Mario Lopez Joins Great American Media in Multi-Year Deal

Mario Lopez attends the HBO Sports Documentary 'The Golden Boy' premiere at the Tribeca Festival 2023 in New York City on June 9, 2023. Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for HBO

Mario Lopez has signed a multi-picture, multi-year deal with Great American Media.

The conservative, family-oriented media company announced the new partnership on Feb. 6 via a press release.

The Texas-based company revealed Mr. Lopez, host of “Access Hollywood,” would be starring in content across its extensive portfolio of cable television networks and streaming services. These include Great American Faith & Living, Great American Pure Flix, Great American Adventures, Great American Faith & Home, and its flagship network, Great American Family.

The actor—who starred in the teen sitcom “Saved by the Bell”—will play a “major part” in the Great American Family’s 2024 Great American Christmas lineup. The franchise, which produces holiday-themed movies and other specials, is slated to return this October.

To kick off the deal, Mr. Lopez will star opposite his wife, actress and producer Courtney Lopez, in his first holiday film.

In a statement, Mr. Lopez said that throughout his career, his goal has always been to create “a body of work that appeals to diverse audiences and, above all, brings joy to people.”

“Joining Great American Media is immensely fulfilling,” he said. “I look forward to creating uplifting, inclusive, and diverse content, viewed through a positive lens for all ages.”

The actor added that family was “the most important thing” to him at this point in his life. “Being able to share family-friendly stories representing diverse voices is a true blessing,” he continued.

Great American Media

Great American Media was founded in 2021 by private equity investor Tom Hicks (via his firm Hicks Equity Partners) and Bill Abbott, who is the former president and chief executive officer of Crown Media Family Networks—now known as Hallmark Media.

The duo purchased Great American Country from Discovery, Inc., as well as Ride TV—then an equestrian network—and transformed them into Great American Country Family and Great American Country Living, respectively. In 2022, the former was rebranded as Great American Family, and the latter became Great American Living.

Mr. Abbott, the president and chief executive officer of Great American Media, explained in a press release at the time that renaming the networks better reflected the company’s vision.

“Fans can expect more of the same quality, family-friendly programming they have come to love from our channels, and we look forward to rolling out the new name this summer in time for the return of our original movie premieres,” he said.

Great American Media went on to merge with Sony-owned faith and family streaming platform Pure Flix in 2023. Afterward, the company once again rebranded Great American Living to Great American Faith & Living, noting the move would help fill a void in the faith programming genre.

In a separate press release, Mr. Abbott noted that faith movies were among Great American Family’s top-rated content. “We feel strongly that the faith category is big enough to have a channel fully dedicated to the genre,” he said.

“We are committed to listening to our viewers and are dedicated to creating quality faith and family content that inspires and uplifts,” he added.

In August 2023, Great American Family—which was streaming in about 50 million homes as of June—celebrated its ninth consecutive month as television’s fastest-growing network based on Nielsen Media Research, per the company.

Celebrities Head to Great American Family

Mr. Lopez isn’t the first celebrity to venture into Great American Family territory. In September 2021, actress Lori Loughlin reprised her role as Abigail Stanton in season two of Great American Family’s “When Hope Calls: A Country Christmas.”

The first season, “When Hope Calls,” is a television spinoff of the Hallmark Channel’s “When Calls the Heart,” where Ms. Loughlin first played Stanton’s character.

Jesse Metcalfe (“Desperate Housewives”) and Jessica Lowndes (“90210”) starred in 2022’s “Harmony From The Heart.” That year, Jen Lilley (“Days of Our Lives” and “General Hospital”) signed a multi-picture agreement with the company. The actress and singer’s first original rom-com with Great American Family, “Royally Wrapped for Christmas,” was part of the network’s first Great American Christmas franchise.

In April 2022, Candace Cameron Bure made headlines when she became Great American Media’s chief creative officer. The actress walked away from the Hallmark Channel after 14 years, noting her desire to curate more “family and faith-filled programming,” she said in a statement at the time.

“My heart wants to tell stories that have more meaning and purpose and depth behind them,” she explained in a 2022 interview with The Wall Street Journal. “I knew that the people behind Great American Family were Christians that love the Lord and wanted to promote faith programming and good family entertainment.”

More recently, Ms. Bure starred in the network’s “My Christmas Hero.“ Released in 2023, it follows an Army Reserve doctor’s attempts to honor a special fallen soldier—played by Canadian actor Gabriel Hogan—while bringing ”much-need healing to her own family.”

That same year, Chad Michael Murray (“One Tree Hill”) and Christa Taylor Brown (“Wynonna Earp”) starred in “Christmas on Windmill Way.”

The network is now set to release its first-ever original series, “County Rescue,” starring Julia Reilly (“Stranger Things”), among others. The five-episode drama series will premiere on Great American Pure Flix on Fridays, starting Feb. 16, and on Great American Family on Saturdays, starting Feb. 17.