‘Sullivan’s Crossing’ dishes on what makes a spicy TV romance

There’s a reason we love romantic stories about successful women who return to their hometowns, discover their true calling, and fall in love. These tales remind us that it’s okay to slow down and enjoy the small things in life. Plus they’re set in gorgeous locations and they usually feature a steamy love interest you can’t help but root for.

In other words, they’re like throwing on a cozy sweater when you just want a hug.

At least that’s how we feel about Sullivan’s Crossing, the Bell Media series based on the bestselling books by Robyn Carr (the same author who wrote Virgin River). Sullivan’s Crossing stars Morgan Kohan as a neurosurgeon named Maggie Sullivan who gets in some trouble at work in Boston and returns home to reconnect with her estranged father (played by Scott Patterson of Gilmore Girls fame).

Home is a rural campground in Nova Scotia, where the series filmed. There, Maggie meets newcomer Cal Jones, played by former One Tree Hill star Chad Michael Murray. As Maggie rediscovers herself and figures out what she wants, she inevitably develops feelings for Cal. That story (along with several others) unfolded over the first, 10-episode season that debuted on CTV last March.

Kohan has some thoughts as to why viewers were so into the Cal-Maggie romance after catching that initial season: she and Murray have the stuff that make for a great on-screen romance.

“I mean, you're making sure that the actors like each other, and Chad and I are great buds,” she tells Etalk. “We have great respect for each other. And I think that really shows up. The music, of course, and the editing, and all of that plays such a great role in it as well, and makes it all comes together. It makes it pretty spicy.”

Kohan admits she never watched One Tree Hill growing up, so she didn’t really see Murray through that same fangirl lens that many, many others may have had to look past in her position. As a result, it was easier to get on the same level as him from the start and really work on their on-screen chemistry. She also never caught Gilmore Girls before the series, and she says that helped her approach her scenes with Patterson as well.

“You're not fighting through seeing them in a different light,” she speculates. “I just get to meet them at where they are and who they are, and then what they bring to the role without any other extra expectations.”

But what about the romance of it all and the debate as to whether Maggie and Cal are end game? Well, despite the push-and-pull in the first season, Kohan was definitely rooting for these two to get together already.

“Oh you definitely want to see them get together and I think that’s fun,” she adds. “If you’re watching a show that other people are watching as well, you get to just talk about it, figure out what they’re doing and that makes it fun. It’s just a fun show."

Fans will have to wait and see where that romance goes in the already ordered second season when it returns to CTV in the near future. For now, catch the entire season all over again on CTV.ca, the CTV app, or stream it now on Crave.