‘Road to Ballycastle’: All About the New Movie From ‘Seeking Persephone’ Author
Jake Stormoen is saddling up for another romance project — and he has help from some of his Seeking Persephone team! The Lancaster Family book series author, Sarah M. Eden, and the adaptation’s director, John Lyde, have made Ireland-set, second-chance rom-com The Road to Ballycastle.
The movie was inspired by Stormoen’s own experiences. Just before his period drama series Seeking Persephone got off the ground in 2023, he traveled to northern Ireland, riding horses across the coast. “It’s what my soul needed at the time and I came back with these beautiful photos and these stories, and I said, ‘Guys, I’m telling you, this is a ripe setting for a romance or a rom-com. Just, the scenery was so storybook and so exquisite,'” he explained to book influencer @bookthoughtswithsteph. “And John and Sarah kind of went, ‘OK, let’s write it.'”
Now that the trailer has been revealed — which includes more than one familiar Seeking Persephone face, such as Will Kemp — get all the details on the production below.
What is The Road to Ballycastle‘s release date?
The trailer teases that the film is coming soon. On social media, Eden revealed that filming had wrapped on June 18. Stormoen described it as a “fast, kind of little summer camp project.”
Eden teased in the video, “We had some really funny scenes today, one to the point that I literally had to hold a pillow up in front of my face… Guys, I think you’re gonna love this film. It has tender moments and sweet moments and really, really funny moments set against this gorgeous backdrop and beautiful horses and fun, interesting characters.”
Who is in The Road to Ballycastle cast?
Stormoen leads as Andrew. Charlotte Hemmings, who plays the Dowager Duchess in Seeking Persephone, plays Jolene. Kemp will star as Ciar, alongside Anna Greene as Jessica, Camrey Bagley Fox as Mary, Danny James as Trevor, Anson Bagley as Jack, Golden Goodwin as Morgan, and Karen C. Baird as Reta.
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Is The Road to Ballycastle based on a book?
Unlike Seeking Persephone, there is no book for Ballycastle, just a script penned by Eden. They intended it to read like a Hallmark movie, according to Stormoen.
The plot? At the request of her grandmother, a former competitive equestrian takes a riding tour in Ireland. Her guide (Stormoen) is her former best friend and teammate who disappeared years earlier. As she tries to rekindle her love for horse riding, she spends a week also figuring out if she can move forward with her former friend.
Stormoen based his character on his own experience: During his own horse tour, the guides suggested he join their operation. At the time, the actor was about to start working on Seeking Persephone, and if it hadn’t taken off, he might have considered quitting acting to do that. “I play somebody who did just that,” he said. “It’s a rom-com. It’s a very cute movie, and so I go to northern Ireland and I’m working with the company that I rode with… It’s about rekindling love and friendship and it’s very sweet. It’s gonna be fun.”
The Road to Ballycastle, TBA
