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Ben Stiller makes a strong acting comeback by starring in two of the most surprising 2024 Christmas movies, Nutcrackers and Dear Santa. Released in the same week as Lindsay Lohan’s Our Little Secret (Netflix) and Hallmark’s Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story, Stiller’s offbeat Christmas movies stand out among a 2024 slate of holiday rom-coms and classic tales like Disney’s An Almost Christmas Story. Every year, only a few films offer a twist to the beloved genre, with some even becoming unusual Christmas movies to watch over the holidays.
Dear Santa’s reviews praise its shockingly heartfelt premise, as it replaces Santa with Satan and has him grant three wishes to an awkward tween, Liam (Robert Timothy Smith). Dear Santa has a great cast, featuring Jack Black as the hilarious demon and giving Stiller one of his most bizarre roles. Nutcrackers’ cast of characters are just as alluring, putting Ben Stiller in the city-to-small-town Christmas trope as he becomes his rambunctious nephews’ reluctant guardian. Both 2024 unconventional Christmas movies benefit from Ben Stiller’s comedic style, elevating them to instant classics.
Nutcrackers & Dear Santa Both Involve Ben Stiller
Ben Stiller Returns To His Signature Comedic Style In Nutcrackers & Dear Santa
Seven years after starring in The Meyerowitz Stories, the Nutcrackers’ script convinced Ben Stiller to return to the protagonist’s seat. The actor plays Mike, a businessman forced to foster his farming nephews until they find a permanent home. Though the movie can be predictable at times, reviews for Nutcrackers highlight the dysfunctional family dynamic as one of its unique elements. The film mixes its unusual comedy with affecting moments of grief and compassion by having Stiller play off of its amateur child actors’ real sibling bond.
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On the other hand, Stiller makes an uncredited apparition in Dear Santa that brilliantly flips the narrative’s rules with great results. As the afflicted Liam debates whether to continue accepting Satan’s help to change his unlucky circumstances, the movie reveals the mythical character is actually Asmodeus, a demon tasked with recruiting souls for the devil. Jack Black reunites with Ben Stiller in Dear Santa’s funniest scene, having Stiller play an eccentric Lucifer who reprimands Asmodeus and fires him from the demon workforce — provoking the latter to go rogue.
Nutcrackers & Dear Santa Are Two Original Christmas Movies Released In 2024
Nutcrackers & Dear Santa Mark A Success For Hulu And Paramount+
After 2020 saw the release of the first LGBT+ studio holiday rom-com, Happiest Season, and the dystopian parody, The Binge, Hulu’s Nutcrackers continues leading the production of Christmas movies with a twist. With its recent Christmas original film, the studio ventures into seemingly familiar territory, centering on the workaholic parent-neglected child dynamic. The overdone plot, however, feels fitting and natural to Hulu’s original story and successfully builds toward Nutcrackers’ tear-inducing ending, which leaves a lingering warmth and just the perfect amount of holiday spirit.
The two 2024 Christmas movies advance the quality of their respective studios’ original content, promising exciting future projects for Stiller, Hulu and Paramount+.
Although Paramount+ shines with its TV shows — such as School Spirits, Landman, and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds — the streamer sets a successful precedent with its first original Christmas movie. Dear Santa’s talented actors take its bizarre premise to another level, offering an unforgettable holiday comedy with an unusually emotional core. Like Nutcrackers, Dear Santa propels Ben Stiller’s return to his signature comedy. The two 2024 Christmas movies advance the quality of their respective studios’ original content, promising exciting future projects for Stiller, Hulu, and Paramount+.
Nutcrackers is a family drama film by director David Gordon Green and starring Ben Stiller. Stiller plays Mike, who, after his siblings pass away in a tragic car accident, heads to the heart of Ohio to care for his nephews in the aftermath. Though initially hesitant, Mike realizes they may be the family he’s always needed.
- Director
- David Gordon Green
- Release Date
- November 29, 2024
- Writers
- Leland Douglas
- Runtime
- 104 Minutes
Due to a mix-up, young Liam, a dyslexic 6th grader, sends a letter to Satan instead of Santa, leading Satan to appear at his door, delighted by his first-ever fan letter and interested in acquiring a portion of Liam’s soul.
- Director
- Bobby Farrelly
- Release Date
- November 25, 2024
- Writers
- Ricky Blitt , Peter Farrelly , Dan Ewen
- Cast
- Jack Black , Robert Timothy Smith , Brianne Howey , Hayes MacArthur , Keegan-Michael Key , Post Malone , P.J. Byrne , Jaden Carson Baker , Kai Cech
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