CATHERINE BELL AND CHRIS POTTER TO STAR IN SEQUEL TO "THE GOOD WITCH," HALLMARK CHANNEL'S SECOND-HIGHEST-RATED ORIGINAL MOVIE EVER

"The Good Witch 2" to Begin Production in Toronto, Canada in October

Catherine Bell ("Army Wives") and Chris Potter ("Hairspray") are set to reprise their roles from "The Good Witch," Hallmark Channel's second-highest-rated original movie in its history. The sequel, "The Good Witch 2" (working title), will begin production in late-October in Toronto, Canada for air on the network in 2009.

"The Good Witch" premiered Saturday, January 19, 2008 (9-11 p.m., ET/PT) with a 3.8 HH rating and nearly 3.2 million homes. It is the story of a mysterious and mystical woman who moves into a small town, lives in a reputed haunted house, and has everyone wondering if she's a witch because of the magical changes she begins to make in everyone's lives.

In "The Good Witch 2," a stranger arrives in Middleton claiming to be the heir to the Grey House. "Good Witch" Cassie Nightingale's (Bell) relationship with Police Chief Jake Russell (Potter) is threatened when this new man enters her life. Everyone learns the importance of trust in the small town Cassie now calls home.

"The Good Witch 2" (working title) is being produced by Whizbang Films. Frank Siracusa ("Trojan Horse"), Orly Adelson ("Ruffian") and Jonathan Eskenas ("Bridal Fever") are the executive producers; Catherine Bell ("Army Wives") is the co-executive producer; Andrea Raffaghello ("Saving Grace") is the producer. Craig Pryce ("I Me Wed") will direct from a script by G. Ross Parker ("Codebreakers").

Hallmark Channel, owned and operated by Crown Media Holdings, Inc., is a 24-hour basic cable network that provides a diverse slate of high-quality entertainment programming to a national audience of over 85 million subscribers. The top tier program service is distributed through more than 5,300 cable systems and communities as well as direct-to-home satellite services across the country. Hallmark Channel consistently ranks among the top 10 ad-supported cable networks in Prime Time and Total Day household ratings and is the nation's leading network in providing quality family programming. Crown Media also operates a second 24-hour linear channel, Hallmark Movie Channel.

(Source: Nielsen Media Research, 1/14-1/20/08)