'Virgin River' Star Alexandra Breckenridge Had 'No Idea' Hit Netflix Series Would Last Longer Than 1 Season: 'I've Been Pleasantly Surprised'

When Virgin River first debuted, Alexandra Breckenridge didn’t expect the small-town drama to become one of Netflix’s most popular hits.

"No way. No way. I did not think that at all," the actress admitted during an exclusive chat with OK! earlier this year in line with her participation in the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women Red Dress Collection Concert at the end of January.

Breckenridge noted, "My friend Shannon totally called it. She’s like, ‘Oh, this is gonna go for years.’ But I had no awareness of how long the show would run."

At the time, Breckenridge says the streaming landscape looked very different.

"Especially back then, like 2018, we started and then finished in 2019, most of their shows would go a season, and then they would just end up in the 'Netflix graveyard,' as I always refer to it," she explained. "You’d see all these random shows and you’re like, 'Does anybody watch this stuff?'"

Now, seven seasons in — with Season 7 currently streaming after its March 12 release — the actress is still taking it all in.

"I've been pleasantly surprised, and I couldn’t explain to you the gratitude of having a job for this long," the This Is Us actress expressed. "Especially in the last few years, it’s been incredibly difficult for my industry, and a lot of actors that used to work constantly have not been working."

Beyond job stability, Breckenridge said the show's wide-reaching audience has been one of the biggest surprises.

"I bump into people no matter where I am who come up to me and say how much they love the show," she shared. "And it’s all different people. It’s across the board. Men come up to me."

Recalling one particularly unexpected fan encounter, she added, "The guy on the plane sitting next to me said, 'By the way, I just thought you were so amazing in Virgin River.' I was like, 'You are not my demographic. How did you find the show?' He said, 'Ex-wife.'"

Playing Mel Monroe — a caring nurse practitioner — has also been a natural fit for the actress.

"I’ve always been a compassionate person. I have a lot of empathy and a lot of awareness for just human beings and what other people may or may not be going through," she detailed. "Somebody else might walk past a stranger and say, ‘Whoa, what a jerk,’ but I’m like, ‘You don’t know what’s happening with them.'"

As her career has evolved, so has her perspective on life off-screen — particularly when it comes to aging and long-term health.

"As I’ve gotten older, you get to this midlife point," Breckenridge mentioned. "We don’t really talk about women having this sort of midlife moment, especially once you start to hit perimenopause and menopause."

With that shift comes a heightened awareness.

"You’re more aware of your own mortality, and you’re more aware of what the next 30 to 40 years of your life are going to look like,” she continued. "When you’re in your 20s and 30s, you feel a little bit more invincible. Then you start getting older, things start to hurt in different ways."

These days, she prioritizes sustainable habits — even if she admits it’s not always easy.

"I eat really well. It’s not like me trying to — I just love vegetables, salad, lean protein, green juice, everything fresh,” Breckenridge said. "It makes it easier because I don’t want to eat a lot of heavy food most of the time anyway."

Still, like many, she acknowledges the challenge of consistency.

"I struggle with it as well — getting motivated to get my checkups and become regular, especially now, and take better care of yourself," she confessed. "I think a lot of us just want to curl up and eat a donut."

That mindset is exactly what inspired her to get involved with the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women Red Dress Collection Concert earlier this year, where she walked as an advocate for heart and women’s health.

"I had no idea that heart disease was so prevalent amongst women — more so even than cancer," Breckenridge admitted. "So I thought it was really important to get involved with this charity."

For the actress, the cause hits close to home in more ways than one — especially as she hopes to use her platform to encourage women to take their health seriously.

"It’s not well known to most women that cardiovascular disease is such a big killer amongst women," she pointed out. "So just by being involved… hopefully I can speak to those people and get them to see a doctor."

Ultimately, Breckenridge saw the event — and her role in it — as both meaningful and empowering.

"They’ve been doing it for such a long time, they do amazing work, and it’s really fun," she acknowledged. "Who doesn’t want to dress up in a red dress and walk to some fun music for a good cause?"