'Virgin River' season 6 will pick up after the holiday special's cliffhanger — here's what to expect

• Netflix's hit drama "Virgin River" released its latest batch of episodes in November 2023.
• Mel's story ended with a cryptic message from her biological father.
• Here's what we know about the upcoming sixth season of "Virgin River."

Fans of Netflix's romantic drama "Virgin River" were left with yet another cliffhanger after the second part of season five — consisting of two holiday-themed episodes — premiered on November 30.

The holiday episodes primarily focus on the mystery surrounding Mel's (Alexandra Breckenridge) biological father Everett (John Allen Nelson), and ends with Everett announcing to Mel that he has something "important" to tell her. The episode concludes before viewers can hear what Everett has to say.

Here's what we know so far about season six.

When will 'Virgin River' season 6 premiere?

"Virgin River" was renewed for season six in May, well before the season five premiere. No release date has been set yet.

In an interview with Deadline, published shortly after the second half of season five premiered in November 2023, showrunner Patrick Sean Smith revealed that the writers had made good progress on the sixth season before the Writer's Guild of America strike was called in early May 2023. (The WGA strike ended in late September 2023.)

"We were halfway through when we broke for the strike. So coming back to it, we're finishing the second half," he told Deadline.

"But also, we have the privilege of getting some audience reactions to season five. So we're able to go back into the first half and do a little bit of course correcting. Not an overhaul at all, but it's just nice to know what resonated for the fans and what did what," Smith added.

Smith also told Deadline production on the sixth season was expected to start in the first half of 2024.

'Virgin River' season 6 will likely follow the same cast and the same ongoing storylines

In addition to Mel's dad drama, other plot points in the second half of "Virgin River" season five include Lizzie's (Sarah Dugdale) pregnancy, Preacher (Colin Lawrence) and Kaia's (Kandyse McClure) steamy romance, Brady's (Benjamin Hollingsworth) mysterious new girlfriend Lark (Elise Gatien), and more. Charmaine (Lauren Hammersley) also finally gives birth to her twins, after being pregnant for numerous seasons.

Smith and Breckenridge confirmed that season six will feature Mel and Jack (Martin Henderson) — and possibly their wedding — in their interviews with Deadline.

Smith teased what fans could expect from the coming season in his November 2023 interview with Deadline. Per Smith, Mel's relationship with her newfound biological father, as well as her surrogate father Doc (Tim Matheson), will be one of the show's focuses in season six, which implies that Nelson and Matheson are both returning.

The showrunner also teased updates on Lizzie and Denny (Kai Bradbury), Lark and Brady, and Preacher and Kaia in the next season, and said that the age gap between Cameron (Mark Ghanime) and Muriel (Teryl Rothery) would be further explored in season six as well.

In addition, Smith hinted that fans could expect to see more of Brie (Zibby Allen), Mike (Marco Grazzini), Calvin (David Cubitt), and Jimmy (Ian Tracey) in future episodes.

Elsewhere in the interview, Smith revealed that season six would feature another time jump from the holidays, where season five left off.

Will there be a 'Virgin River' season 7?

Netflix hasn't officially confirmed a seventh season, but Smith emphasized that the show isn't ending anytime soon as far as he's aware.

"There's no plans of wrapping anything up," Smith told Deadline. "I think, as long as these characters are living, there are always going to be stories to tell, and that's an incredible opportunity for any showrunner."