Netflix announced plans to renew the third season of its popular original romantic drama series Virgin River. With the news came the addendum that Zibby Allen is set to join the cast as a series regular as a lawyer named Brie, who happens o be Jack's (Martin Henderson) sister.
Despite focusing on a crestfallen widower who tries to pick up the pieces after the loss of lost her child, Virgin River excels at creating a warm, homespun small-town environment that allows Melinda Monroe (Alexandra Breckinridge) a chance to heal her broken heart. For similar cinematic experiences, fans can check out certain movies that capture the qualities of Virgin River.
Safe Haven (2013)
Based on the Nicholas Sparks novel, Lasse Hallstrom's Safe Haven is a mysterious romantic thriller set in small-town North Carolina. The story revolves around Katie (Julianne Hough), a beautiful woman whose cryptic past comes back to haunt her when arriving in town.
Katie meets and soon falls for Alex (Josh Duhamel), a widowed entrepreneur and single father of two. As the two grow closer, Katie feels comfortable enough to share her troubled past with Alex about her abusive husband, Kevin (David Lyons).
P.S. I Love You (2007)
For an uplifting rom-com about a widow struggling to overcome the death of her husband, look no further than Richard LaGravenese's P.S. I Love You.
Two-time Oscar winner Hillary Swank stars as Holly, a bright young woman who couldn't be happier to marry the charming Irish Gerry (Gerard Butler). When Gerry learns he has a terminal illness, he keeps it a secret from Holly and writes 10 heart-filled letters he hides and has delivered to her one at a time. The notes help Holly overcome her heartache and rekindle her lust for life.
Remember Me (2010)
Robert Pattinson helped shed his Team Edward image by starring opposite Emilie de Ravin in Remember Me, a touching romantic drama about two hurt souls finding solace in one another.
Pattinson plays Tyler, a young man trying to overcome his brother's suicide and his parents' subsequent separation. De Ravin plays Ally, another tortured soul who witnessed her mother's murder. When the two meet and forge a bond, their emotional wounds of the past are healed by the time they share in the present.
Definitely, Maybe (2008)
Adam Brooks' Definitely, Maybe is a charming rom-com in which a career politician teaches his 11-year-old-daughter about the challenging ins and outs of adulthood.
Ryan Reynolds plays Will Hayes, a New York politico in the process of divorcing his wife. As such, Will's curious 11-year-old daughter Maya (Abigail Breslin) begins to question the divorce and grill her dad about his romantic dalliances in the past. As Will complies, he learns about his own character flaws and romantic shortcomings.
The Holiday (2006)
For a lighthearted rom-com about two lovelorn women who need a change of scenery much like Mel in Virgin River, turn to Nancy Meyers' The Holiday.
Amanda (Cameron Diaz) and Iris (Kate Winslet) are two women across the Atlantic Ocean from each other. When they decide to swap houses for two weeks, Amanda and Iris both fall in love with local strangers they meet. Amanda falls for Iris' brother and widower, Graham, (Jude Law), while Iris falls for her elderly neighbor's colleague, Miles (Jack Black).
Then She Found Me (2007)
Helen Hunt directed, co-wrote, and starred opposite Colin Firth in the little-known romantic dramedy, Then She Found Me. Based on the Elinor Lipman novel, the story concerns a nearly 40-year-old woman desperate to have a baby before it's too late.
Hunt plays April, a 39-year-old schoolteacher who wants to give birth to her first child. When her husband Frank (Firth) leaves her after she voices her desire, she has nowhere to turn. After the death of her loathed adoptive mother, April attempt to find her biological mother while she begins dating the divorced father of one of her students.
The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
Although it isn't revealed until the end, The Time Traveler's Wife is a fantastical rom-com about a future widow. The complex and elliptical plot follows Henry (Eric Bana), a mysterious time traveler who continues to visit his future wife, Clare (Rache McAdams), throughout her life.
Although the premise sounds dark and overly complicated, the film is breezy and uplifting and features palpable romantic chemistry between Bana and McAdams.
The Midwife (2017)
Catherine Frot stars in the French film The Midwife as Claire, a single-mother caretaker who has devoted her life to working in a maternity ward. When she receives a random phone call from her dead father's former mistress Beatrice (Catherine Deneuve), Claire's life is thrown into a tailspin.
Despite being polar opposites, Claire begins to learn about her father's past as she begins spending more time with Beatrice, who confesses that she is dying of cancer and has no one else to turn to.
Tully (2018)
In another story about a new mother struggling to find inner peace, Jason Reitman's Tully features a charming but fictitious midwife played by Mackenzie Davis.
Marlo (Charlize Theron) is an overwhelmed mother of three who finally decides to hire a nocturnal midwife so she can get the proper amount of sleep. When she hires the bright, young, bubbly Tully (Davis), Marlo begins to admire all the qualities in the midwife that she lacks herself. In the end, a startling revelation is made the changes the entire trajectory of the story.
Sleepless In Seattle (1993)
Romantic comedies don't get much better than Nora Ephron's Sleepless in Seattle. And since the film features a widower who opens his heart to find love again, it's the number one movie to watch for fans of Virgin River.
Following the death of his wife, Sam Baldwin's (Tom Hanks) son Jonah calls into a radio station on Christmas Eve to air his romantic grief. Of the many women who hear Sam's story, engaged newswriter Annie Reed (Meg Ryan) responds and the two eventually find true love.