Hallmark Beauty Lyndsy Fonseca Dishes On New Rom-Com with 'Pretty Little Liars' star Ian Harding—'The Magic of Lemon Drops'
With Hallmark’s The Magic of Lemon Drops premiering on Saturday August 24, TV star Lyndsy Fonseca took a break from end-of-summer fun with her family to share everything we need to know about her new rom-com with hunk Ian Harding, the star of the series Pretty Little Liars.
Plus, The Young and the Restless alum who starred in Agent Carter, Nikita, Desperate Housewives, Big Love, the big screen comedies Kick-Ass and Hot Tub Time Machine, and a host of Hallmark rom-coms reflects on her teen years in Genoa City, the horror movie she’s executive producing, and balancing family and career with husband Noah Bean.
What to expect from ‘The Magic of Lemon Drops’
Since signing on to play Colleen Carlton on The Young and the Restless at only 14 years old, Lyndsy Fonseca has built quite a career for herself. The 37-year-old actress is living her dream – unlike the character she plays in her newest Hallmark movie, The Magic of Lemon Drops.
“Lolly is a bit stuck in the rut,” Fonseca tells First for Women. “She’s feeling what a lot of people feel at certain times in life, which is ‘Coulda, shoulda, woulda.’ What if she’d made different choices? What if she’d opened that restaurant? What if Mom had never died?”
?2024 Hallmark Media/Photographer: Steve Ackerman
Unlike most of us, Lolly is given a magical opportunity to find out the answers to the questions that keep her up at night. Her adventure starts when her aunt gives her a set of lemon drops that literally drop her into alternate realities – and ultimately, offer her a chance to change her fate!
“She goes on the journey of different lemon drop options, and as an actress, it was really fun to get to play three different scenarios and versions of the same character in the same movie,” Fonseca says. “It was such a treat!”
Lyndsy Fonseca talks co-star Ian Harding
Over the course of the movie, Lolly will investigate the sacrifices she’s made for her family and the decisions she’s made – and one of the biggest mistakes she must face is the one that drove away her high school beau Rory, played by Ian Harding.
“Ian and I go way back,” Fonseca shares. “We had the same stylist when we were younger and now, we’re connected through our spouses and kids. He's a dear friend, a wonderful man, a great actor – and we’d never, actually never worked together! It was really fun to see his version of The Love Interest, Husband, and Unrequited Love in all these different Lemon Drop scenarios.”
Fonseca just hopes Harding will forgive her for the movie’s final scene – which she envisioned.
“I thought we could elevate the ending, so I had a powwow with our director and producer about how we could do it – and then the network said, ‘Yes,’” she recounts. “I think that was the most exciting part. We were feeling a little giddy because Hallmark appreciated our idea… but then it was really a sacrifice! We had to spend an entire day shooting in a separate location to create that ending. The running joke through the movie was, ‘Why Lyndsy, why?’”
Lyndsy Fonseca balances career and family
Amid all the rom-com silliness, a central theme in The Magic of Lemon Drops is one’s responsibility to family and self – and finding the right balance. Off-screen, Fonseca and her husband, Noah Bean are finding that balance, together. Having met when they were both starring on Nikita, the couple loves making cameos in each other’s projects, but they are currently pretty busy with their cuties, Greta, 6, and Evelyn, 2.
“He recently directed me in a little independent short and it was nice, so hopefully there's more in the future… but if both of us are leading something, then who takes care of the children?” Fonseca asks with a laugh. “It literally is a logistics nightmare. We are in full little kid mode, but our careers and our lives will be long, hopefully, and there'll be plenty more opportunities for us to work together.”
While they’re prioritizing family right now, Fonseca’s not resting on her laurels. In fact, with The Magic of Lemon Drops about to premiere and a not-yet-announced Hallmark Christmas movie lined up, she’s currently executive producing her first project.
“It’s an indie horror movie called Don’t Move, based on a book series (by James S. Murray and Darren Wearmouth),” Fonseca shares. “It's a real cool comedy-drama, like an old-school creature feature, and we’ve got a great cast. I am an EP and leading the movie, and I take my role seriously. We start shooting September 22 in Kansas City. I'm so excited!”
‘The Young and the Restless’ alum on returning to soap operas
Over the years, Fonseca has been able to rely on her dance background to create big action, slapstick comedy, and Hallmark rom-com magic – but she first learned how to bring the drama during her teen years as Brad Carlton and Traci Abbott’s daughter, Colleen, on The Young and the Restless.
“I think of that time like a boot camp,” Fonseca says of her 2001-2005 run. “I’d done commercials, but that was a big change in my life. It moved my family to California, and it taught me a lot. I worked with talented, hardworking actors. Thad Luckinbill (who played J.T.) was a wonderful love interest and supportive partner. I have very fond memories… and it also feels like 100 years ago. I was so young!”
CBS / via @lyndsyfonseca on Instagram
While Colleen has long since been recast and killed off on The Young and the Restless, Fonseca wouldn’t hesitate to return to where it all started for her over 20 years ago.
“Are you kidding me?” Fonseca tells First. “If they asked me to come back and do a day on the soap, I’d do it in a heartbeat!
In the meantime, don’t miss Lyndsy Fonseca get into some rom-com fun with Ian Harding in The Magic of Lemon Drops, premiering Saturday, August 24, 8/7c on Hallmark Channel.
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