VIRGIN RIVER GETS A SPIN-OFF

Let’s dive deep into the exciting and surprising news of the Virgin River prequel spin-off, with Sarah and Everett leading the possibly new series.

It has been announced that Patrick Sean Smith, the showrunner of Virgin River, is developing a spin-off based on the love story of Everett and Sarah, Mel’s parents. The news was released while commemorating the start of production on Season 6 and was first reported by Deadline.

The prequel is still in its early stages, and only Patrick Sean Smith is involved in writing the spin-off. Richard Keith and his writing partner, Erin Cardillo, would only join if Netflix picks up the project.

During season 6, viewers may catch glimpses of young Everett and Sarah, who could potentially be the leads of the prequel series, as part of Mel’s storyline.

We wonder how much screen time will be taken up by the new storyline, considering that the upcoming season 6 was promised to have more of Mel and Jack for the fans and already has many supporting characters.  This is especially concerning as there are only 10 episodes compared to the 12 in the last two seasons.  

WHAT WE CAN EXPECT FROM THE VIRGIN RIVER SPIN-OFF

If the pilot episode of the Virgin River prequel follows the original storyline plot from season 5, it will showcase the story of Sarah and her husband after they lost their second-born daughter, Chloe. The loss and grief drive them apart, and in Virgin River, Sarah meets Everett, and the two fall in love. They keep a loving correspondence until Sarah finds out she is pregnant with Mel. She tells Everett, who wants to be a part of her daughter’s life, but Sarah decides to keep the family together and never write the man again.

Since the show is a spinoff and aims to attract all the Virgin River viewers, it should feature the younger versions of many beloved characters such as Doc, Hope, Jo Ellen, Nick, Bert, Connie, Lilly and her husband Buck, as well as Lydie and her husband Herb and possibly even their daughter Elaine, Ricky’s mother. Considering Mel’s age, the show should be set in the 80s.

We use “if” because prequel spinoff series sometimes diverge from the original storyline.

PROBLEMATIC STARTING POINT?

The love story in the show between Everett and Sarah is meant to evoke emotions from the viewers.

However, it starts on a questionable note: infidelity. Sarah cheats on her husband with Everett.

Cheating, betrayal, and infidelity are sensitive topics that should be addressed in the series. It is worth noticing that they weren’t even addressed in the Christmas episodes.

Starting a love story with betrayal could potentially be problematic for many viewers.

DOES A BOOK PREQUEL EXIST?

Robyn Carr wrote no prequel book that included Mel’s parents as characters. Smith and the writers created the storyline featuring them in season 5. It is possible that only in the credits could there be a mention that the storyline is “based on the character in the books of Robyn Carr.” We suspect Carr won’t be involved in the project.

WHY NOT CHOOSE ANOTHER BELOVED VIRGIN RIVER COUPLE FOR THE SPIN-OFF?

When we heard about the Virgin River spinoff, we first thought of a possible young Doc and Hope series. Hope and Doc are probably the second most beloved couple in the show after Mel and Jack. We have caught a few glimpses of how their love story started over the seasons, and we would have loved to see a young Doc arriving in Virgin River, setting up his clinic, and falling in love with the town’s fiery Mayor.

If they were interested in the project, it would have been great if the spin-off had included the modern-day versions of Doc (Tim Matheson) and Hope (Annette O’Toole).

This would have been similar to Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story where modern-day Bridgerton characters Lady Violet Bridgerton, Queen Charlotte, and Lady Danbury were included in some scenes.

WHY AN EVERETT AND SARAH SPINOFF?

If Netflix greenlights the project, it would be interesting to know when the spinoff was conceived.

Although the miscarriage was challenging to witness, discovering that Mel’s biological father lived in Virgin River seemed almost absurd. This turn of events made the series feel like a soap opera. In fact, from some interviews we’ve read, it appears that Breckenridge was not a fan of this storyline herself.

• Was the possibility of a spin-off series for Smith included in his initial contract when he was hired as showrunner in 2022?
• Was the father’s plot explicitly introduced to set up the spin-off?
• Did the idea for the spin-off happen organically after the plot for season 5 was already written?

A VIRGIN RIVER SPIN-OFF IS THE SMARTEST MOVE FOR SMITH

By selecting Everett and Sarah as the lead characters, Smith is free from any creative ideas or ties of the previous showrunner, Sue Tenney, and the original series. This grants him the freedom to create his own vision for the show. Consequently, he is not bound to follow any characters or storylines from the original series. He can write whatever he wants without fear of upsetting the OG fans.

Furthermore, the creator has decided to continue the story within the established Virgin River universe rather than creating an entirely new show. This is because the series has been immensely successful on the streaming platform. If they were to propose this idea to Netflix, it would likely be well-received and could potentially bring in the same number of viewers. It’s a very clever decision

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Check out our post on the 5 Things We Hope To See In Season 6 of Virgin River.

Read our post on Everything You Need To Know On Virgin River Season 6.

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