Unexpected Grace is about a girl named Grace who finds a note from a schoolgirl looking for a friend. When Grace writes back, it sets off a chain of events that ultimately changes the lives of three people.
Starring: Erica Durance and Michael Rady
Image: Hallmark Media
Hallmark Fans Have Missed Michael Rady!
Michael Rady stole our hearts by cementing himself as a charming male lead in Hallmark movies. He brought authenticity to each character and could carry a movie on his own, even on the occasions when his co-star was less than impressive.
Have you seen all of Rady's Hallmark movies? Here's the list:
- Cloudy with a Chance of Love (2015)
- Christmas in Homestead (2016)
- A Joyous Christmas (2017)
- Christmas at Pemberley Manor (2018)
- Love to the Rescue (2019)
- Two Turtle Doves (2019)
- You're Bacon Me Crazy (2020)
- The Christmas Bow (2020)
- A New Year's Resolution (2021)
Scruffy or clean-shaven, Rady always glowed onscreen.
Then, he disappeared from Hallmark for two years!
Rady has been busy. He joined the cast of Chicago Med in a recurring role as Dr. Matt Cooper for season 7.
Rady is now slated to play Detective Chris Childs in Season 5 of Magnum P.I.
Image: Zach Dougan/NBC
Hallmark fans were thrilled when news broke that Rady would return to the network in Unexpected Grace opposite Erica Durance. The movie premiered on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries on March 12, 2023.
Rady revealed to Digital Journal that Unexpected Grace is a little different from customary Hallmark plots:
It's a story about dealing with grief and different stages of grief, and that is an exciting thing as a storyteller to jump into. We all enjoyed digging into that and playing with that. It felt really delicate at times to find a balance. We also wanted romance to be a part of that story.
If you've watched it, Unexpected Grace is definitely heavier on grief than romance, but it's an honest look at loss--something we all experience sooner or later.
In the movie, Rady's character is a single dad of a teenager who lost his wife to breast cancer. Durance plays Noelle, a mother who is still raw from the grief of losing her daughter two years previously.
While Unexpected Grace is a tear-jerker, it's a touching story about people progressing through grief and finding ways to celebrate the ones they've lost rather than remain in mourning.
Image: Hallmark Media
One thing many fans took notice of and discussed on social media was how tired and somewhat haggard Rady looked in the movie. His hectic and demanding schedule could be taking a toll. Rady is 41 years old and a father of four--that alone could account for his fatigue! Rady has two sons, Ellington and August born in 2012 and 2014, respectively, and two daughters, Olive and Maisie Iris, born in 2016 and 2021. It's a lot to juggle! He's also a little too thin, undoubtedly a result of being a vegan.
Erica Tremblay Is Superb as Grace
The character of Grace McCabe is portrayed by Erica Tremblay, who does a phenomenal job exhibiting the typical spectrum of teenage attitudes and behaviors that all parents must learn how to grapple with. One minute she's a girl who just wants her daddy, and the next, she's snarky and distant.
Image: Hallmark Media
Grace struggles to make friends at her new school. She spies a cupcake balloon in her front yard tree and is surprised that it comes with a note from a girl who is also looking for a best friend. Grace tracks down the sender, Toni, but instead, finds her mom, Noelle, who initially can't bring herself to admit that Toni is dead.
In a sweet and unexpected twist of fate, Noelle becomes like the mother Grace has lost, and Grace helps fill the gaping hole in Noelle's heart from the death of her teenage daughter.
Image: Hallmark Media
Noelle's ex-husband ends up working with Jack's construction company to build the Antonia Webb Center for Pediatric Research to honor their daughter and try to create something beautiful from the ashes of their grief.
Unexpected Grace Pays Homage to Shakespeare
Unexpected Grace has a similar melancholic vibe as Hallmark's The Presence of Love with Eloise Mumford, only the works of Shakespeare are woven into the story rather than Wordsworth and Coleridge.
Noelle is a college professor who teaches Shakespeare, and she often finds a quote from one of his plays or sonnets to fit many of life's situations, including the iconic Sonnet 18--Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day? The ending of this particular sonnet artistically sums up how Noelle will continue to remember her daughter: So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, so long lives this, and this gives life to thee. Instead of remembering Toni during her final stages of sickness, Noelle reflects on happier memories and recreates them. In so doing, she gives life to Toni's memory and finds a way to allow the joy of those times to trump her sorrow.
The Biggest Complaint About Unexpected Grace
The final scene of Unexpected Grace, where Noelle and Grace release balloons in a symbolic gesture towards heaven, hit a nerve with tree huggers. Social media lit up with outraged comments from progressives who were appalled that Hallmark would support launching balloons that could harm marine and other wildlife.
The turtles! The whales! The birds!
Well, there's no reason for alarm. Maybe you missed it, but the dialogue in that scene mentions that the balloons are biodegradable. The planet is saved!
Image: Hallmark Media
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Unexpected Grace was an awesome movie ❤️
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