In an industry where careers come and go, Chyler Leigh has remained a force to be reckoned with. The North Carolina native began working in Hollywood in 1997 and has appeared in countless movies and TV shows since.
The actress has become a new staple at Hallmark Media, where she stars in and produces the surprise hit series The Way Home. Written by mother-daughter team Alexandra Clarke and Heather Conkie, the drama follows three generations of women in the same family who are searching for a missing loved one and trying to make peace with themselves and each other.
The series debuted in January 2023 and quickly picked up a devoted fan base. As Season 2 plays out on TV, we are turning our attention to each of the show’s stars.
Chyler Leigh
Chyler Leigh is well-known to television audiences. From 2007 to 2021, she played Lexie Grey on the hit ABC drama Grey’s Anatomy, the half-sister of series lead Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo). She went on to appear in Supergirl and The Flash, becoming a fan favorite in each.
But Leigh has played many roles in her life. In addition to successful careers in modeling and acting, she has recorded music with her husband, Nathan West, and has acted as an advocate for those suffering from mental illness.
A little history
Leigh was born in Charlotte, NC, and lived in Virginia Beach before her family moved to Miami. She began modeling in 8th grade and acted in commercials and a Florida TV show called Hall Pass. At the age of 16, she moved to Los Angeles with her mother to pursue a career in acting.
She met fellow actor Nathan West at the age of 17 when the two appeared on the series 7th Heaven. They married in 2002 and have three children: Noah, Taelyn, and Anniston.
Leigh had roles in The Practice and That ’80s Show before starring in the 2001 hit comedy Not Another Teen Movie.
Mental health advocate
Leigh has been open about her mental health struggles. She was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at the age of 29 after voluntarily checking herself into a hospital.
“I was so terrified because of my past,” she said in an interview with Prevention. “I was so worried about turning into all of the things I hated when I was growing up, but it was life or death. I was going to make a change, or I wouldn’t be here anymore.”
About 7 million Americans live with bipolar disorder, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. A person going through a manic episode may feel elated, energized, and reckless, while a depressive episode can result in total loss of energy, trouble concentrating, and feelings of hopelessness.
Leigh said she first noticed the signs as an adolescent when the sound of clinking dishes filled her with rage. She also experienced recklessness, mood swings, and trouble sleeping. She said she suppressed her feelings for years.
“I closed off and developed a shell around me,” she said.
The actress threw herself into her work and into the responsibility of raising three children. Eventually, she became overwhelmed.
“I was constantly hiding layers of myself, trying to come off as pretty and palatable,” she says. “I wanted to pass off as ‘I’m doing fine,’ but when I went to the hospital it was very clear that I was not.”
Helping others
Leigh became an advocate with Be Vocal: Speak Up for Mental Health, which meant coming out of her comfort zone.
“I’ve always been a very kind of private person,” she said. “I think mostly because of being afraid of having my story out there and being labeled as anything because there is very often such a negative stigma about it. That fear of judgment and ‘Oh, if people see me this way, that means that I’m not good enough or I’m not well enough to be able to take care of myself’ or whatever it might be. But, being able to have a fantastic platform to be able to speak my story and know that it’s going to reach a tremendous amount of people, that was major motivation for me [to speak out].”
The Way Home
In a 2022 Instagram post, Leigh shared the news that she would be joining the cast of a new series on Hallmark Channel.
“Took time off to work hard on myself,” she wrote in an Instagram post. “It’s not been easy. Letting go of the past can be quick or a lifelong journey. But it’s a journey that is so so worth the climb. My thanks to those who have helped me along the way. I’m standing on a new mountain top and am so excited for what’s on the horizon. @hallmarkchannel #TheWayHome #KatLandry … here we go.”
Leigh plays Kat Landry on The Way Home. When the series started, Kat was living in Chicago with her teenage daughter, Alice (played by Sadie Laflamme-Snow), and dealing with her recent divorce. After getting fired from her job as a journalist, she decided to return to her hometown and visit her estranged mother (played by Andie MacDowell).
When she arrived home, she was forced to deal with the pain of losing her brother, Jacob, who disappeared when she was a teenager. But when her daughter discovered a way to time travel, Kat became determined to solve the mystery of what happened to her brother.
Executive producer
Leigh has been enthusiastic about her new role as executive producer on The Way Home.
“I had much more space to give my input this year and it has been so rewarding,” she said in an interview with Uinterview. “Being behind the camera is something that I absolutely love, so watching the processes of creating these environments and creating these worlds and how difficult that actually can be, I love being a part of that.”
