She's best known for the sleeper hit film She's All That and the cult classic Josie and the Pussycats, but Rachael Leigh Cook is an actress that's been around in Hollywood for 25 years now. As the quintessential girl next door, she's built up a loyal fan base over the years.
Now 43-years-old, she's one of those ageless actresses who looks just as beautiful today as she did famously descending that staircase all those years ago when she first won the hearts of many a teenager back in 1999. Cook has come a long way since She's All That and even did a full 180, as she played the mother of a female influencer in Netflix's gender-flipped version of her most famous movie, in the aptly titled He's All That.
She's been in a host of movies and TV series over the course of her long career but in recent years had become something of a niche actress. Since 2016, she's been the star in a string of Hallmark movies. While Hallmark films are generally known for their low budget but charming appeal as sweet, romantic feel-good films, Cook fits right in with her own natural charm and appeal.
She's since appeared in eight Hallmark films to date and was great in all of them. Here's a ranked list of every Hallmark movie Rachael Leigh Cook has starred in so far. While they may not be the kind of big budget, flashy mainstream movies that most people enjoy, these films make for some sweet, cutesy stories for romance lovers.
8 Cross Country Christmas
Playing a woman named Lina, Cook encounters a former classmate when she's traveling home for the holidays in Cross Country Christmas. When a severe storm hampers the pair's plans and grounds their plane, they have to work together to find a way to make it home in time. This means scrambling around for whatever kind of transportation they can find — transport that sometimes comes with a variety of other colorful characters and adventures along the way.
A film full of the delightfully cheesy romance that Hallmark movies are known for, Cross Country Christmas doubled as both a love story and a sweet Christmas story too. Starring alongside Greyston Holt as her old classmate Max, the pair have great chemistry in the film and Cook's famously lovable personality shines throughout the film.
7 'Tis the Season to Be Merry
The last of her eight movies for Hallmark so far, 'Tis the Season to be Merry sees Cook playing a love expert who somehow can't seem to find love in her own life. However, this all changes when she spends a holiday in Vermont. Seeking inspiration for her new book, the snow-covered retreat there brings an unexpected surprise.
While there, her character, Merry Griffin meets an aid worker named Chris. Sparks begin to fly, and the film goes in a romantic cuteness overload that adds to the magical charm of the white Christmas setting. Sure, the film is cheesy and full of romance clichés, but it's the kind of movie that revels in these things so if you're into that sort of thing, it's definitely worth the watch
6 Frozen in Love
Sticking with the Winter romance theme, 2018 saw Cook star in Frozen in Love. Playing a woman trying to save her failing book-store, Mary encounters a hockey player who is her polar opposite. Thrust together, the pair must help each fix their images.
They have both a mutual dislike and mutual attraction for each which causes some issues along the way. Of course a charming romance develops in the process too as they ultimately find a way to help each other and bond deeply in the process. Another cute as a button film, Frozen in Love will still leave you smiling as you root for the couple to set aside their animosity and discover love, even though that part's a given from the beginning.
5 A Blue Ridge Mountain Christmas
In A Blue Ridge Mountain Christmas, Cook plays a hotel manager named Willow. When she returns to her hometown in Virginia to help her sister plan a Christmas wedding, she has to work with the new owner of an inn that her family once owned. As a single dad, Willow wins over both her love interest David (Benjamin Ayres) and his 10-year-old daughter. David is thinking of selling the inn, but Willow realizes how much she misses being in the beautiful town.
As she works her magic at the inn, she turns it into a Christmas wonderland that's full of guests for the wedding. Now, with a buyer in tow, David starts to have second thoughts about selling it. The kind of great little Christmas story that Hallmark is so well known for, Cook delivers another sweet performance and makes for a truly lovable character in it as always.
4 Autumn in the Vineyard
The first in the Vineyard series of films, Autumn in the Vineyard is based on a book series. Featuring a contest between two winemakers for control of a vineyard, a heartwarming story develops along the way as the two main characters are surrounded by other quirky ones that add some fun elements to the film.
Playing ex-lovers from high school, Frankie (Rachael Leigh Cook) and Nate (Brendan Penny), the pair go through stages of bickering and animosity but ultimately also rekindle their connection. While a typical Hallmark film, the plot is intriguing enough to get you invested into wanting to know how things turn out for them.
3 Summer in the Vineyard
The second film in the Vineyard series, Summer in the Vineyard picks up from the first film. Now partners and a couple, problems in their wine ventures puts a strain on their business and relationship. Some new characters are thrown in, and the story develops nicely from the first film.
The second film also features a great little subplot as one of the new characters takes a shining to Frankie's cousin and there's also the fate of a very special Llama that hangs in the balance too. Catching up with the couple and their extended adventures is sure to pull you in by this point and that's where the final film comes in perfectly.
2 Valentine in the Vineyard
By the third and final installment in this charming series, Valentine in the Vineyard proves to be a worthy conclusion to what becomes a typically enjoyable and extended love story from Hallmark. The couple is able to sure up the divide between their two families (who are both major actors in the local wine business) and their coming together finally leads to wedding bells. The pair are opposites in some ways but often help each other grow in that way.
There's a lot more tension and complications in the film but these aid the story development well as viewers are well invested in the obstacles and pressures they face by this point. With their wedding being delayed, this ultimately causes a rift that makes them question if they are truly meant to be together that way. A lovely conclusion to a great little romance series, Valentine in the Vineyard was a perfect way to end the series.
1 Summer Love
As the film that started Rachael Leigh Cook's epic run as Hallmark royalty, Summer Love was also probably the most charming and delightful of all her Hallmark films. Cook was definitely the standout performer in this film, as she is in all of her Hallmark movies.
Playing Maya Sulliway, a 35-year-old widower, and mom who goes back to school, Maya is sent to be an intern by her Professor. The problem is she's sent to a tech-positive firm despite being a little tech-challenged herself. While assigned to the company's CFO, its CEO becomes smitten with her.
Along the way, the film sees some underhanded things happening, but Cook ultimately has the audience rooting for Maya all the way. Cook's undeniable charm in the film was definitely its biggest selling point, and it's clear to see why she went on to star in seven more Hallmark films after it.
As one of those stars that can find her way into any viewer's heart, Rachael Leigh Cook's Hallmark movies somehow end up only elevating her appeal as an actress, despite these films lacking any mainstream, big budget backing. While she's moved on to make other films since, her Hallmark fans will be hoping she returns to make more of these super cute and lovable romance films.