How Lifetime writer was inspired by Taylor Swift for holiday movie

Last year, Eirene Tran Donohue watched Taylor Swift at Arrowhead Stadium cheering on Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce and thought, "This could be a rom-com."

"I've done a bunch of Lifetime Christmas movies," Donohue says.

The writer was texting her friend and Lifetime movie executive Tia Maggini about the potential of a movie about a ubiquitous singer falling in love with a grounded professional football player.

"(Maggini) said, 'Do you want to do it?' And I was like, 'Christmas and Taylor Swift? These are the two great loves of my life,'" she recounts.

And thus, "Christmas in the Spotlight" (premiering Saturday, 8 EST/PST) was born.

This happens once every few Lifetime movies

Although the Kelce and Swift love story played out on NFL broadcasts, grainy Eras Tour livestreams and sporadic paparazzi photos, the Lifetime film is merely inspired by them.

There are key differences between the main characters of Bowyn Sykes, a global pop star on the verge of releasing her highly anticipated Christmas album, and Drew "Gonzo" Gonville, a wide receiver for the Bay Spring Bombers.

For starters, the pop star's father is deceased, and her mother is not in the picture. The brother of the football player is on the same professional team. And the lovebirds cross paths at a meet-and-greet after Sykes' show. (Kelce famously put Swift on blast on his "New Heights" podcast after her team wouldn't let him meet her at a Kansas City show.)

But it's easy to see why Donohue is in Spotify's top 0.1% of Taylor Swift fans. The script includes innumerable Easter eggs. Gonzo's football jersey is No. 13. There are quips like, "Let the games begin," "I'm sorry Uncle Gonzo can't come to the phone right now … he's dead," and, "Why they have to be so mean?"

When news broke of the movie project, Reddit lit up with comments ranging from the lighthearted to the defensive.

@luvlyyung wrote, "I mean i love their story so far and i love these type of movies so yeah i think i will give it a try."

@spirited-acadia4769 said, "I find this to be extremely weird and invasive but also i realise its just a movie and idk im the weird one. But i cant get out of my head that it feels like exploitation of their relationship."

@Natural_Ad_6803 replied, "sorry but i will be watching… with popcorn… and a cozy blanket…"

Donahue has read the threads and sees the criticism as putting the cart before the horse. "I think this movie does stand if you've never even heard of Taylor Swift or Travis Kelce," she says. "I think this movie works just as a Christmas romcom. I think that Swifties will enjoy it and understand that it was made with love and that it is not an attack on her and it's not trying to be exploitative."

There are many nods that will fly over the average non-Swiftie's head, but ardent followers will appreciate one-liners like "you are the best thing at this party" and "you look like you’re having the time of your life" as well as the names of the opinionated sportscasters, Chad Marcus and Aimee Hannah.

Donohue hopes Swift and Kelce like it.

"I hope they think it's fun and funny and understand that it's coming from a place of love and celebration," she says. "There is also a deep Kelce Easter egg that most might not catch. (Jason Kelce) would definitely understand it."

'Cause it fit too right, puzzle pieces in the dead of night'

Laith Wallschleger, 32, and Jessica Lord, 26, play the main characters of Drew and Bowyn.

"We managed to make a puzzle montage very sexual," Wallschleger jokes in a joint interview. "I don't think that's ever been done before."

The former collegiate and professional football player transitioned full-time to acting five years ago. He says he heard through mutual sports contacts that Kelce is aware of the movie and planning to see it.

"Apparently he's going to have a watch party and watch it, so that's cool," Wallschleger says. "You heard it here first."

His onscreen chemistry with Lord is undeniable, and at times the two characters face difficult conversations that may have come up in the Swift and Kelce relationship: dilemmas like the superstar wanting to privately date before going public, the legitimacy of their relationship being questioned as a PR stunt and how the two find normalcy amidst perpetual public scrutiny.

"We did a table read on Zoom, and after that we had an hour phone call going over how we feel about everything and getting to know each other," Lord says. "Right off the bat, we connected, and I think that really set the tone throughout the entire shoot for us to have this really high level of respect of each other."

Lord and Wallschleger met in-person during the two weeks of shooting in Toronto — which is coincidentally where Swift will play her final show at Rogers Centre on Saturday.

Wallschleger is still crossing his fingers for a last-minute invite to the Kelce screening, "My schedule is wide open."

In the meantime, he and Lord are encouraging fans to check it out. "I just hope it makes someone laugh," Wallschleger says. "There's so much negativity and hatred in the world."

"I think it's an easygoing, heartwarming holiday movie," Lord adds. "I do think there's some nice inspiration in there to just really persevere and fight for what you want, especially when it comes to love and family and your dreams."

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: 'Christmas in the Spotlight' Lifetime movie inspired by Taylor Swift