Annette O'Toole's portrayal of Hope McCrea, the opinionated and gossipy mayor of Virgin River, has been met with a divided response from the show's audience. While some viewers find her character authentic and relatable, others struggle to watch her scenes and even say the writers should have wrapped up her story in Season 3 during the car accident situation.
So what is the cause behind such strong aversion towards Hope among the show's fans?
Virgin River viewers don't hold back their frustration when writing about Hope on social media. To many, she is the most unlikable character they've come across in a long time. Fans find Hope rude, condescending, annoying, and nosy. They hate her habit of making everyone's business her own, even when other characters specifically ask her not to.
A poll created by a fan on Reddit found that a whopping 87% of the respondents find Hope extremely annoying.
The most popular comment under the poll states, "She is well beyond annoying. Juvenile, obnoxious, and without a single attractive feature. I'm a 60-year-old guy and can't imagine ever finding her of romantic interest."
Fans feel that everything Hope does, including her storylines and relationships, hurts the show.
She is so whiny, bratty, self-centred, and nosy that many viewers would rather have seen her killed off in the Season 3 car accident. Instead, the writers invented another health scare arc that made Hope's storyline even worse.
"I was really hoping they would've killed off Hope as season 3 kinda indicated. She is SO annoying! She is an old woman acting like a mad pre-teen. It's so strange!" a viewer recently wrote on Reddit.
Fans also think Annette O'Toole's acting is part of what makes Hope such a pain in the neck.
"I feel like Annette O'Toole's performance is more suited for the stage rather than TV. She is overreacting, and it would be great if this were a play, but it's a tv show, so it just comes across as awkward and over the top," a fan explained.