Melissa Peterman Pitches A Hallmark Movie “In The Vein of ‘Planes, Trains and Automobiles’” For Her and Two of Her ‘Reba’ Co-Stars

Melissa Peterman has an idea in mind for a Reba and Hallmark Channel crossover, with the help of co-stars Reba McEntire and JoAnna Garcia Swisher.

DECIDER had Peterman pitch an idea for a Hallmark movie role for McEntire while chatting with the Finding Mr. Christmas judge at the Hallmark Christmas Experience. Peterman certainly delivered, offering up a plot involving her Happy’s Place co-star and Garcia Swisher, who’s guest-starred on the NBC sitcom and who starred in Hallmark Channel’s As Luck Would Have It in 2012.

“The three of us,” she envisioned. “Whether we were relatives, like in the vein of Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Three women getting home for the holidays, something like that.”

Peterman felt McEntire “would be great,” and “would probably want to write music” for the project.

“I think she’s dipped her toe into the Hallmark world a little bit, maybe,” she continued. “I know that the show, the original Reba show, would air on Hallmark for a long time. But she loves Hallmark, and probably calls herself a Heartie, and loves it.”

Peterman was joined by Hallmark’s very own Jonathan Bennett and Tamera Mowry-Housley, the latter of whom expressed interest in working with Peterman on a movie for the network.

“This is what’s so cool about Hallmark, though,” Mowry-Housley highlighted. “You meet the stars, you’re like, ‘Oh, I want to do a movie with you,’ and it’s actually possible, right? Because they interchange.”

Bennett chimed in, “They’re Avengers. It’s different pairings of all the same people.”

Mowry-Housley and Bennett also acknowledged their own previous connections to Peterman, who starred on Baby Daddy with Mowry-Housley’s brother, Tahj Mowry and which featured a guest spot from Bennett’s husband, Jaymes Vaughn.

“So I used to go to some of the tapings, and I’m genuinely a fan,” Mowry-Housley said of Peterman. “I think Melissa is hysterical. Whenever she’s on my television, I have to stop [and] watch her.”

Peterman agreed that they “need to do that,” teasing that they “did a lot of greenlighting during this interview.”