Jill Whelan Says a “Love Boat” Sequel Would Be 'Fabulous,' Jokes Vicki Might Be Remarried 'Like Me' (Exclusive)

"It would've been fun to explore where she would've gone in work or in a relationship," the former child star told PEOPLE on the Enchanted Princess

• The Love Boat stars Fred Grandy, Bernie Kopell, Ted Lange and Jill Whelan set sail on Princess Cruises' The Love Boat Celebration at Sea that left out of Brooklyn, N.Y., on Aug. 31 and traveled through New England and Canada for seven nights

• Whelan began playing Vicki Stubing on The Love Boat at age 11 and told PEOPLE on the Enchanted Princess that the show’s “incredible cast of human beings” helped guide her through the industry

• The child star also recalled working with producer Douglas Cramer, who she said “really didn't like women and was horrible”

On the last day of August, approximately 3,600 passengers boarded the Enchanted Princess in Brooklyn, N.Y., for Princess Cruises’ The Love Boat Celebration at Sea. Throughout the seven-night sailing, guests listened to The Love Boat stars Fred Grandy, Ted Lange, Bernie Kopell and Jill Whelan talk about the hit ‘70s and ‘80s series during Q&As, tested their knowledge at The Love Boat trivia, sipped on specialty Love Boat cocktails and mingled with the actors when they ran into them around the ship.

Princess Cruises already has its 2025 Love Boat Celebration at Sea sailing slated to leave out of Galveston, Texas, on the Regal Princess beginning on Nov. 16, 2025, so the cast knows fans have an appetite for more Love Boat.

“Wouldn't a sequel be fabulous?” Whelan, 57, asked PEOPLE on board the Enchanted Princess.

Related: The Love Boat's Fred Grandy Reveals Billy Crystal Auditioned for the Role of Gopher But 'He Really Hated the Script'

Whelan said she would like to see her character Vicki, who she began playing at age 11, in a fulfilling relationship. “She always had terrible boyfriends who made her steal or drink,” the former child star recalled. “It would've been fun to explore where she would've gone in work or in a relationship. Maybe she is [married] for the third time, like me.”

Until the cast reunites on screen, Love Boat devotees can catch Whelan, Grandy, 76, and Lange, also 76, together in an off-Broadway play that Lange wrote in N.Y.C. next summer.

“We get along really, really well,” Whelan said of her costars. “Professionally, they taught me how to behave in this industry. We've been so lucky that with Gavin [MacLeod] and Bernie in the beginning to set the bar. They set a tone and a level of respect that some actors unfortunately don't have because they weren't taught it necessarily. It's a wonderful thing to be in a business where you get to entertain people, and that's probably what I've learned from them more than anything else, is to not take myself too seriously.”

Whelan credits the “incredible cast of human beings” on The Love Boat, as well as her mother Carol Garrett, with helping her navigate Hollywood at a young age. “She's the reason I haven't been arrested yet,” Whelan quipped. “I'm still frightened of her because she's a powerhouse woman! But look, putting a child in a business always leaves room for disaster or nefarious things. My mom did the best she could."

Meanwhile, Grandy and Lange helped shape Whelan into “who I am as a person, because those were my most formative years,” she said. “They have been so generous with their love for me and their professionalism and their knowledge of our craft.”

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The actress spoke on the Still Here Hollywood podcast earlier this year about how producer Doug Cramer took drastic measures to encourage her to stay thin, including having her work with “some crazy doctor who had me on 400 calories a day.” To PEOPLE, she referred to Cramer, who died in 2021 at age 89, as someone who “really didn't like women and was horrible.”

“But everybody has that cross to bear,” Whelan continued. “Or as my mom always said, ‘Everybody has a hole in their sock. And if we all knew each other had a hole in our sock, we'd be in a lot better place.’ So it's just one of those things. It could've been a lot worse. I heard a great saying that you grow up to be the person who would've protected you, and so I try to make that my inner tape rather than the negative things that I remember as a kid.”

If Whelan could go back and give her young self some advice, it would be “to shut out the noise,” she said, adding, “I would tell myself that just because somebody has an open criticism of you, it's really a reflection of who they are, not a reflection of anything that has anything to do with you.”

Related: Ted Lange Once Confronted Aaron Spelling About White Cast's Prominence on Love Boat: 'Why Can't I Greet People?'

Now, as the Celebrations Ambassador for Princess Cruises, Whelan has been able to repay her guidance mom by taking her family on cruise vacations around the world. Whelan even got to spend time with her stepfather before he died on board a Princess cruise over New Year’s 2024.

“We had so much fun, and we sat in the afternoon and played cards all day,” she said. “In the afternoon, Crown Grill isn't open for lunch, so we always go in there and play cards. The other tradition that we always have is, when we're leaving a port, we go to the back fantail and we sit on the balcony at the Wake View Bar with a plate of French fries saying goodbye to the port that we just left. Those are pretty much our traditions — and sitting in The Sanctuary.”

During The Love Boat Celebration at Sea, Whelan partook in the Enchanted Princess’s sail away celebration on Aug. 31, the captain's champagne waterfall toast, the vow renewal ceremony onboard and the farewell show on Sept. 7. Guests also enjoyed entertainment such as magic and comedy from Quinn "The Mighty Quinn" Beasley and Eric Buss, DJ sets by DJ Robert Micheal, live music from Arny Galoyo, Jowita, The Pipers Chair and Pinnacle, and a staging of the musical Rock Opera.

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The Love Boat is streaming on Paramount+.

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