Celebrity News

Fort Worth area keeps winning streak with new movie filming in Granbury

Do some of the crew on A Christmas Heart seem to skew young?

A Christmas Heart

Everyone loves when a movie filming is in town, and there's one going down right now in Granbury, the quaint town 38 miles southwest of Fort Worth. Oh and it's a holiday movie, which makes it even better. According to a release, it's called A Christmas Heart, and is a drama about faith, family, and forgiveness. All the Fs! Well, not all the Fs.

The indie film stars Kevin Sorbo and Bill McAdams, Jr., who previously teamed up in the 2015 faith-based drama Gallows Road. McAdams Jr. also wrote and is directing the film.

Co-starring is Nashville recording artist and songwriter Sarah Reeves, who joined the cast on the heels of releasing her Christmas album More the Merrier earlier this month. She's definitely in holiday mode.

A Christmas Heart follows Jack Gilmore (McAdams, Jr.), a firefighter and man of faith whose wife and son are killed in a texting-and-driving crash three weeks before Christmas.

In the wake of his loss, Jack is charged with a DUI and required to complete community service, during which he meets a young girl with whom he shares a conflicted and painful past. Meanwhile, as Detective Kent Powers (Sorbo) investigates the fatal accident, he uncovers a shocking revelation that personally ties him to the case.

It's filming on three locations in Granbury:

Wednesday, November 29: Hood County Courthouse at 100 E. Pearl St. after 5 pm
Thursday, November 30: Hood County Courthouse, 1-5 pm
Friday, December 1: 4621 E. Holiday Ct. in Granbury, 10-10 pm

The movie is expected to be released Christmas 2024.

Sorbo is known for roles in Hercules: The Legendary Journeys (1995-1999) and Andromeda (2000-2005), as well as Christian films such as God's Not Dead (2014) and Soul Surfer (2011).

McAdams' credits include Gallows Road (2015), Jose Canseco: The Truth Hurts (2016), and Bully High (2022).

In a statement, McAdams says, "I’m incredibly excited to have finally started making this film. This is a story I’ve been wanting to tell for a while, and I’m so grateful to Kevin for agreeing to help me bring it to life."

Sorbo calls McAdams "an incredibly talented filmmaker," stating that "we've been friends for a long time, and we like to work together. I'm so glad to get this latest project started."

Jim Doss is executive producing alongside Sharon K. Campbell. Producers are Mary Jean Bentley and Therese Moncrief.

movies celebrities real-housewives

Party Is Over

Party City chain to close all stores including 9 in Fort Worth

Party City

A chain of stores where the party is always going on is closing down: Party City will close all of its stores and has initiated layoffs, effective immediately. According to CNN, CEO Barry Litwin told corporate employees that Party City has to “commence a winddown process immediately,” and that Friday would be their last day of work for the company.

However, the actual store locations, including those around North Texas, will be open until February 28.

Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey, Party City is largest party goods retailer in the U.S. — the go-to destination for every type of celebration, with more than 700 company-owned and franchise store locations across North America selling home decor, candles, balloons, wrapping paper, tableware, bulk candy, baking supplies, and more.

A typical Party City store ranges in size from 10,000 to 12,000 square feet and carries approximately 30,000 items. Halloween accounts for as much as one-quarter of yearly sales, but they celebrate all seasonal holidays, from New Year's Eve to the Fourth of July to Father's Day to Super Bowl Sunday, and offer a wide array of merchandise for birthday parties, bar mitzvahs, wedding and bridal showers, and baby showers.

Party and costume merchandise has become more competitive in recent years, with companies like the budget-focused Spirit Halloween expanding beyond its Halloween pop-ups into “Spirit Christmas” stores, as well as competition from Amazon and other online retailers.

In 2023, the chain filed for bankruptcy, then emerged with a plan that included transitioning into a privately held company and canceling nearly $1 billion in debt. At that time, there were approximately 800 U.S. stores.

There are 64 stores in Texas, with 9 in the Fort Worth area, as follows:

Arlington
Burleson
Denton
Euless
Fort Worth
Hurst
Lake Worth
Mansfield
Watauga

Dallas-Fort Worth stores have already started sales between 5 and 50 percent off.

holidays closings