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Candace Cameron Bure and John Brotherton reunite for 'The Christmas Contest' to give fans an 'alternate ending' to 'Fuller House'

Candace Cameron Bure and John Brotherton
Candace Cameron Bure and John Brotherton in "The Christmas Contest."Crown Media
  • Hallmark Channel's "The Christmas Contest" provides "Fuller House" fans with an "alternate ending."

  • Candace Cameron Bure and John Brotherton star as exes brought together by charity in the film.

  • Insider spoke with Bure and Brotherton about their reunion.

When Candace Cameron Bure was developing her latest Hallmark film, "The Christmas Contest," where she plays a woman who unexpectedly reunites with her ex to help raise money for a charity, she knew just the man in mind to play her onscreen former flame — her "Fuller House" costar John Brotherton.

On "Fuller House," DJ Tanner (Bure) was nearly engaged to Matt Harmon (Brotherton), but she fled to Japan after he proposed. The Netflix series ended its five-season run with a double wedding that saw the two marrying other people.

Bure recently told Insider that she wanted to make it right for fans of the one-time couple. So she tapped Brotherton as her costar for "The Christmas Contest," her 10th Hallmark holiday film.

The former "View" host told Insider in a joint interview with Brotherton that it made sense to ask someone she already had an on-screen fictional history with to play her ex in this film, where she plays an overworked businesswoman, who eventually learns that love is more important than money.

"It just makes the movie and the acting way more fun, because there's lots to play with, versus meeting an actor for the first time and then pretending that you have this long history with them and you're going to fall in and out of love with them," she said.

Candace Cameron Bure
Candace Cameron Bure in "The Christmas Contest."Crown Media

For his part, Brotherton said that he jumped at the chance when his former costar called him.

"There was a whole fan base that ... still reach out to me to this day and probably Candace as well," Brotherton said, "[that] were hoping for an alternative ending."

Although the characters in "The Christmas Contest" have different names, Lara and Ben, the two onscreen have a similar spark to the one that DJ and Matt had on "Fuller House," before it ended in 2020.

Bure said her favorite moments in 'The Christmas Contest' are the intimate scenes

Bure is drawn to the quieter moments in the holiday film, describing her favorite scene as one that's intimate. It features Lara and Ben bonding about their past, what they've been doing since they broke up, and their wishes for the future.

"There's a scene where we lie on the floor and stare at the ceiling and it's our first heart-to-heart," she said. "I just love that because those are the moments where you get to be still and have real emotion and feelings, and that's where you hope to grab the audience."

John Brotherton in "The Christmas Contest."
John Brotherton in "The Christmas Contest."Crown Media

"The Christmas Contest" joins a long line of Hallmark holiday movies that have been a staple in many homes during the holidays, and Bure told Insider she thinks it's because of the "consistency" they offer.

"You know that there's going to be love. There's going to be someone who walks away at some point, but there's always a happy ending," she said.

"The Christmas Contest," also starring Barbara Niven and BJ Harrison, premieres on the Hallmark Channel on Sunday, November 28 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

Read the original article on Insider