What does this mean? We knew, as viewers, that Mel and her late husband Mark had frozen embryos available, and we knew that Mel thought Jack didn't want another child (given that he's already expecting twins and revving up for a giant custody battle with Charmaine and Todd). We also knew that Mel and Jack broke up for a couple of episodes when Jack wasn't sure he could give Mel what she wanted, which is presumably when she underwent IVF. Now, Mel is pregnant, just as she wanted—but in another twist, it turns out Jack does want to have a baby with her (he was just confused!), and yet the baby she's carrying may well be biologically Mark's child.
So, who is the father of Mel's baby?
The big question! And one that will no doubt hover over season four, especially since Jack is already going through a lot. He's still suffering from PTSD from his service, which no doubt was exacerbated by being shot in his own bar—we still don't know who did that, even though Jack and the police think it's Brady—and he has twins on the way with ex-girlfriend Charmaine, who wants Jack out of the picture so she can raise the twins with her new husband Todd. That's three children on the way, if we're counting.
As for Henderson, who plays Jack, he was as taken aback as the rest of us. He told (opens in new tab)TV Line (opens in new tab) his initial reaction was: "Dude!", adding: "It’s obviously such a giant bombshell...It’s nice and juicy, but it’s a big pill to swallow."
Breckenridge, for her part, told TV Line she had to spend some time trying to understand Mel's motivations. "It makes more sense to me at the end...While I was going through it, I was like, ‘What is Mel doing? This is a crazy thing to do!’" She added: "It’s a huge thing for a person to do, and it shows just how much she wants to become a mother. When you’re under emotional duress, you act in ways you wouldn’t normally."
Virgin River fans finally found out who the father of Mel Monroe's unborn baby is, following the release of the show's fourth season on Netflix.
Mel (played by Alexandra Breckenridge) was revealed to be pregnant at the end of season 3 of Virgin River. Although she was in a relationship with Jack Sheridan (Martin Henderson) when her pregnancy was announced, they had been broken up in previous episodes which saw Mel travel to Los Angeles to a fertility clinic where the embryos she and her late husband Mark (Daniel Gillies) had frozen were being held.
Mel, Jack and Virgin River fans were all left in the dark about whether Jack or Mark was the father of the baby.
The paternity has now been confirmed, and it gives a major hint at how season 5 of Virgin River, which is expected to be released next summer, might look for the show's beloved couple.
Newsweek has everything you need to know about the father of Mel's baby on Virgin River.
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Who is the father of Mel's baby on Virgin River?
Virgin River fans were kept waiting until the very last episode of season 4, but they were finally told who the father of Mel's baby is.
After initially not wanting to do a paternity test, Mel was forced to find out the father of her baby after the mother of her late husband threatened to fight her for custody of the child, thinking it was Mark's.
While away on a weekend trip, Mel received an email that confirmed that Jack is indeed the father of her baby, and revealed that they are expecting a little girl.
Jack then proposed to Mel, which he had originally planned to do last season but was interrupted by Mel's pregnancy bombshell, and she said yes.
What else happened in Virgin River season 4?
Season 4 of Virgin River featured lots of other storylines besides Mel's paternity dilemma, and Jack was facing more than one baby drama. Jack's ex Charmaine Roberts (Lauren Hammersley) was expecting twins and had told Jack that he was the father. But during the dramatic delivery at the end of season 4, she revealed that Jack was not in fact the father of her babies.
Actor Breckenridge has revealed how she thinks this twist will impact Jack's storyline for Season 5. She told TV Line: "Being betrayed on such a massive scale has to come with anger and hurt. He invested himself emotionally and mentally and financially in having these babies. He was really committed. It's going to be hard, I think, for Jack to let that go."
Elsewhere, Doc's mysterious grandson, Denny, was confirmed to be suffering from Huntington's disease after he was seen rifling through his grandfather's medical cabinet and struggling with memory. Brady was also seen in a troubling situation after being sucked back into a life of crime by Melissa Montgomery, the woman who had paid his bail to get him out of jail. Melissa has been able to manipulate Brady, using his feelings for Brie against him, to coerce him into returning to the criminal world he was trying to leave behind.