‘Mr. Christmas’ Found: Why Crowning Hallmark’s New Leading Man Was So Emotional

After eight weeks of charming DIY projects, serious acting challenges, wobbly dance lessons, physically demanding obstacle courses and too many heart-to-hearts to count, Hallmark’s first-ever reality competition — “Finding Mr. Christmas” — crowned its first winner and, in doing so, selected the network’s new leading man.

The original series, hosted and judged by Hallmark fan favorites Jonathan Bennett and Melissa Peterman, crowned a winner in its finale, which began streaming on Hallmark+ on December 12, 2024. The winner, who bested nine other hunky hopefuls, has already filmed his first leading role in a Hallmark Channel movie, “Happy Howlidays” with Jessica Lowndes, set to premiere on December 21.

The finale was emotional for everyone involved, including guest judge Nikki DeLoach, who got choked up with Peterman while they chose and named the winner. Bennett, who conceptualized and executive produced “Finding Mr. Christmas,” got choked up multiple times on the finale and as he promoted the season finale, surprised by how emotional the journey was for all involved.

Spoiler Alert: The rest of this article contains spoilers about the winner and competition. Do not keep reading if you don’t want to know what happened.

Who Won ‘Finding Mr. Christmas’ & What Comes Next for the New Hallmark Hunk

The winner of Hallmark’s first-ever “Finding Mr. Christmas” competition is 31-year-old Ezra Moreland, a former Navy rescue diver from Kansas who found success in recent years as an LA-based model.

Amidst plenty of shirtless photos to appease his more than 70,000 Instagram followers, Moreland also loves encouraging them to be kind and find joy. On his 30th birthday in February 2023, for instance, Moreland posted a video in which he said his birthday wish was for each of his followers “to just smile at somebody, as cheesy as that sounds.” He grinned as he imagined the “magic and love being spread” through that small gesture.

While promoting “Finding Mr. Christmas,” Moreland told Swooon that the Hallmark star he’d choose to be his onscreen love interest in a future movie is Nikki DeLoach. That may be because she was the first Hallmark star he ever kissed, given that DeLoach performed a scene — including a quintessential Hallmark kiss — with each of the three finalists, which also included Australian Hayden Maher and New Jersey native Elijah Malcomb.

After winning the competition, Moreland told Entertainment Weekly, he had nearly two months to take acting classes and learn his lines for “Happy Howlidays.” Having never acted before, Moreland told the outlet that the film shoot in Vancouver was “the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but it was amazing and I can’t wait for everybody to see it.”

Jonathan Bennett Gets Choked Up Thanking ‘Finding Mr. Christmas’ Contestants

In the last two episodes of “Finding Mr. Christmas,” Bennett’s eyes filled with tears during intimate conversations with the remaining contestants, telling them how proud he was of their growth and vulnerability. In addition to their creative growth, Bennett celebrated the ways they opened up about personal challenges, got in touch with their emotions, and bonded with each other.

He reiterated that in an Instagram video he posted the night before the finale premiered, thanking “everyone that believed in” the show praising the 10 contestants for making it such a meaningful experience.

“I want to say thank you to our guys that came on the show and had the courage to — they’re just so awesome,” Bennett said, getting choked up. “These guys are the best, and they came on and were vulnerable, and they opened up and they shared things on national television that most people wouldn’t share to their their best friends. And that is so powerful.”

“Finding Mr. Christmas” is available to stream on Hallmark+. Moreland’s Hallmark Channel acting debut in “Happy Howlidays” premieres on December 21 at 8 p.m. Eastern time.