If your holiday season isn't complete without a Hallmark movie binge, chances are you've seen your fair share of Jill Wagner. Wagner first burst onto the small scene in 2003 as a host on the popular MTV show Punk'd. She continued her hosting gigs, working for four years co-hosting the game show Wipeout. After the 2014 series finale, she focused all of her attention on her acting career. She's become a Hallmark Channel Christmas movie star, appearing in feel-good flicks including Maggie's Christmas Miracle, Christmas Cookies and A Harvest Wedding.
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In addition to her acting credits, Wagner is also known for producing her new thriller show Lioness. Wagner joins the current king of TV, Taylor Sheridan, as co-creator and co-producer of the new spy series. Lioness is the newest in a slew of shows Sheridan is creating for the Paramount Network. After his hit Yellowstone's major success, Sheridan has been on a roll — releasing The Mayor of Kingstown, Tulsa King, 1883, and 1923 for the Paramount Network. Lioness is based on a real CIA operation and involves a young female Marine who is recruited to infiltrate and bring down a terrorist organization. Wagner will take on the role of Bobby, a CIA agent. A fun change for her longtime fans, Lioness marks Wagner's first time in a major TV drama. But there are plenty of chances to see her playing unique roles in several TV movies before Lioness debuts in 2023 or 2024.
As we prepare to see Wagner in one of her most captivating roles to date, here's a look at some of her best films over the years from her lengthy filmography. From thrillers to mysteries to holiday rom-coms, here are the best Jill Wagner movies worth revisiting.
Splinter (2008)
IMDB/Content Film International
Splinter is a 2008 thriller-horror flick starring Wagner. A deadly splinter parasite begins infecting residents in town and using their bodies as zombie hosts. Wagner plays Polly Watt, who joins her boyfriend to team up with convicts to try to survive the splinter creatures. If you're looking for something to keep you on the edge of your seat, you should note that critics called it, "A solid monster movie."
Where to watch: Prime Video, Hulu
Braven (2018)
IMDB/Highland Film Group
Braven is a 2018 action thriller starring Wagner and Jason Momoa. Wagner and Momoa's acting history far predates the movie, as the two were acting partners in Wagner's first acting class.
Wagner and Momoa join onscreen as husband and wife, Joe and Stephanie Braven. The couple are part of a logging family and must take refuge in their family's secluded cabin after Joe's elderly father starts a bar brawl. To complicate matters, a drug dealer wants to use the business as a front for a cocaine operation.
Where to watch: Prime Video
Autumn Dreams (2015)
2015 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Bettina Strauss
Autumn Dreams is a classic Hallmark TV movie in which Wagner plays Annie, a small-town Iowa girl who marries her high school sweetheart. When her parents annul the marriage, Wagner and her ex-husband go about their lives, only to reunite years later when they find out the marriage was never fully annulled. When they start reminiscing, old feelings ignite, and they must decide whether to abandon their new lives for their past.
Where to watch: Hallmark Movies Now, rent on Prime Video or AppleTV
A Harvest Wedding (2017)
2017 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Bettina Strauss
A Harvest Wedding is a feel-good romantic Hallmark movie in which Wagner plays wedding planner Sarah Bloom. She is contracted to plan a wedding in her hometown, at the bride's family farm. Coincidentally, the bride's brother runs the farm and happens to be Sarah's first true love.
Where to watch: FuboTV
Pearl in Paradise (2018)
2018 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Allan Stephen
Pearl in Paradise is an adventurous love story in which Wagner plays a travel photographer, Alex. She is tasked with traveling to Fiji with travel writer Colin to find a rare pearl. In true Hallmark movie fashion, the pair may find more than what they originally bargained for during their search for the pearl.
Where to watch: Hallmark Movies Now
Hearts of Winter (2020)
2019 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Farah Nosh
Hearts of Winter is a newer Hallmark movie, released in 2020. Wagner plays Bethany, an interior designer who is hired to transform the home of a widower and his daughter. Grant, the widower, is initially hesitant to change anything about the home he and his wife shared but slowly opens up to Bethany. The two's relationship blossoms into something more than they could've imagined.
Where to watch: DIRECTV, Hallmark Movies Now
The Angel Tree (2020)
2020 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Steve Wensley
The Angel Tree is a classic Hallmark Christmas movie based on the book by Daphne Benedis-Grab. Wagner plays writer Rebecca, who is on a quest to find a mysterious angel for her hometown angel tree. People in the town can leave anonymous wishes on the tree, and a mysterious angel helps grant them. Rebecca's old childhood friend, Matthew, joins her in the quest to find the secret angel.
Where to watch: Hallmark Movies Now, Sling TV
A Merry Christmas Wish (2022)
Great American Media
A Merry Christmas Wish is another made-for-TV movie, on Hallmark's competitor channel, Great American Family. Wagner's character, Janie, is called back to her family's farm after her great-uncle passed away. When she returns, she finds out she is the new owner of the homestead and spends the winter planning the community's winter wonderland party.
Where to watch: Hulu
Christmas in Evergreen: Letters to Santa (2018)
2018 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: David Owen Strongman
Christmas in Evergreen: Letters to Santa is a classic Christmas tale in which a girl, Lisa, returns to her hometown to help restore the town's general store. When the town finds a decades-old letter, new traditions are started, and new romances begin to blossom.
Where to watch: DIRECTV, Hallmark Movies Now
Mystery 101: Words Can Kill (2019)
2019 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Kailey Schwerman
Mystery 101: Words Can Kill is just one of several Mystery 101 movies on Hallmark's Mysteries channel. In Words Can Kill, Wagner plays English professor Amy Winslow. When her father is arrested on suspicion of murder, she has to work to prove his innocence.
Where to watch: Hallmark Movies Now
Christmas Cookies (2016)
2016 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Bettina Strauss
Christmas Cookies takes the best of the holiday spirit and combines it with the season's best treats. Wagner plays Hannah, who is the executive of Aunt Sally's Christmas Cookie Company and is tasked with shutting down the beloved factory. When she meets the factory owner, who is opposed to shutting it down, she begins to get swept up into the Christmas spirit, and a newfound love.
Where to watch: Rent on Prime Video or AppleTV
Karen Kingsbury's Maggie's Christmas Miracle (2017)
2017 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Bettina Strauss
Karen Kingsbury's Maggie's Christmas Miracle revolves around Maggie, a single mom with a young son. When her son struggles with schoolwork, a tutor named Casey steps in to help. The two men bond quickly, with Casey taking on a father-like role. Maggie's son desperately wants his mom to find love and happiness in her life, which may happen if Maggie can open herself up to the possibility.
Where to watch: Purchase on Prime Video or AppleTV
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