The fourth season of Netflix's hit romance series "Virgin River" will welcome back the existing cast of the strange and tight-knit nocturnal community of the fictional Northern California town of Virgin River, while also introducing new characters who will shake things up. At the heart of "Virgin River" Season 4 are Alexandra Breckenridge and Martin Henderson, who play Mel and Jack. Mel and Jack are a back-and-forth couple, swept up in small-town drama, wholesome comedy, bizarre car accidents, kidnappings, and unexpected deaths. (Not too much, though. Virgin River draws inspiration from "slow" small-town shows like "Dawson's Creek" and "Gilmore Girls.")

Two new characters were teased in the Season 3 finale of "Virgin River," and both will have expanded roles in Season 4. Meanwhile, a beloved face that disappeared from Season 3 has finally returned. Let's delve into the characters of "Virgin River" Season 4.

Supporting the show along with Henderson is Breckenridge of "This Is Us" fame, who plays Mel Monroe. The series began with Mel moving to Virgin River to work as a nurse at a local clinic after experiencing an unspeakable loss. After a rocky start in this small, isolated town, Mel settles in and falls in love with local veteran and bar owner Jack Sheridan, played by Henderson. Season 3 ended with Mel telling Jack she is pregnant, but that the baby may not be his.

Of his character, Breckenridge told "Parade" that I think it's something that Mel was born with. That's what sets her apart from us. She's obviously very nurturing and a caregiver by nature, but I think the perseverance outweighs Mel."

Martin Henderson, the New Zealand actor familiar from "The Ring" and Britney Spears' "Toxic" video, plays Jack, the handsome, haunted veteran and owner of Jack's Bar. Throughout the show's past three seasons, Jack has mostly taken the beating of Virgin River: shot at, suffering from alcoholism and PTSD, and seemingly unable to continue dating (season three ended with Jack proposing to Mel, but she never responded to him). Season 3. Season 4 will reveal who shot Jack and why, and his journey to gain joint custody of the twins with his ex-girlfriend Charmaine.

In an interview with Parade, Mel describes Jack as Handsome, rugged, heartfelt, and romantic. But he has his flaws, too. He struggles to connect with his personal past and PTSD. In season 4, that becomes a really big problem for both of them. Mel is trying to help him figure out how to deal with that PTSD, but he doesn't want anything to do with anything but himself and a bottle of whiskey."

She's back; due to filming restrictions on COVID-19, veteran actress McCrea (who plays town favorite Mayor Hope) was unable to join the rest of the Vancouver cast in filming season 3. The show sent Hope away to care for a relative, which made up for McCrea's absence in Season 3, but it has been confirmed that Hope will rejoin the cast in Season 4. Unfortunately, Hope was severely injured in a car accident at the end of Season 3 on her way back for her best friend Lily's funeral.

In an interview with Parade, McCrea stated: "We both have a lot of energy. We are both independent. I think we are both only children. I'm better at accepting criticism than she is. But I am much more accepting than she is. She doesn't now because of her brain injury, but I hope she will eventually. She can express herself, she can cry. I admire her for saying things, having very strong opinions about things, and not hesitating to express them. I respect that very much. "

Matheson, another acting veteran, plays the gruff and kind Doc Mullins, a local doctor in Virgin River. Doc is Hope McCrea's ex-husband and now fiancée. He was shocked to learn of her critical illness at the end of the previous season. He is also Mel's boss at the clinic and is close to her and Jack.

"He's kind of out of the big corporate hospital world," Matheson explained to Interview magazine. He was running a hospital in Seattle, Washington, but he didn't find it interesting and wanted to get back into one-on-one care." So he moved to Virgin River, started a clinic, and became the only doctor in town. Most of his patients are his friends. He is a healer of sorts. He wants to help people.

Benjamin Hollingsworth plays Brady, a kind-hearted bad boy. Last season, Brady fell in love with Jack's sister, Bree, and at the same time was accused of being the one who shot Jack. Bree has been involved in the underworld of the Virgin River drug trade in the past and has been trying to better herself since falling in love with Bree, but who knows what will happen to Bree in Season 4.

"In Season 4, Brady has to navigate the balance between being a man, standing up for Bree in a way that is not culturally understood as manly, with the duty of people to protect," Hollingsworth told EW. 'It's more about being supportive. We don't see Brady taking revenge. We don't see Brady actively defending Bree. He does so passively against many threats."

Allen, from "Grey's Anatomy," plays Bree, the sister of Jack's astute lawyer who has left the city for the slow life in the Virgin River. Bree ended up caught between her brother and Brady in season 3, unsure if she had shot him.

Speaking to TODAY, Allen said, "I think Bree has a really strong sense of right and wrong and justice. So no matter what PTSD she's suffering from or whether she's trying to regain a sense of herself in this one area of her life, one of the things she's never forgotten [how to do] is to listen to her own voice. Jack doesn't remember all the details of that night. And I know Brady in a way that no one else does." She tries to play it cool, but in Season 4 she really puts on her lawyer's hat and helps with that."

Lawrence plays Preacher, the town's voice of reason. Preacher served with Jack in the army and is now the head cook and Jack's partner at the bar. Last season, Preacher took over custody of Paige's son, Christopher, after Paige fled her abusive ex-husband. Unfortunately, the season ended when Preacher was tricked by Paige's former friend and drugged into being kidnapped by Christopher's father.

"Preacher's character has very strong feelings for Paige," Lawrence told EW. 'He has done questionable things to keep her safe. He has a very moral compass, but he crossed the line for her safety. He is a loyal character to a fault."

Charmaine, Jack's former on-off girlfriend, ended Season 3 as a (mostly) villain in her own right, promising Jack a full-blown custody battle over his biological twins if he tried to seek rights to them. Spoiler alert: there is a dramatic twist to this storyline at the end of season 4.

Maxwell Guernsey brought youthful sweetness to the show in the form of Ricky, Liddy's devoted grandson and waiter at Jack's bar. Last season, Ricky revealed to his girlfriend Lizzie (Sarah Dugdale) that he was going to join the Marines, effectively ending his relationship with Lizzie.

Joining the Virgin River cast in Season 4 is Denny, played by Bradbury. He claims to be Doc's grandson. This is because Doc didn't have any children.

"We want Denny to be lovable, but yes, navigating the red pyramids, twists and turns was actually quite difficult. Denny hides a very big secret and has been through so much that these masks covered him," Bradbury explains to TV Fanatic. Bradbury explained to TV Fanatic, "He was very secretive about it.

Showrunner Patrick Sean Smith told EW, "What you get in season 5 is a clearer picture of who Denny is and what he's going through, and the people in town and those close to his life begin to become that support system, and stronger bonds form between everyone. He noted, "It's the relationships that are formed.

The only complete new face in the cast of "Virgin River" Season 4 is Dr. Hayek, played by Ganimé, who joins Mel and Doc as the second doctor at the clinic, and according to Deadline, "armed with eye-catching good looks, razor-sharp intellect, and a smile that could light up the world. Cameron immediately grabs attention on the street.

Speaking to TV Line, Breckenridge said, "[In the season premiere] I was surprised by [the character's] audacity. In one of the first scenes, he says, 'You said I was attractive.' Mel is like, 'Wow, I didn't mean it like that. He didn't know she had a boyfriend at the time, but he was quite forward. Mel took it in stride and was relatively gentle. The old Mel would have chewed him out for that."