For the past five seasons on “When Calls The Heart,” British actress Natasha Burnett has played mild-mannered Minnie Canfield, the wife of Hope Valley’s pastor Joseph Canfield, played by Viv Leacock. So Burnett’s latest role, in the box office hit “Final Destinations: Bloodlines,” may seem like a surprising departure to her Hallmark Channel fans.
Burnett loved the chance to break out of her shell in what she called a “horror masterpiece” via social media on May 16, 2025. Taking a gamble on a role and project so different from her series has paid off, too. Over the weekend, the movie pulled in a “record-shattering $51 million” in U.S. ticket sales, according to The Hollywood Reporter (THR).
Natasha Burnett Plays Mother of Iconic Character in Horror Film
The new “Final Destination Bloodlines” movie is the sixth installment in the long-running horror franchise, per Variety. The plot sees people die in “increasingly insane incidents,” the outlet said, which millions of moviegoers were, apparently, eager to see, given that the movie took over the top spot at the box office from the reigning champ, Marvel’s “Thunderbolts*.”
It was one of the final movie in the franchise featuring Tony Todd, an actor who had played mortician William Bludworth since the first movie in 2000. Todd died in October 2024 at the age of 69, per USA Today. In the new movie, Burnett plays his mom, Evie, in throwback scenes about his childhood.
The “Legend of the Lost Lockett” star posted several on-set photos and wrote, “What an insane ride to be part of not just an iconic franchise @finaldestinationmovie, but the mother of an iconic character #bludworth #eviebludworth🤯 #TonyTodd…an icon and such a wonderful person who gave me the best acting advice 🙏🏾 #rip”
“Big shoutout to directors @zach.lipovsky and @adamstein who brought 💯 from day 1, so the outcome was inevitable…A horrific masterpiece!! Congratulations!! 🎉🎉 NOW PLAYING IN #IMAX!!
#finaldestination”
Burnett’s WCTH co-star Kevin McGarry gave a nod to Todd’s other beloved character in “Candyman” by commenting on her post, “Candyman, Candyman, Can……”
The movie’s assistant director, Dominic Dobrženský, wrote, “You killed it! Epic opening. Congrats again Natasha!!”
Burnett is expected to settle back into her role of Minnie when the 13th season of WCTH begins filming later this year.
Natasha Burnett is the 2nd ‘When Calls The Heart’ Star Finding Success Outside of the Show This Year
Burnett isn’t the only WCTH actress who’s found major success outside of the show in the last year. After landing a recurring role on the hit TV show “Landman,” Kayla Wallace has had to scale back her presence on the Hallmark series, where she’s played Fiona Miller since 2019.
Her character’s storyline has had her living away from Hope Valley during the last two seasons, but screenwriters have been able to incorporate her into the storyline periodically, finding reasons for Fiona to return. Given that Wallace is married to McGarry, she sometimes visits the Vancouver set when she’s not filming “Landman” in Fort Worth, Texas.
On the Taylor Sheridan series, Wallace plays tenacious big city lawyer Rebecca Falcone, who’s hired to investigate messes complicating the oil company that Billy Bob Thornton’s character works for. Wallace has been filming the second season this spring of 2025, and received visits from McGarry and their WCTH pals Erin Krakow and Ben Rosenbaum.
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Hallmark Star Scores Box Office Hit in Unexpected Role: ‘Insane Ride’