Celebrity scams are nothing new, but the number of impersonators targeting Hallmark Channel fans has reached a fever pitch, prompting the network in 2025 to release public service announcements featuring some of Hallmark’s biggest stars, all imploring viewers to be careful and not to fall for the latest scams.
It’s a challenge filmmaker Jen Silliman wasn’t expecting as she began production on a documentary about Hallmark superstar Tyler Hynes’ fandom, known affectionately as “Hynies.” But as Silliman and her team began collecting sweet stories from smitten fans around the world, they also started to hear from Hynies who been swindled by imposters posing as Hynes.
Silliman shared via social media on January 20, 2026, that the stories they’ve received from fans tricked by scammers were so heartbreaking that her team has published some of them with permission and created a guide to help other fans steer clear of phonies.
Hynes told EntertainmentNow how heartbreaking it is each time he learns of another fan taken advantage of, noting that this ongoing issue “is very real and it’s very understandable how it happens.”
Documentary Filmmaker Started an ‘Awareness Campaign’ to Help Weed Out Scam Artists Targeting Tyler Hynes’ Fans
In a video posted to Instagram, Silliman told followers, “I’ve always believed that documentary films should do more than just entertain. They should make an impact. And every film has a villain — and this documentary is not different.”
Silliman said she’s heard from “dozens” of victims who’ve fallen for scammers claiming to be Hynes or his management, only to learn later that they’d been swindled out of money or lured into a fake relationship.
“It’s absolutely, positively heartbreaking,” she said, which is why the team behind the Hynies documentary — which will be released in 2027 — has begun an “awareness campaign,” highlighting the stories of “courageous” fans who were willing to share what happened to them, as well as websites running scams that claim to be selling access to Hynes.
One woman shared with Silliman’s team that she “texted back & forth for almost a month” with someone who “had me convinced” he was really Hynes, and who even complained about scammers to her. After building up trust with her, the imposter got the fan to provide him with personal details, including her driver’s license info, and nearly convinced her to send money for a plane ticket so he could come visit her. Fortunately, she figured out it was a scam before sending any money, but she was understandably heartbroken to realize it was not the real Tyler Hynes.
Silliman said that moving forward, her documentary team will tag social media posts about such stories and scams with the hashtag #NotTylerNotThem so people can easily find and recognize alerts about fraudulent activity. She also pointed fans to a new online resource page with guidance and examples of how fans have been manipulated.
Tyler Hynes Responds to Latest Scam Stories, Noting That the ‘Most Lovely People Can Be the Most Vulnerable’
Hynes is notorious for going above and beyond to connect with his fans through live group chats, in-person events, and by spending extra time with those who’ve waited in line to meet him. Despite attempts by Hynes and Hallmark to block scammers and dissuade fans from engaging, the frauds can be extremely convincing and clever.
“In this time of cultural and technological transition, it seems the most lovely people can also be the most vulnerable,” Hynes told EntertainmentNow on January 22. “I’ve had the privilege of meeting many of them and when they realize the truth that they suspected, that who they’ve been speaking to is in fact not me (or any public figure)…well, that moment stays with me in ways I don’t think many can understand until you experience it.”
“I realize this subject may feel foreign to some but to many, myself included, it’s very real and it’s very understandable how it happens. These are good people. The kind of people we should all be so lucky to have in our lives and thankfully do.”
GettyHynes asked that all of his fans protect one another, to “please keep an eye out” for anyone they notice may be engaging with an imposter, and gently help them see what’s happening.
He told EntertainmentNow, “They need our perspective. They need to feel like it’s safe to share something they may feel is personal or even embarrassing. It is not embarrassing. It is human nature and it’s a moment of history where we can hopefully show how we care for one another.”
Hynes concluded, “Please be safe. Please be kind. And please know you are not alone.”
Notably, the “Christmas Above the Clouds” star is not immune to confusion created by scammers. On January 21, he shared in his Instagram Stories that despite the fact that dozens of fake Tyler Hynes profiles exist on X, his verified account had just inexplicably been suspended.
Hynes’ official social media accounts are here: on Instagram (@tyler_hynes), on Facebook (@officialtylerhynespage), on TikTok (@tylerhynes), and if or when X/Twitter reinstates his verified account, that can be found at x.com/tyler_hynes.
No one should scammer Tyler Hynes and other actors.That is very terrible. From a Hallmark movie fan Peggy ❤️
another one getting scammed is John Reardon. I NEVER give money to anyone
I have had DM’s by supposed Hallmark stars after I have written something nice in the comments. I know there is no way they are going to contact me, so I just ignore all those messages. Those were Andrew Walker, Victor Webster, and Kristoffer Polaha scammers.
