Actress Jana Kramer's Emotional Christmas Romance Hits the Screen

In November 2023, actress Jana Kramer, 41, starred in the holiday film "The Christmas Ring," which features a heartwarming romance between her character, Vanessa Mayfield, a military widow, and antique dealer Ben Miller, played by Benjamin Hollingsworth. Kramer's husband, Allan Russell, has become more comfortable with her romantic on-screen roles over time, as Kramer explains, "He gets it more. I think in the beginning, it was definitely harder for him, because he's never dated an actor."

Kramer and Hollingsworth, 41, worked to create an authentic emotional connection between their characters, which was aided by the genuine friendship they developed off-screen. "Ben and I formed a friendship, like a true friendship. I formed a friendship with his wife, and our kids formed friendships together," Kramer shared. "Being on set together with him, he's such a good actor... We had this beautiful chemistry, and I think it was because our characters both felt that loss, but also, we worked really well together, and it was special."

While Kramer is no stranger to holiday films, she noted that "The Christmas Ring" offered a different experience than her previous Lifetime movie, "A Cowboy Christmas Romance," which included the first-ever sex scene for a Lifetime Christmas film. Kramer was pregnant with her son Roman while filming that movie, which she described as "not sexy at all."