Kristoffer Polaha is in the throes of watching a nearly lifelong dream come true. The beloved Hallmark star, who will appear next in the network’s “A Grand Ole Opry Christmas,” is mere months away from seeing his directorial debut — the feature film “Mimics” — premiere at theaters nationwide.
“I am so proud of this,” he told EntertainmentNow after Panoramic Pictures acquired the movie, with plans for a limited release in theaters on February 6, 2026. “I can’t express to you the joy and the pleasure that I feel in knowing that I’ve brought this little thing into the world with the help of a lot of people. It takes a lot of people saying yes to make a dream come true.”
Watch the First ‘Mimics’ Trailer Starring Kristoffer Polaha
Polaha and his filmmaking partners, including producer Ken Carpenter, released the first trailer for the “genre-bending” movie on October 16. In addition to directing “Mimics,” Polaha stars in the movie alongside a star-studded cast that includes A-list creator and actor Kevin Lawson, Latin country artist Mōriah, Stephen Tobolowsky, “SNL” alum Chris Parnell, Jesse Hutch, Jason Marsden, and Austin Basis.
According to the logline, Polaha plays “down-on-his-luck impressionist” Sam Reinhold, who “makes a pact with Fergus—a wicked, strings-attached puppet—that holds the promise to propel Sam to stardom, unleashing a nightmare that threatens the safety of those he holds dear. Kristoffer Polaha steps behind (and in front of) the camera for his directorial debut, MIMICS — a mix of horror, fun and romance, that’ll have you laughing one minute… and looking over your shoulder the next.”
After a 15-day shoot in his hometown of Reno, Nevada, during the summer of 2024, Polaha told EntertainmentNOW that it was “the joy of my career so far” to finally realize his dream of directing a feature film, from being intimately involved in the script development to securing funding to overseeing the filming.
He said, “The idea of 50-odd people coming together collectively, using their imagination to lift up the story, to tell a story, is a remarkable thing when it’s done right.”
Kristoffer Polaha Says It’s a ‘Wild Thing’ to See His Dream Come to Life
As the cast and crew filmed “Mimics,” it was not lost on Polaha that it had been exactly 30 years since he sat in a theater, the summer before his senior year of high school in 1994, watching Quentin Tarantino’s “Pulp Fiction” and realizing his dream was to make movies, he told EntertainmentNow.
He recalled, “I go home and I lock myself in the bathroom, and I’m sitting there looking in the mirror, and I’m thinking to myself, ‘That’s what I want to do. I want to make movies. I want to make a movie, and I want to do it outside of the studio system. I want to do it independently. That’s exactly what I want to do, and I want to help do it by becoming an actor. I’ll break in that way.'”
Polaha’s acting career has spanned TV (including series like “Life Unexpected,” “Backstrom,” and “Condor”) and movies (from “Wonder Woman 1984” to “Jurassic Park: Dominion”), and he’s become one of Hallmark’s biggest stars since his first rom-com on the network in 2016, opposite Meghan Markle, months before she fell for a handsome prince in real life.
But all the while, he held on to his dream of directing an independent film, noting, “I sat on this dream for 30 years. And it just happened in this weird way of just gently pushing something up the hill, just gently pushing and nudging and saying, ‘You know what, I want to do this thing, and I want to get this thing made, and I’m going to do it someday.’ I didn’t know how, but I wanted it to be in my hometown.”
“And it really is a wild thing to be standing at the finish line,” Polaha marveled. “I hope it does well, of course, but even if it doesn’t make a penny, the fact is, this thing got made, and it’s something that I’m actually really proud of.”
The world premiere of “Mimics” took place in Reno in late September. Panoramic Pictures is planning a “limited release” of the movie to about 400 theaters on February 6, Polaha told EntertainmentNow, with hopes that excitement about the film will prompt it to move to wider release.
“Hopefully it grows and grows, and then we’ll come to a city near you,” he said. “Let’s see
how we do week one, and if we can stick it, then we keep going.”
I can’t WAIT to see Mimic!! I was fortunate to meet Mr. Polaha this July in Dahlonega, Georgia, and he told us about it. Loved seeing his excitement as he talked about it! Congratulations on achieving this milestone!! On to your next directorial endeavor!!
Oh Nooo, he went from Deamboat to Screamboat….Just kidding I ❤️ I would Love anything you do