Hallmark Movie Roundup: Following Yonder Star

Title: Following Yonder Star (2024)

Actor(s) You Know: 
Brooke D'Orsay, who has done a bunch of Hallmark movies, but whom I always think of from starring in Drop Dead Diva, the plot of which was that a model (D'Orsay) dies and is reincarnated into a plus-size lawyer

Plot: 
Abby was the star of a long-running tv show where she played a perfect mother/wife. After finding out her ex-husband is getting remarried, she has a minor meltdown in a store, which naturally goes viral. She heads off to Vermont to ride out the bad press, where she meets Nick, a widower who runs an inn, and helps him direct the Christmas pageant.

Trope(s):
    Royalty
    Alternate reality
    Small town ✔
    Fake relationship
    Family business getting sold/going bankrupt
    Enemies-to-lovers
    Best friends-to-lovers
    Second chance
    Stranded

Meet Cute: 
Abby wants to stay in the luxury spa, but accidentally booked for next year. The hotel clerk directs her to the small inn run by Nick, where there's a single room left.

Rundown:
    Dead parents ✔
    Montage(s) ✔
    Christmas-related name(s) ✔
    Animals
    Returns to hometown
    Is Santa a character? 
        Secretly or overtly?
    Cookie baking ✔
    Tree decorating
    Somebody hates Christmas
    Christmas festival in a small town ✔
    A literal competition
    Child plays matchmaker
    All work, no romance/life
    Kiss before the end of the movie
    Interrupted kiss ✔
    Flashback to childhood
    The leads literally run into each other
    Gratuitous shirtless scene
    Big Secret
    Wacky misunderstanding
    Someone pushing the leads together ✔
    Real family = chaos / bad families = cold and not chaotic
    Learns the meaning of Christmas
    Stranded by snowstorm
    Hot chocolate ✔ (though it's hot cider)
    Ice skating
    D-list celebrity
    Enemy-to-friend storyline
    The love interest is an ex
    Career change
    Lying to each other
    Tries to apologize, but keeps getting cut off
    Christmas pageant ✔
    End with a flash-forward

Did I actually like/root for the heroine? How do the lead(s) annoy me?
I actually did like Abby a lot. That initial meltdown truly wasn't that bad and she clearly is just minorly annoyed by it, not bemoaning that her life is over. She's aware this is something that's going to blow over quickly. I liked that Nick recognized her and clearly was like, "A celebrity!" in a way that seemed realistic. 

Is it in any way not completely generic? 
I mean, it had the Christmas pageant and a small town, but it was must less festival-focused than expected. I found it relatively original, and the conflict was pretty organic.

Is the BFF actually the best? Do they need their own movie?
There isn't really a BFF! There's a hotel clerk who works at both the spa and Nick's inn who pops up a couple times and Nick's sister-in-law, but not really any other side characters.

How is the romantic alternative wrong for the heroine? 
N/A. There's no romantic rival. (There does seem to be a woman who's interested in Nick, but Nick is clearly not interested.)

Thoughts/Other Notes:
I like how Abby uses some of the skills she picked up as an actress, both in working with children and also random skills she had to pick up for episodes. Nick's crush on Abby is adorable. And there were more musical theater references than I expected. Note: This is more explicitly Christian than most Hallmark Christmas movies. Many mentions of faith and how it's a part of the characters' lives.

Rating
🧀🧀🧀 (three cheese out of five, would re-watch)