Longtime Hallmark star Brendan Penny is a proud family man, with a wife, two kids, and a gaggle of beloved pets — but he also keeps his personal life very private.
So it was especially sweet to hear the “Texas Two-Step” star pontificate on what he’s learned about love and marriage on the second episode of “Christmas at Sea” season two, which began streaming on Hallmark+ this week.
Brendan Penny Offers Support to Cruise Guest Planning a Vow Renewal
HallmarkAmong the featured superfans on the second season of “Christmas at Sea,” which chronicles passengers’ journeys aboard the Hallmark Christmas Cruise in November 2025, are Steve and Julie Venturelli of Plymouth, Massachusetts, who were on board the ship to celebrate their 38th wedding anniversary. Unbeknownst to Julie, Steve was planning a vow renewal ceremony during their stop in Cozumel, Mexico.
Feeling nervous about planning the vow renewal, Steve was seen meeting up with fellow passenger Charlie Jordan, a musician (and Santa impersonator!) who hails from Kissimmee, Florida, and is on board with his wife of 27 years. As they were discussing Steve’s plans, Penny, who’s been married to his wife, Lisa Gerrard, since 2010, showed up to offer some encouragement.
As the trio talked about the ups and downs of navigating a lasting marriage, Penny sweetly shared, “I’ve played a lot of very romantic kind of guys. You know, when it’s written for you and the snow is falling, it’s very easy, but I personally find it’s a massive journey and you’re gonna have these realistic ups, and you’re gonna have these difficult times.”
“And I feel like romance is really in the in-between,” he continued. “It’s in those small little moments of the day-to-day when you actually do what you appreciate where you can kind of grow. Because as much as we all wish it was a Hallmark movie, it’s not. There can be ups and downs.”
Brendan Penny Got Married in British Columbia
HallmarkPenny doesn’t share much about his personal life, but in 2023, he told Just Jared about his and Gerard’s wedding.
“We actually got married in the Okanagan, which is in interior British Columbia in the summer on a family friends’ place,” Penny said. “They allowed us to get married at their house and we had a very nice small wedding right on the water and it was, it was beautiful. I’m really, really fortunate.”
The couple and their two kids are “huge pet people,” Penny shared in a social media video posted by Hallmark Channel in June, as he revealed that he adopted an adorable, scruffy black puppy named Greta from the set of “Texas Two-Step.”
He explained, “There’s this beautiful little dog that plays in the movie, and I actually just came out — I hadn’t been in a scene with her — but I came out from filming and was like, ‘If I see a puppy, I’m going to the puppy.”
“So, the producer, we talked and (Greta) is getting on a plane with me in two days when I wrap, and she’s coming home,” Penny smiled. “And my family is super excited (for) little Greta, another member of our family! So it’s gonna be pretty awesome.”
Penny gave fans an adorable update on Greta on June 30, with a pic of Greta on the beach looking quite soggy in a yellow raincoat, writing, “3 months in. What a sweet pup!!”
New episodes of “Christmas at Sea” season two are released via Hallmark+ each Wednesday in July.
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