Virgin River season six is finally less than 24 hours away and millions of fans are excited to check back in with Mel Monroe (played by Alexandra Breckenridge), Jack Sheridan (Martin Henderson) and their favourite townsfolk.
’s heartwarming romantic drama raised the stakes last season with a vicious wildfire which nearly tore through town before the day was saved by Hope McCrea (Annette O’Toole) at the eleventh hour.
The increase of emergencies and natural disasters meant the town also needed a capable team to keep them safe, so in stepped Kaia Bryant (Kandyse McClure) and the CalFire firefighters.
However, the wildfires weren’t the only sparks flying in season five as Kaia quickly struck up a romance with Jack’s best friend Preacher (Colin Lawrence) and has since accepted the job of Virgin River’s Fire Chief.
Speaking exclusively to Screen Time, McClure reflected on her very first days on set now she’s planning on sticking around for quite some time.
Virgin River newcomer says ‘old friend’ helped with ‘intimidating’ first scenes (Image: NETFLIX)
“So many things happened, it was such a potent time,” she recalled. “I had an immediate feeling about Kaia that doesn’t always happen with characters. I just loved her right away. She seemed so dynamic and full of life.
“This show is a well-oiled machine. It moves forward. Everybody knows their role so well, everybody knows their place so you’re jumping into a fast-moving river.”
Thankfully, McClure was actually already very well-acquainted with her regular scene partner Lawrence, who helped her feel at ease.
“It was a little intimidating but luckily I had one known friend, I know Colin Lawrence, I know him personally,” she said.
“We’ve been friends for a really, really long time so I knew there would be a friendly face, I knew there was someone on side with me. So we just got to do it.”
Kaia star Kandyse McClure opens up about her first days on set (Image: NETFLIX)
McClure then joked: “I feel like half my job is just poking Colin.”
Although their friendship had already started years before, this was the first time McClure and Lawrence had worked so closely together, so they still had to get over the awkwardness of portraying a couple.
“As well as I know Colin I actually know his wife [Lucia Walters] a lot better!” McClure admitted. “So this was the first time we were in such direct and intense work together.
“Colin is the best scene partner, he really is. I wish I could say something scandalous but I can’t!”
They also had rather different approaches to the material that kept both actors on their toes throughout filming.
Can Preacher escape his legal trouble this season? (Image: NETFLIX)
“He reads the scripts immediately and calls me, like 20 minutes later, and he wants to talk about it,” she said. “He’s incredibly prepared and has a very patient approach to things.
“I’m a little more dynamic. I like to have everything under my belt but also feel on the fly and see what’s going on.
“It’s fun that way because I kind of knock him off his rhythm a little bit and he pulls him in. So it’s a great balance, but I do drive him crazy!”
Fans are looking forward to more tender moments with Preacher and Kaia next season and are on the edge of their seats to find out if the Fire Chief will reciprocate her new partner’s admission of love.
Virgin River season 6 premieres Thursday, December 19 on .