Small town romance fans with a Netflix subscription have already gotten good news when it comes to Virgin River, as the show was recently renewed for Season 8 on the heels of Virgin River Season 7 completing filming. While we’re not totally sure whether or not the seventh set of episodes will hit the 2025 TV schedule, we do know that another new cast member has been confirmed. However, I now have a weirdly specific reason to worry that their character might cause trouble for one of the drama’s couples.
Who’s Been Cast In Virgin River Season 7 And Who Are They Playing?
TV Line has confirmed that Austin Nichols, who played Julian Baker on One Tree Hill (among his other credits on shows like Ray Donovan, Walker, Bates Motel and The Walking Dead, and in movies such as The Six Triple Eight and I Know What You Did Last Summer) will be a part of the Virgin River cast whenever fans can tune in to the upcoming Season 7. That’s the good news, because we all love it when things in this small California town can be shaken up a bit.
You’ll be wondering, of course, who the new character is that Nichols will be portraying, and that’s where we’re gonna have to wait a bit (not so good news), because nothing has been revealed about this newbie just yet. So, why am I worried he’ll interrupt the romantic goings-on in Virgin River? It’s because of the song that Nichols used when he teased his part on the series on Instagram. Take a look:
I’ll admit, at first there seems to be no reason to worry. But, I couldn’t help but notice the song he used to accompany this short clip, and when I realized that it was used as the backdrop for a very important moment in Season 1, Episode 8, that’s when all my alarm bells started going off.
Why I’m Worried For Two Virgin River Couples In Season 7
First off, let me just say that I think Denny and Virgin River all-star Lizzie are totally safe in Season 7, as are Hope and Doc, when it comes to the romantic pairings in town. Obviously, the Mike/Brie/Brady triangle has yet to settle back down into an acceptable form (though I have hopes that a differentnew casting will help clear all that mess up), but because of the mysterious character being played by Austin Nichols, I do now have some fears about what’s to come with regards to…dunh, dunh, dunhhhhh…Mel and Jack, or Preacher and Kaia.
I know! Mel and Jack are finally married and building their dream home and possibly adopting a baby after Mel’s miscarriages and all the Charmaine twin drama (which technically continues but not in a Jack’s-now-tied-to-her-for-life way) that Jack went through. Here’s the thing about the song that Nichols used in his Insta post, though. As noted, it went with a major Season 1 scene where Jack takes Mel back to her cabin, after he’s had it fixed up in an effort to get her to stay in town.
She’s so awed that she gives in and kisses him, revealing that she does have feelings for him and wants to give things a try, despite the rather recent loss of her husband and Jack’s previous Charmaine entanglement. Big scene, right? Well, the song in question (which is the Chance Peña cover of Jason Mraz’s “I Won’t Give Up”) focuses on, you guessed it, not giving up on the person you love, even when “you’re needing your space” and they go off to figure some stuff out. Yes, Mel was married for a while before losing her husband, but what if this new guy is an old, old love of hers who’s trying to rekindle things? It’s not impossible, guys!
I can acknowledge that it’s more likely that Preacher and Kaia will feel some strain from this dude showing up. After getting through the trial and having Kaia stand by him, Preacher was already talking about marriage near the end of Season 6. Kaia, however, is still dealing with the fallout from her previous marriage ending. They talked about it and both are cool with just dating for now, but that could change if the still-new-to-town Kaia has a much better ex show up suddenly. What if Nichols’ character ends up being someone she still has a thing for, but who she simply thought was so far in her past that he couldn’t be an option anymore?
Look, I don’t know what’s going to happen, but it seems that the use of that song (among all of the ones in the world) isn’t just a coincidence. We’ll likely have to wait until Virgin River Season 7 comes out to know for sure.
