'When Calls the Heart's Second Spinoff Focuses on a Different Timeline

The Hallmark series When Calls the Heart took a cue from another western drama, Yellowstone, with multiple spinoffs. The second spinoff for the Hallmark series is similar to one of the prequel series in the Yellowstone franchise in that it takes place before the events of When Calls the Heart. And, given viewers' affinity for the heartfelt family drama, a prequel makes sense now.

Compared to Yellowstone, which can be dark and is full of power dynamics, When Calls the Heart really only shares its western flair with the Paramount Plus and Peacock series. But it's hard for some not to try and compare them, especially since Yellowstone paved the way for its prequel shows 1883 and 1923 and now, When Calls the Heart has its own prequel spinoff.

When Calls the Heart is about a big city teacher who moves to a small mining town in Canada and has to get used to life in the country. Honestly, it's like a Hallmark movie, but as a TV show, and most Hallmark fans wouldn't expect anything less. In December 2025, the official Facebook page for the series announced the 2026 spinoff, which is a prequel and takes place before the events of the original show.

"We are excited to announce the When Calls the Heart universe is expanding with the all new original series Hope Valley: 1874, starring Bethany Joy Lenz, Benjamin Ayres, and Jill Hennessy," the post said, as the official announcement for the When Calls the Heart spinoff. "Streaming exclusively on Hallmark Plus this March!" It was later announced that the show would premiere on March 21, 2026.

The show takes place a few decades before the events of When Calls the Heart. In Hope Valley: 1874, per the press release, the series also features Coal Valley long before the town's name was changed to Hope Valley and around the time when coal mining was still a big part of the townspeople's lives.

Bethany Joy Lenz, known for some Hallmark movies but also the CW drama One Tree Hill, stars as a woman traveling from Chicago with her 11-year-old daughter when their wagon breaks down in Coal Valley. Her character also meets a local bachelor who she might fall for, because this is Hallmark, after all.

Before Hope Valley: 1874, there was a 2019 spinoff of When Calls the Heart that follows two characters who are originally from the flagship series. That spinoff, When Hope Calls, takes place around the same time as When Calls the Heart. In 2024, Deadline reported that its long-awaited second season was on the way for fans.

When Calls the Heart is based on author Janette Oke's book of the same name. There are six books in the "Canadian West" series, and they are all western romantics set with the Canadian West as the backdrop in the early 1900s.