When Robert Buckley popped onto Zoom with, “With a name like TV Fanatic, I’m expecting real enthusiasm!” I could only laugh and promise to do my best after four days battling a cold.
He grinned and said it with such good humor that any lingering self-consciousness melted away. That’s Robert — charming, quick-witted, and impossible not to like.
And paired with Kimberley Sustad, he’s exactly what you’d expect from a Hallmark dream team: playful, kind, and always ready to turn chaos into chemistry.
Their new movie, Merry Christmas Ted Cooper, was actually born from Buckley’s imagination — and his bedtime storytelling routine.
“My son loves for me to tell him stories,” he said. “And as I was running out of original ideas, I thought, I’ll just start workshopping this movie idea on him. Over several months, he became my little pitch partner.”
That early collaboration with his four-year-old inspired the story of Ted Cooper, a relentlessly optimistic weatherman determined to make this Christmas different after a few rough years.
But Ted’s commitment to positivity is tested by one ridiculous setback after another when he heads home for the holidays — until an unexpected reunion with Hope Newberry (Sustad), the smart, slightly skeptical hometown doctor who once caught his teenage eye, changes everything.
“The beginning of the idea,” Buckley explained, “was that I love to see bad things happen to people who are excessively positive. I think it’s very funny to meet adversity with forced enthusiasm. So that was my starting point.
“Then it was deciding whether Ted chooses to stay positive or if it’s just who he is. I decided it’s his default — he just always sees the bright side. And the fun part was, okay, if that’s who he is, how hard can we make it for him to test that resilience?”
That optimism made Ted an irresistible challenge for Sustad. “When I meet people who are actually that nice or positive, my first thought is: what’s wrong?” she laughed. “Like, what’s your angle? When is the part coming where I find out you’re secretly a serial killer?”
That got everyone laughing — and somehow, it wasn’t the only time serial killers came up during our chat about a Hallmark Christmas movie. (How does that even happen?)
Leave it to Sustad and Buckley to turn murder references into comedy gold while still radiating wholesome charm.
“I think that was my way of playing Hope at first,” Sustad continued, “holding it at arm’s length until she learns that people like this do exist. That it’s okay to let your guard down.”
And that mix of skepticism and sincerity is exactly what gives Merry Christmas, Ted Cooper its heart.
The movie still has the signature Hallmark charm — the small town, the mishaps, the snow — but the relationship feels refreshingly real. The characters talk to each other like adults instead of letting misunderstandings spiral into drama.
“I’ve watched so many of these and found myself yelling at the screen, ‘You’re two emotionally evolved 40-year-olds, just talk for five minutes!’” Buckley admitted, laughing.
“So in this one, I wanted that moment where things could go south, but instead, they just have an honest conversation. It felt more grounded and relatable. I’m a fan of endings that feel like, ‘Hey, I think you’re cool. I’d love to go on another date.’ That’s still a happy ending to me.”
It’s that down-to-earth approach that makes Ted Cooper stand out — both in tone and in spirit. And when you add in the kind of easy chemistry that makes viewers grin from start to finish, it’s no wonder these two light up the screen.
“Our first phone call set the stage,” Buckley said. “We were like, this is going to be fun and weird and quirky. Humor is kind of our shared language — as is sarcasm — so it just clicked immediately.”
Sustad nodded in agreement. “He kept me on my toes! I never knew what he was going to say next. It made everything feel fresh and alive, and I think that came through onscreen.”
The connection extended beyond the leads, too — fans of Chesapeake Shores will spot a mini-reunion with Brendan Penny.
“When I was developing it, I told Brendan, ‘I have this character that would be perfect for you,’” Buckley recalled. “At the eleventh hour, Hallmark said, ‘We’d love to have him.’ And then Brendan goes, ‘I currently have a mustache. Can I keep it?’
“I thought, no way Hallmark approves a mustache. But they did! So not only do we get Canadian handsome Brendan Penny, but he’s playing a lovable jerk with a mustache. It’s glorious.”
The laughter never stopped between the three of us, especially when we talked about the film’s “holiday magic” moments. Sustad smiled when I asked where that spark lives in Ted Cooper.
“The unexpected moments lead to magic,” she said. “You know, winding up in a sleigh till all hours of the morning — that’s when magic happens. It’s not about the perfect setup, it’s about surprise.”
Buckley agreed, adding, “There’s a really sweet moment after the costume party when Ted shows up at Hope’s house again. That’s the kind of connection I love — small, real, genuine. And yeah, maybe almost being crushed by a 20-foot gingerbread man is magical in its own way.”
That mix of mayhem and heart is exactly what makes Merry Christmas Ted Cooper the kind of movie viewers will want to revisit year after year — funny, touching, and joyfully offbeat in all the right ways.
As Buckley put it with a grin before we wrapped, “It’s got the same secret sauce as The Three Wise Men and a Baby — Kimberley Sustad.”
He’s not wrong.
Only with these two could a Hallmark interview somehow veer into serial killer territory — twice — and still end up feeling like Christmas cheer.
That’s the magic of Robert Buckley and Kimberley Sustad: even when the conversation goes delightfully off the rails, it circles right back to heart, humor, and hope.
Will this be another holiday classic you anxiously await each year? There’s only one way to find out.
Merry Christmas, Ted Cooper premieres Saturday, October 25 at 8/7c on Hallmark Channel.
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