The Reluctant Royal (Hallmark Channel - 2025)

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More flags. More royal music. It’s Reluctant Royal time, baby! Johnny is under a car, working his magic, muscles bulging. His girlfriend shows up to have it out with him and find out if he’s ready to take their relationship to the next level. He is not, so she breaks up with him. But then her car won’t start. Johnny works his magic, and off she goes. After work, he heads to the bar, where he’s selling his juice. The bartender isn’t thrilled to be selling juice, but it’s Johnny! Who can say no to Johnny?!

Cut to a palace where Prudence is helping keep things running smoothly. She goes to talk to the Duke, who is wanting to retire but has no one to take his place. That is, until Prudence discovers that he has a long-lost son.

So, she shows up to talk to that son. It’s Johnny. She arrives in the middle of his karaoke performance and tells him that his father, the Duke, would like to meet him. He’s not interested until she talks to his mom, who never really told him about his father. She encourages him to go and meet him, and so off he goes. Prudence is surprised when he shows up and begins to notice that he’s a bit rough around the edges. He won’t even change his clothes to abide by the dress code.

They meet, and you can tell they’re related because they both touch their hair when they’re uncomfortable. Johnny tells the Duke that he doesn’t want any money, he just wants to know why he left. This does not go well, so Johnny leaves and heads to a bar. Prudence tracks him down to try to convince him to stay. They agree to let darts decide his fate. Obviously, she wins, so back to the palace he goes.

He starts hanging out with Prudence, riding bikes, getting to know more about the palace, his father, and learning more about her. They ride horses, he makes juice, and he’s actually starting to enjoy himself. It’s time for his first royal fancy dinner. He has a cousin that he really dislikes. So, when he stands up and tells the Duke that he’s excited to take his spot, Johnny stands up and tells his dad that he’s had a change of heart—he’s in. His dad is thrilled.

He’s feeling a bit stressed, so he goes to work on a car. His dad comes out to join him, and they chat. This becomes a nightly occurrence. The next day, Prudence teaches him how to slow dance, and they almost kiss.

He finally has a heart-to-heart with his dad. He finds out that he never received the letter that Johnny’s mom sent telling him about Johnny. And she never got his letters. I guess his dad was monitoring the mail. It’s a sweet moment, and the next day they go for a ride in the car that Johnny fixed. Johnny takes his dad to his juice operation and invites them all to the royal dance.

Everything is going great until the cousin brings some shocking news: turns out Johnny’s right to the throne is illegitimate because Johnny was born after the marriage to Johnny’s mom was annulled. Johnny says, “Well, at least I got to meet my dad.” He goes to leave, and Prudence tries to stop him, but he leaves.

Prudence isn’t going to give up so easily and thinks she’s found something. She goes to make sure Johnny comes to the ball, where his mom is waiting for him. She announces that the annulment certificate isn’t authentic. The Duke is left-handed, and his signature leaves a smudge. This one doesn’t have a smudge, so it’s not his signature. In fact, the Duke and Johnny’s mom are probably still married! The cousin is furious and leaves.

Johnny and the Duke hug. Johnny gives a speech, and then he slow-dances with Prudence as everyone watches. They go outside, kiss—BIG OL' HONKIN’ ONES—and then run away. The next day, Johnny and Prudence are hanging out by the horses. Dad comes in and lets them know that one of Johnny’s other cousins, Desmond, is getting married, and they’re going to give him a horse. Johnny still has much to learn about his family tree.

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