Chyler Leigh teases Season 2 of The Way Home
Chyler Leigh told fans to expect more action and plot twists in Season 2 of Hallmark’s The Way Home. The actress made the comment while appearing alongside fellow cast mates Sadie Laflamme-Snow and Evan Williams at New York Comic Con.
When the panel moderator asked for teasers for the upcoming second season, Leigh replied, “S**t gets real.”
The Way Home
The Way Home premiered on the Hallmark Channel in January 2023. It was the network’s first new scripted series since Chesapeake Shores, which ran from 2016 to 2022 on the network.
In the show, Chyler Leigh plays Kat Landry, a woman who returns home with her 15-year-old daughter, Alice (Sadie LaFlamme-Snow), when she receives a cryptic letter from her mother, Del (played by Andie MacDowell), asking for help.
Season 1
In Season 1, Kat and Alice arrive in Port Haven to a cool reception from Del. When Kat asks Del about the letter, Del insists she never sent it.
Alice, who knows only that her mother and grandmother have been estranged since the disappearance of her Uncle Jacob 20 years ago, finds herself lost and alienated in her new home.
While out exploring her grandmother’s farm, Alice falls into a pond and finds herself transported to the year when her uncle disappeared. She befriends a younger version of her mother and her mother’s friend Elliot, who is her English teacher in the present day.
Throughout the first season, Alice travels back and forth in time and begins to understand her mother and her grandmother. She also finds out that Elliot knows that the Landry women can travel through time and that he has agreed to help the family with an important secret.
More secrets and surprises
In a frenzied season finale, Kat figures out that Jacob disappeared after following the family dog into the pond. She also gets a vision of herself as a witch in the 19th century being chased by an angry mob.
During the Comic Con appearance, Leigh said it was surreal portraying the witch version of her character.
“I got that long hair, the wig. It was so ethereal and haunting and dark, and I didn’t even really know why. And it’s funny because Kat didn’t even really know why.”
She also said that viewers will find out more about the origin story in the second season.
Evan Williams, who pays the adult Elliot in the series, added that Season 2 will feature “answers, more questions.”
Season 2
Filming has already begun on the second season. Hallmark has not given a release date but if Season 2 follows the same schedule as Season 1, it will premiere in January 2024.
In a statement, a Hallmark exec that more of the back story will be revealed in the upcoming season.
“Season two is sure to bring more drama and mystery as the Landry family’s history is revealed,” said Laurie Ferneau, senior vice president of development at Hallmark Media.
We will be updating this story as more information becomes available.
Actress Chyler Leigh talks about taking risks and pushing boundaries in new Hallmark series The Way Home
Actress Chyler Leigh, who stars with Andie MacDowell in the new Hallmark series The Way Home, recently gave an interview in which she talked about taking risks and pushing boundaries.
The Grey’s Anatomy star, who plays Kat Landry in the multi-generational drama, said the show is exciting because it takes a different approach to storytelling. She called the show an amazing opportunity to “push it and shake it up so we can show people that have been tuning in for so long what we’re capable of.”
It’s an approach that has paid off, she says.
“…What we’ve been finding is the response from all the different age demographics has just been wild because we’re bringing in a younger audience and also an unexpected audience,” she told TV Line.
New Hallmark series
The Way Home premiered on Hallmark Channel on Sunday, January 15. The series follows single mother Kat Landry, who returns to her small hometown with her teenage daughter Alice (played by newcomer Sadie Laflamme-Snow) following a divorce. Alice becomes intrigued by the tense relationship between her mother and grandmother and begins investigating the 20-year-old disappearance of her uncle. Things take an unexpected turn when she finds out she can time-travel by jumping into a pond on her grandmother’s farm.
Fans have called the concept intriguing, and a complete departure for Hallmark.
“I can’t believe this is a Hallmark show,” wrote one viewer on Facebook.
Pushing boundaries
In her interview, Leigh said it was exciting to be a part of something so different for the network.
“If you talk to any of us, that was definitely such a big part of what we were most excited about was the opportunity we have to really take risks,” she said. “…Typically, the Hallmark audience knows “what to expect when they’re watching [their] shows or they’re watching the movies or whatnot, and what Hallmark is known, classically, for is for people to feel kind of safer and people to know the environment that they’re walking into.”.
Um, that kiss, though
Leigh also talked about the scorching kiss Kat shared with her childhood friend Elliot (played by Evan Williams) in the season finale.
“That was such a magical time because we literally had a 10-minute window to do that whole thing, to stage it, to prep it, because we were losing light,” she said. “With that beautiful sunset in the background, it was like, ‘This is the most epic. You can’t write this material to be able to work with, so we’re going to take advantage of it.’ So the whole thing, we did in like three takes. We went for it.”
Hallmark has renewed The Way Home for a second season, which will air next year.