Sean Faris to Star in ABC's CHRISTMAS WITH HOLLY, Premiering 12/9

Related: CHRISTMAS WITH HOLLY , Holidays 2012, ABC

Sean Faris and Eloise Mumford headline CHRISTMAS WITH HOLLY, a light-hearted romance for the holidays premiering as a HallMark Hall of Fame presentation, SUNDAY, DECEMBER 9 (9:00-11:00p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.

Mark Nagle (Sean Faris) is the uncle and guardian of six year old Holly (Lucy and Jose Gallina), whose single mother passed away unexpectedly. Mark owns the local coffee shop and roasterie in Friday Harbor, Washington State. Maggie Conway (Eloise Mumford) comes to Friday Harbor as a refugee of sorts from Seattle. Maggie was abandoned at the altar by her husband?to?be; it’s a perfect time for her to achieve her long held dream of opening a magical toy store in the town where she spent her summers as a girl.

Mark has help raising Holly from his two older brothers. All three uncles have their hearts in the right place. But they’re charmingly inept in their new roles – and they’re not helped by the fact that Holly hasn’t uttered a word since losing her mother. That’s where Maggie comes in; despite the approach of the busy Christmas retail season, she pays extra attention to Holly every time the young girl comes into Maggie’s welcoming shop.

Maggie assumes Mark is “spoken for” during the whole getting to know you dance, because Mark is in a relationship with Shelby (Alex Paxton?Beesley). But that relationship is floundering, and Mark and Maggie keep bumping into each other, which is not surprising given the cozy size of the village of Friday Harbor.

Sean Faris, interviewed on the film’s set in Nova Scotia, Canada, says, “’Christmas with Holly’ is much more than a boy-meets-girl, boy-and-girl-fall-in-love story. This is much closer to realistic situations, which will make the audience relate to it.” Eloise Mumford, also interviewed on set, says that “Christmas with Holly” is a story “about new beginnings, about embracing challenges, about letting love shine through. It’s about family, and that wonderful time of year, Thanksgiving through Christmas, and how families can come together to celebrate new beginnings. Here’s a family that came together, overcame obstacles, and grew stronger because of it.”

The teleplay for “Christmas with Holly” is by P’Nenah Goldstein (HallMark Hall of Fame’s “Loving Leah” and “November Christmas”), based on the novel Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor by Lisa Kleypas. The film is directed by Emmy Award winner Allan Arkush (“The Temptations,” “Caddyshack II”). Brent Shields (“Firelight,” “A Smile as Big as the Moon”) is executive producer; Andrew Gottlieb (“Beyond the Blackboard,” “The Lost Valentine|”) is producer.

“Christmas with Holly” is broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC’s selected HDTV format with a 5.1 channel surround sound. A TV parental guideline will be assigned closer to the airdate.