Beloved Hallmark stars Paul Campbell, Wes Brown, and Benjamin Ayres launched their new “Mr. Nice Guys” podcast on November 12, 2026. While listeners are guaranteed to get some good laughs out of their weekly conversations, the trio is also eager to dive into eye-opening topics and vulnerable conversations.
The trio of friends has done just that with their first two episodes, now available to watch via YouTube. Intent on making it a safe space where they can share what’s on their minds and in their hearts, it didn’t take long for them to dive in deep, with Campbell bravely opening up for the first time about the “hardest year” of his life and what happened on the 2026 cruise that led him to “lose it.”
Paul Campbell, Wes Brown & Benjamin Ayres Bonded on the 1st Hallmark Christmas Cruise
Ayres, Brown, and Campbell introduced the “Mr. Nice Guys” podcast by dropping the first two episodes simultaneously on November 12. In the first episode, they share the “origin story” of the podcast, answer great questions from fans, and share how and why they first bonded during the first Hallmark Christmas Cruise in 2024.
Campbell recalled that while talking with each other, they found that they “all had really similar goals, we had similar ambitions, we had similar things that we were struggling with. And I think that was what initially brought us together.”
As their friendship grew, Campbell told Brown and Ayres, he didn’t realize how much he’d need them to lean on, vulnerably sharing, “I went through some really tough stuff last year. And to be honest, like, you guys were two of the biggest supporters, biggest in terms of checking in and helping me through it, even if it was over text or phone calls or voice notes or whatever it was. And that was all born out of this friendship that started (on the cruise).”
Campbell told EntertainmentNow, “There was no end to our conversations. Any time we started talking, we could just talk for hours, and we were constantly laughing. We were like, ‘Hey, we’re funny! We’re good! We should share our things with the people!'”
Ayres added, “The three of us just really inspire one another. The accountability and the humor is there, and we just kind of complement each other in the right way.”
Paul Campbell Got Overwhelmed Onstage While Trying to Share His Grief Journey
In the second 45-minute episode of the “Mr. Nice Guys” podcast, which they call the “cruise recap episode,” Ayres, Brown, and Campbell had fun talking about what it’s like from a Hallmark star’s perspective to be on a sold-out ship with 4,000 Hallmark fans. The trio has three years of cruising under their belts, and the 2027 cruise was just announced.
But things turned serious as they talked about the moment in November 2025 when Campbell had to leave the cruise two days early due to a family emergency. Campbell flew from Cozumel, where the ship had an already-planned stop, to Alberta, Canada, with fellow Hallmark star and Kimberley Sustad by his side for moral support, but has not talked publicly about what happened until now.
“Last year was a very intense experience for Paul,” Ayres said, and Campbell recalled receiving “the most horrible news” from his family.
“I found out my sister was sick and didn’t have a lot of time, and she was in northern Alberta, Canada,” Campbell said. “And if I didn’t get there very, very soon, then I might not make it in time. So, literally with 30 minutes to spare, had to get off the boat in Mexico, go through customs, enter Mexico, and then embark on, like, a 23-hour three-flight journey to northern Alberta.”
Campbell did make it in time to see his sister before she passed, but he’s been navigating that grief ever since. A year later, at the end of Hallmark’s 2026 cruise to the Bahamas in October, Campbell said on the podcast that he felt inspired to share a bit about that experience during one of their final farewell shows for fans. However, the 17 Hallmark stars on stage with him didn’t realize his intentions.
Ayres recalled, “Paul has now taken it upon himself, which I think is beautiful, to use the fifth (show) to talk about that experience. But at this point, we’re all a little zany and we’re all having a good time. And we did not know that’s what Paul (intended).”
“I’d also just spent four days making jokes and making fun of everybody else,” Campbell interjected, acknowledging that it made sense nobody realized he was going to get serious. So, as he began to speak about his grief to the massive crowd, his fellow actors were making funny noises, snapping their fingers, and crowding in around Campbell.
“We’re all touching him, and he’s sort of doing his thing, but trying to say the most beautiful thing ever,” Ayres chuckled, noting that Campbell “saw red” when someone started touching his ears — a big trigger for the star. Campbell’s reaction? He shouted for them all to “F-off,” causing the crowd to gasp and laugh.
“I still laugh about it because it’s the last thing you would expect,” Ayres said, “and also the perfect thing for Paul to say in that moment.”
Campbell explained, “I mean, I’ve never dropped an F-bomb at a Hallmark event, and I didn’t really plan what I was going to say, but I knew what I wanted to talk about. I’ve also never spoken publicly about my sister passing away.”
“I was already at, like, a level 10 emotionally,” he told Brown and Ayres, “trying not to absolutely just let the floodgates open.” After snapping, he said he felt terrible, but his podcast partners assured him it was totally justified.
“That was a very unfiltered, candid, very real moment for me,” Campbell told EntertainmentNow, and then laughed, “And I meant that swear! I meant it.”
Campbell’s full story can be heard in the second episode of the “Mr. Nice Guys” podcast above or click here. New 45-minute episodes will drop each Thursday at noon Eastern time.
Paul Campbell Opens Up About His Sister’s Passing For the First Time (Exclusive)