Virgin River season 3: Does Daniel Gillies return as Mark in season 3?

Virgin River season 3 has finally arrived and with the new episodes have come the returns of all of our beloved favorite characters as well as the introduction of several new faces who quickly won over the hearts of viewers.

As expected, all of the core members of the Virgin River are back for season 3 including Alexandra Breckenridge (Mel), Martin Henderson (Jack), Colin Lawrence (Preacher), Lauren Hammersley (Charmaine), Tim Matheson (Doc), Ben Hollingsworth (Brady), Grayson Maxwell Gurnsey (Ricky) and Sarah Dugdale (Lizzie).

Season 3 also welcomes the returns of several recurring players who each play a major role in the season such as Teryl Rothery’s Muriel, Marco Grazzini’s Mike, Lexa Doig’s Paige and Nicola Cavendish’s Connie.

This makes sense given the characters are all part of the Virgin River community and have played key roles in the storylines of the show’s first seasons. However, there is one key member of the cast who has only ever appeared via flashbacks which has left many to wonder whether he’ll be back: Daniel Gillies.

** Warning: Virgin River season 3 spoilers ahead **

Is Daniel Gillies in Virgin River season 3?

First introduced in Virgin River season 1, Daniel Gillies plays Mel’s husband Mark — who we discover died in season 1 following an automobile accident which Mel blamed herself for. Because his character is not alive in the present day, Gillies has only ever appeared as Mark in flashback sequences designed to help provide viewers with insights into Mel’s life before coming to Virgin River.

Given that season 2 found Mel ready to move on and embrace her feelings for Jack, it seemed as though we had seen the last of Mark and would no longer be revisiting Mel’s past as she instead looked ahead to a future with Jack.

Fortunately for fans of Gillies, that was not the case as Mark indeed returns in season 3 in a series of new flashbacks which tied into Mel’s storyline across season 3.

While Mark did not appear in as many episodes in season 3, we’re honestly grateful for the moments we did get as we’ll take any excuse for more Daniel Gillies on the show!

Virgin River season 3 is currently streaming on Netflix.