We finally know who will play Mel's parents in Virgin River season 6 amid spinoff reports
As anticipation for the new season of Virgin River continues to build, we got very exciting casting news on Sept. 23. It had already been reported that protagonist Mel's (Alexandra Breckenridge) parents' story would serve as a major storyline in season 6, and we finally now know who will play them. In season 5, Mel finds out that she and her sister Joey (Jenny Cooper) don't share the same biological dad as they thought. Their mom actually had a romance with a man who lived in Virgin River, coincidentally, and through love letters they find, they suspect he's Mel's real dad.
As reported by Deadline, Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day) will portray Mel's mom Sarah, and Callum Kerr (One Piece) is Mel's father Everett. They will be playing younger versions of the two characters in flashback scenes. The publication describes what we can expect from Mel's parents:
"Seen in flashbacks mostly set in or around 1972, Sarah (Rothe) is a witty, free spirit from the big city with an ardent passion for activism, and trying to avoid the conventional/traditional life of a young woman in the ’70s. Always up for an adventure, she can’t help chasing an instant spark with a handsome musician, Everett (Kerr), that might just be her star-crossed soulmate."
"Everett (Kerr) is a singer-songwriter with a poet’s soul. One day he’ll pursue his dreams of the stage, but for now, he’s skimming through life in a VW Van, until a chance meeting with a beautiful hitchhiker, Sarah (Rothe), may just show him there’s more to life than he ever thought possible."
Though it hasn't been officially announced by Netflix, reports came out in Feb. 2024 that a Virgin River spinoff series was in the works, following Sarah and Everett's love story. It was reported at the time that the actors who would be cast for season 6 would also star in the spinoff, which still seems to be the plan. Showrunner Patrick Sean Smith is believed to be attached to the spinoff. Stay tuned for more updates on that.
In the meantime, we have more Virgin River to look forward to! After Joey breaks the news to Mel about her biological father, Mel is determined to figure out who he could be. With the help of Jack (Martin Henderson), she launches an investigation by taking clues and asking the townspeople of Virgin River who might know something about her dad. Eventually, this leads her to a man named Everett (John Allen Nelson), but he does not want to be found — at least, not at first.
Heartbroken, Mel decides to move on as best she can and live her life without ever truly knowing her real father. But in the final moments of Virgin River season 5, Everett comes to see Mel and admits he is her biological dad and he has something to tell her. We don't get to see the reveal before the credits begin to roll, but we'll no doubt learn what Everett has to tell his daughter in season 6. We bet Everett will also tell her the story of his relationship with her late mom, which will play out in the flashbacks.
As for when Virgin River season 6 is coming to Netflix, we initially believed it wouldn't be released until 2025. However, as Netflix Life reported, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos said this summer that the romantic drama series would be returning this year. As for an exact release date, though, we're still in the dark. Fingers crossed we get the release date news sooner than later!
I can't wait to see Rothe and Kerr in these exciting roles come Virgin River season 6.