Chesapeake Shores

Chesapeake Shores is a Canadian/American drama television series, based on the novel series of the same name by Sherryl Woods, produced by Chesapeake Shores Productions Inc in association with Borderline Distribution. The series had a two-hour premiere on the Hallmark Channel on August 14, 2016. Jesse Metcalfe, Meghan Ory, Barbara Niven, Laci J. Mailey, Emilie Ullerup, Brendan Penny, Andrew Francis, Diane Ladd and Treat Williams star in the series. John Tinker was showrunner and executive producer for the first two seasons.
In March 2021, it was announced that Metcalfe would be exiting the series and that the character's storyline will conclude early in the fifth season. Actor Robert Buckley will be joining the main cast in season five. The show's fifth season is set to premiere in August 2021.
Synopsis.
Abby O'Brien Winters returns from New York to her hometown of Chesapeake Shores, Maryland, after receiving a panicked phone call from her youngest sister Jess, who is renovating the Inn at Eagle Point. Abby's demanding career, divorce, and young daughters have kept her too busy to even think about the town her father built. Saving her sister's inn from foreclosure means dealing not only with her fractured family but also with Trace Riley, her first love whom she abruptly left sixteen years ago. He initially is an obstacle but becomes an unexpected ally and a second chance at finding love. The troubled family dynamic is intensified when Abby's estranged mother comes back to town.
Production.
"Chesapeake Shores" is filmed on Vancouver Island's Qualicum Beach and its neighboring town of Parksville, British Columbia. The first season was filmed there from May through July 2016.
In addition to playing the character Trace, Jesse Metcalfe performs some of the songs used in the series' episodes. A songwriter for more than a decade, Metcalfe also composed two of the songs himself.
Production for the second season started in spring 2017. It premiered on August 6, 2017. On January 13, 2018, Hallmark announced that the show was renewed for a 10-episode third season, which premiered on August 5, 2018.
At the Television Critics Association winter press tour in February 2019, it was announced that the series would return for a fourth summer season, consisting of only six episodes; a spinoff television film was simultaneously announced. The fourth season premiered on August 25, 2019.
On February 28, 2020, it was announced that the series would return for a fifth season. Season five is set to premiere on August 15, 2021.
Broadcast.
The series premiered on the Hallmark Channel on August 14, 2016. It premiered on Canada's W Network on August 25, 2016.
Reception.
Critical reception.
Neil Genzlinger of "The New York Times" said "Chesapeake Shores" is "as well scrubbed and predictable as they come — in other words, perfectly suited to Hallmark's target audience." He added, "fans of [Sherryl Woods's series of novels], at least, will probably enjoy seeing this annoyingly pristine world brought to life."
Gwen Ihnat of "The A.V. Club" gave the two-hour series premiere a B grade, praising the "ethereally gorgeous" Meghan Ory and the "acting powerhouses" of Treat Williams and Diane Ladd. She added that they "may make the show worth watching, and the giddy chemistry of the romantic leads certainly doesn't hurt."
Viewership.
"Chesapeake Shores" two-hour premiere on Sunday, August 14, 2016, was seen by 1.942 million viewers. Its largest ratings demographic were people over the age of 50, with a 1.42 share, followed by a 0.45 share among women aged 18 to 49. Over the course of the first season, the series was Hallmark's "most-watched in the network's history" by women and adults in the 25–54 age demographic in its live plus three days (L+3) of DVR viewing, leading to its second-season renewal.