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Ian Harding of ‘Pretty Little Liars’ talks about ‘The Magic of Lemon Drops’ on Hallmark

Actor Ian Harding (“Pretty Little Liars”) chatted about starring in the new Hallmark movie “The Magic of Lemon Drops.”

Ian Harding
Ian Harding. Photo Credit: Steve Ackerman, Hallmark Media
Ian Harding. Photo Credit: Steve Ackerman, Hallmark Media

Actor Ian Harding (“Pretty Little Liars”) chatted about starring in the new Hallmark movie “The Magic of Lemon Drops.”

The film was directed by Maclain Nelson from a screenplay by Tracy Andreen, and it is based on the book “The Magic of Lemon Drop Pie” by Rachel Linden.

‘The Magic of Lemon Drops’

The synopsis is: When Lolly’s (Lyndsy Fonseca) aunt gives her three magical lemon drops, she gets to experience what her life would have been like if she had made different choices and lived those unfulfilled dreams.

“It’s a story of a woman who has done the right thing, and that’s the question that she is having through these pieces of magical candy,” he said.

Harding continued, “I thought the story was wonderful, especially for me, because my character shows up in different ways, depending on the ‘lemon drops.’ So, I got to go down all these different roads, and it was such an awesome time.”

Portraying Rory in the film

On playing Rory, Harding said, “I love finding him in a place where he is a little lost, and that has always been fun.”

“Sometimes, the characters that I play are the lovable jerk, or they are very confident, or they are played purely for sex appeal. I love that Rory is meandering at some point, so we find him there,” he explained.

Working with Lyndsy Fonseca as the female lead

“Apparently, I only work with friends,” he admitted. “I’ve known Lyndsy Fonseca for 12 years now. Oddly enough, she and my wife were bridesmaids at the same wedding. This movie was so great, and I feel a little bit guilty that I get paid to do this for a living because this movie was so much fun. I think I filmed it in 11 days.”

“I also got to see the choices my character would make based on the choices that Lyndsy’s character would make,” he noted. “So, I basically got to play four versions of Rory in this film. Playing every single version of Rory was just awesome.”

“The director, Maclain Nelson, was able to run the set like a well-oiled machine,” he said. “Maclain took his time to give the right direction, especially in specific moments.”

‘Pretty Little Liars’

Harding recalled his time on “Pretty Little Liars” as “awesome.” “I had a blast on that show, and I have no regrets doing it, even though I don’t condone the behavior of my character on there,” he said.

“I thought that was a jackpot experience, and overall, it was just great.”

The digital age

On being an actor in the digital age, Harding said, “I’ve experienced the full scope of it. I’ve experienced when Twitter first came out and I was a little reticent about it, and it took me a while to get on Twitter. Now, the digital age is so prevalent.”

“When it comes to the streaming side of things, with any change, there are the upsides and the downsides,” he said.

“I love being a part of where Hallmark is now because they are rolling out this whole new streaming platform, and to see them diversify this way is really awesome,” Harding acknowledged.

“While cable TV is not doing great, you can adapt and adjust. I think there are a lot of great things that come out of it, and Hallmark is a fantastic example of that,” he added.

Stage of his life

On the title of the current chapter of his life, Harding revealed, “Super Suburban Dad.”

“I have the best of both worlds,” he admitted. “I have my family around, and because I don’t have a day job (due to self-tapes), and if I get a job, I can shoot in Canada for a month or go to London, and then, I come back.”

“I think I am in my ‘Dad life phase’ chapter. I am so excited for my son to start all of these activities and school,” he added.

‘Ghosts of Christmas Always’

Harding enjoyed being a part of the Hallmark holiday film “Ghosts of Christmas Always,” where worked opposite Emmy-nominated actress Kim Matula.

“It was amazing,” he exclaimed. “I was so lucky to get that. I was living in Connecticut at the time, and it was so great. Kim Matula, the lead, is a longtime friend, so it was a no-brainer for me. It was so much fun, and we had a blast. People seemed to really like that one.”

Advice for young and emerging actors

For young and aspiring actors, he said, “If you are going to do this line of work, it’s for the long haul. It is noble to have a day job and not require this passion to pay the bills.”

“If you want to be an actor, you need to be someone who acts. Just keep doing it. If you feel like you are growing and changing, as a result of the work, then you are winning,” he acknowledged.

Success

Regarding his definition of success, he said, “Having the life that I want to have. For me, that has always been working as an actor, telling fun stories, and doing film, television, and theatre. Then, having the life I wanted on the side.”

“While I love acting, it is not everything to me,” he noted. “I also wanted to have a family, which I am doing, and I wanted to travel the world, which I am also doing.”

Superpower of choice

On his superpower of choice, he said, “I’ve always wanted to fly… that seems fun.”

“As I get older, I would love to heal diseases, that would be noble and great. I would also love to speak every language in the world,” he admitted.

Closing thoughts on ‘The Magic of Lemon Drops’

For fans and viewers, Harding remarked, “I want people to get an intense desire to eat lemon meringue pie along with levity. It is such a feel-good movie that you can watch with your family.”

“You can get some laughs and some tears out of it. ‘The Magic of Lemon Drops’ is such a great film and we filmed it in Winnipeg, which is such a fun little city with really great food. I hope people have a wonderful time with it,” he concluded.

To learn more about actor Ian Harding, follow him on Instagram and Facebook.

Markos Papadatos
Written By

Markos Papadatos is Digital Journal's Editor-at-Large for Music News. Papadatos is a Greek-American journalist and educator that has authored over 22,000 original articles over the past 18 years. He has interviewed some of the biggest names in music, entertainment, lifestyle, magic, and sports. He is a 16-time "Best of Long Island" winner, where for three consecutive years (2020, 2021, and 2022), he was honored as the "Best Long Island Personality" in Arts & Entertainment, an honor that has gone to Billy Joel six times.

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