Why HEARTLAND Season 18 Focuses on Real-Life Farming Struggles
By Movieguide® Contributor
The cast and crew of HEARTLAND discussed how Season 18 draws inspiration from real-life farming struggles while also revealing they have plenty of ideas for future seasons.
In 2023, farmers in Alberta, Canada faced serious issues when a major drought hit the area. This inspired the writers on HEARTLAND to include drought in their upcoming season, however, once they began to shoot, nature hit them with a different problem.
“We were shooting a drought in one of the wettest seasons we’ve ever felt,” actress Amber Marshall explained. “It was quite a challenge showing characters out there talking about how if we don’t have rain, we’re not going to make it, in this lush green pasture. It’s one of those things where you write scripts so many months in advance and the previous summer had been so hot and dry, so that’s what they were basing it off of.”
“Last year, everything was crispy and dry and hot and then this summer, it’s beautiful and raining and lush green and we’re talking about this big drought that’s impacting the area,” the actress continued.
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A major drought isn’t the only thing the family is struggling against to keep the ranch afloat in Season 18. They are also grappling with business problems after being dropped by their distributor, Garland Meats, with little warning. Neighboring ranches are putting further pressure on the business as they are poaching local customers as well.
“They are selling beef to a lot of the same venues that we would be,” Marshall said. “It’s head-to-head rivalry with your next-door neighbor, and that’s why Lou steps up and tries to use her business background to make a go of the profitable side of the ranch.”
Her character, Amy, finds herself caught in the middle.
“Amy is becoming very close with Nathan, who is the neighbor they are in direct competition with. So, of course, that doesn’t sit well with Amy’s family, and it causes some ups and downs in the relationship with him and the family, and she is stuck in the middle of it.”
Despite running since 2007, storylines like these continue to keep the show fresh, helping its popularity only to grow. Even after 18 seasons, the writers and showrunners continue to have new ideas which they hope to continue to have the chance to play out.
“Nothing is guaranteed, but I feel like we have so many more stories to tell,” said showrunner Mark Haroun. “I’ve never gone into the room at the beginning of the season and struggled to come up with stories because there are such rich, dynamic characters and it feels like we have so many places to go with stories. I feel like we could just keep going.”
For now, fans can look forward to Season 18. Though it has already debuted in Canada, American audiences will receive the new episodes for the first time this April.
READ MORE: READY FOR HEARTLAND SEASON 18? STAR SAYS ‘ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE’
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