m like, ‘I don’t need to audition?' or, 'I don’t know, are you sure about this? I don’t know what I’m doing. You have a lot of faith in me.' "

Pickler ultimately mustered the courage. "I said, ‘Well, I’ve always wanted to try acting, and I can pull from different life experiences." She calls Hallmark "a safe place for me to venture out and to try this... and see if it was something I would enjoy doing when I’m not on the road (or) working on other projects, and I loved it. "

Still, the thought of messing up crossed her mind. 

"The biggest thing for me was making sure that I could memorize my lines," she says. 

Yes, the artist who has memorized the lyrics for four studio albums worried about remembering her lines. “Sometimes you forget songs that you wrote that you sang for 10 years,. You’ll be onstage performing and be like, ‘Oh, crap… (what are) the lyrics again?' And you just make up something and keep it going.”

Pickler jokes that there's one part of her job that she really hopes she sold: that the feature was filmed during a chilly December, not the Memphis heat in July.   "That’s where the acting had to come in."

For Pickler, the role offers more than just an acting credit.

 "Growing up, I didn’t necessarily have a Hallmark Christmas childhood, but as an adult, I get to be a part of that family now, and it’s really a beautiful thing."

Viewers who tune into Hallmark for happy endings this season may notice a less white Christmas, after the network took criticism for its lack of diversity in programming. This year, viewers can see love stories unfold between Tatyana Ali and Dondre T. Whitfield ("Christmas Everlasting"), Jerrika Hinton and Christian Vincent ("A Majestic Christmas"), and Tia Mowry-Hardrict and Duane Henry ("A Gingerbread Romance").

Michelle Vicary, executive VP at parent Crown Media Family Networks, says the channel has made a conscious effort to implement diversity. 

“We’re excited to feature more diverse leads than in prior seasons,” she says in a statement.  "We’re pleased to welcome many new actors to the Hallmark Channel family."

Other ho-ho-highlights:

"Road to Christmas:" Nov. 4 (8 EST/PST): "One Tree Hill" fans will jump for joy (to the world) for this film. Chad Michael Murray plays the love of Jessy Schram in a story about the importance of family and friendship. 

"It's Christmas, Eve:" Nov. 10 (8 EST/PST): It won't be a "Blue" Christmas with LeAnn Rimes around. The country singer stars opposite Tyler Hines as a budget-cutting  interim superintendent.

"Pride, Predjudice, and Mistletoe:" Nov. 23  (8 EST/PST): She didn't make fetch happen in "Mean Girls," but Lacey Chabert has had success booking Hallmark movies. In this movie based on Melissa de la Cruz's 2017 novel, Chabert is tasked with organizing an event with her on-screen rival, played by Brendan Penny.

"Christmas Everlasting:" Nov. 24 (8 EST/PST): Along with Ali and Whitfield, this year's star-packed Hallmark Hall of Fame film features Patti LaBelle and Dennis Haysbert. Ali plays a career-focused woman forced to return to her hometown, where she reunites with her former high school love.

"A Shoe Addict's Christmas:" Nov. 25 (8 EST/PST) Candace Cameron Bure, who starred in Hallmark's highest-rated movie, 2014's "Christmas Under Wraps," is back, this time as Noelle, a department-store worker who time-travels to past, present, and future Christmases.

More:Hallmark to debut a record 34 new Christmas movies in 2018

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