It’s good news for those of us who can’t wait to head back to Virgin River, because seasons 1-2 of Sullivan’s Crossing – also created by author Robyn Carr – are now available to stream on Netflix. You might have missed it in everything new coming to Netflix in July 2025, but there’s a good reason why you shouldn’t overlook it (and not just that season 3 is still to come).
Virgin River’s success alone is nothing short of astonishing. It’s now the longest-running original series on the platform, still pulling in almost 16 million viewers when season 6 dropped in December 2024. Virgin River season 7 has officially wrapped filming, but no release date is confirmed as of writing.
Bad news, right? Wrong! Sullivan’s Crossing is the ideal new TV show to tide us over in the meantime. Set in Canada rather than California, it’s the epitome of cozy comfort drama with plenty of famous faces thrown in for good measure.
Why I recommend watching Sullivan’s Crossing on Netflix
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Neurosurgeon Maggie (Morgan Kohan) is looking to move away from her big city life in Boston after a terrible tragedy affects her personal life. She moves back to her childhood hometown of Sullivan’s Crossing, Nova Scotia, where her dad Sully (Scott Patterson) runs a campground. Maggie meets new resident Cal (Chad Michael Murray), and sparks soon fly. Where have we heard that storyline before?
Sure, Sullivan’s Crossing is exactly the same as Virgin River if you strip it back to its bare bones, but in reality, the hit TV show is so much more than its big sister. For starters, the cast unites When Hope Calls’ Kohan, noughties teen heartthrob Murray and Gilmore Girls legend Patterson in family conflict that always pulls on the heartstrings, allowing each actor to do what they’re best at. Obviously, it doesn’t hurt that any drama takes place against the jaw-droppingly picturesque vistas of rural Canada.
Our main anchor points differ from Virgin River, too. Maggie is falling for Cal, but still has tenuous links to her ex, Andrew (Allan Hawco). In essence, this acts as the reverse of Jack Sheridan (Martin Henderson), who falls for newcomer Mel (Alexandra Breckenridge) but hasn’t fully broken things off with Charmaine (Lauren Hammersley). Sullivan’s Crossing takes its romantic triangle one step further, embroiling the trio in a messy pregnancy plot destined to change all of their lives for good.
What’s the best thing about Sullivan’s Crossing, I hear you ask? The beautiful mundanity of their day-to-day lives. Where rival TV shows like Riverdale and the reboot of Dynasty take the drama in their dynamics to the extreme, Sullivan’s Crossing always returns to the simplicity of what real life really looks like, and that pays off in its popularity. You can blissfully lose your mind to the till breaking at the campground reception, inane chatter happening in the local diner and the many whimsical local events that bring the community together.
If you just can’t wait for Virgin River to return, or want to immerse yourself in more of the same, there’s no question that Sullivan’s Crossing will scratch that itch.
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