I have been scammed by someone claiming to be Kristoffer Polaha. The things these people tell you and really have you believing them, leave a person hurting! The promises made, the things said, the poems sent are really believable. But they aren’t true! Found out the hard way! They told me what I wanted to hear!
This information came a bit late for me s got scammed a huge amountsi
Ive been scammed out of 19,000 ive tried eveim on SSDI & all this because I wanted to see him in Kansas! Now i dont know who’s real & who’s not.. they scammed life savings 💔💔 i pray somehow I get it back
Unfortunately my sister was scammed and it was by someone saying they were Jason Aldean and she swore it was him and you could not dissuade her from believing it wasn’t him. I’m not kidding she swears she was texting him it seemed like a year. And he’s not the only one she gets a lot of people sending her messages and unfortunately she is so gullible, it’s really sad!
Why would anyone think as a popular actor he would have to ask for money for a plane ticker?
I hate to say it, but I am one of the ones who got taken by Scammer saying that they were Tyler. When I actually sent $6450 to and now I don’t know what to do to get back. I’m on disability and was telling me that I was able to talk to somebody saying the Tyler he’s been so convincing. I can’t believe it. I can’t believe I was so stupid. I just don’t know what to do.
I just assume most contact from a celebrity or their management is phony. The only time I’ve interacted with a celebrity of any kind is on X when it was Twitter, and that was having a celebrity reply to a reply I made on their own post, which happened twice, and it was public, not a private DM. The private DMs usually start out with incorrect grammar or they sound silly. I guess I’m jaded from living in SoCal where I’ve met celebs before, and they just don’t act weird like these people in the DMs. I’ll sometimes mess with them even just for fun to waste their time. But if I EVER felt like a real celebrity contacted me, I would have them video call me immediately to prove it was really them. If there was any excuse, immediately block them. If they can’t talk to you on a video call in real time, then they’re a fake. No excuses. I’ve heard plenty. They’ve had lawsuits. Their manager won’t let them. Their PR team won’t allow it. They had problems in the past. They can’t let you see where they are. They aren’t looking too good right now and don’t want you to see them. They aren’t properly dressed, and are afraid you’ll take a screenshot and send it to the tabloids. All sorts of excuses. All lies. They’re scammers, and they aren’t the real celebrity, so they can’t appear on camera. Also, celebrities will never ask you for sensitive information like your bank account info, your dl number, your SS number, your maiden name, things like that… And they most definitely won’t ask you for money. If they ask you to donate to a charity, it would be a website that was a valid website or a GoFundMe page that had been set up or something. They would never ask you to give them money directly for themselves or for a charity.
Glad to hear you are absolutely thinking about all fans getting scams which i’m happy to hear. I was scammed big time with an imposter claiming he is the real Tyler Hynes and in which came to the point that hurts me financially. I surely learned my lesson so I’m very skeptical now when it comes to celebrities.
Barbara B.
I’ve commented on Facebook posts and had several “celebrities” private message me. Will Kemp, Victor Webster, Kristoffer Polaha, Andrew Walker and Three Tyler Hynes. I found that out because all three were trying to talk to me at the same time! Yes, those were imposters. I figured these actors are too busy with Hallmark movies, shooting schedules, events, cruises, personal appearances and they do not have time to be on Facebook. It’s either, their management, or fans running their own fan club or the scammers. In any case, one wanted me to set up a Meet and Greet with his manager, that would have costed me $3,500 and I had to cover the hotel as well. Another wanted me the get a Membership Card to his fan club, that was $500 and one of the Tyler Hynes wanted me to call his bank and give them an account number and 4 digit number to get his balance because he couldn’t get through. One showed me a drivers license that I could see was not real because the signature belonged to a woman and I could see her outline was different in the smaller photo, than the pasted-on photo of Tyler. Then since he trusted me with that, wanted me to trust him and send him my license! The scammers have access to all the actor’s photos on the internet and can apparently set up sites at will and they look real. All this scamming going on, retirement and savings lost by others, was so heart breaking. I’m on very limited income and taking care of me wasn’t being covered and I certainly wasn’t going to send money I don’t have. So PLEASE, be warned, The scammers want all your information and can get whatever else they need from the dark web to get your life savings, set up false accounts or try to get loans in your name! Don’t trust them, don’t fund their games and Protect Yourself and your friends! Do not give them any personal, financial information or anything that ID’s you that could be used to hurt you financially. They will say anything to get you to trust them. PLEASE BE CAREFUL!