Virgin River star Alexandra Breckenridge has revealed that season four of the popular Netflix show could have ended very differently had she not intervened.
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In a recent interview, the 40-year-old, who plays Mel Monroe in the drama, explained that showrunner Patrick Sean Smith had originally planned for Mel's late husband, Mark, to be the father of her baby rather than Jack.
WATCH: Did you enjoy season four?
Chatting to Glamour, the actress revealed that she opposed the plot twist. "So in all honesty, they had planned on Mel's baby being Mark's," she said. "For a long time. And when the showrunner broke down what was going on [at the start of season four], I was like, 'I think that's a horrible idea.' I was totally honest. I said, 'I just don't agree with it. I think Jack having babies with Charmaine and then not with the love of his life feels so mean to the audience.'"
After some pushback from the showrunner, who thought it would be a good idea to watch Jack "develop and grow and have to have this acceptance", Alexandra said she was "pretty vocal" in her disagreement.
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"I said, 'I understand that I am not the showrunner and I'm not a part of this creative process, even though I would very much like to be,'" she explained. "I kept sending little emails to Netflix. I was like, 'Really? We're still going to go on with this? I think it's a bad idea.'"
© Photo: NetflixMartin Henderson and Alexandra Breckenridge as Jack and Mel
Thankfully, the showrunner finally came around and towards the end of filming the season, the actress was told that Jack would be the father of Mel's baby.
For fans who might be left slightly confused at the possibility of Mark being the father of Mel's baby, given the fact that his death took place before episode one of the first series, it might be worth pointing out that the events of the first four seasons occurred over just five months.
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