StudioCanal unveils the trailer for A Boy Called Christmas exploring the origin story of the holiday with an ensemble cast including Kristen Wiig. Based on Matt Haig's book of the same name, the plot acts as a reimagining of the story of Father Christmas in which a young boy named Nikolas sets off into the snowy white north in search of his father and searching to restore hope to his kingdom. The cast for the film is led by Henry Lawfull as Nikolas as well as Jim Broadbent, Zoe Colletti, Sally Hawkins, Michiel Huisman, Toby Jones, Maggie Smith, Stephen Merchant and Wiig.
Development on A Boy Called Christmas has been in the works for five years when Blueprint Pictures and StudioCanal first acquired the rights to Haig's novel and set Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again writer/director Ol Parker to pen the script. After remaining dormant for a few years, it wold gain new ground as Monster House director Gil Kenan was tapped to helm the project and its ensemble cast was put together with StudioCanal distributing internationally and Netflix set to distribute in the U.S. After nearly two years since wrapping production the film, the studio is looking to build anticipation for A Boy Called Christmas' upcoming release.
With just a few months remaining until its international release, StudioCanal has debuted the first trailer for A Boy Called Christmas. The video offers a look at the adventurous origin story of the titular holiday and its starry ensemble cast, including Kristen Wiig as an evil aunt right out of a fairytale. Check out the trailer below:
Click here to watch the trailer
The past few years have seen Netflix frequently explore different angles of the Christmas movie genre, with everything from the Kurt Russell-starring Christmas Chronicles franchise to the Oscar nominated Klaus. Much like A Boy Called Christmas, the latter film worked as an alternate origin story for the holiday, primarily focusing on Santa Claus versus the traditional Saint Nicholas tale. A Boy Called Christmas may be returning to the iconic Nikolas character, but the first trailer certainly points to a unique adventure and origin for the joy bringer.
With Christmas having already being established as existing before Nikolas' arrival, it should be interesting to see how A Boy Called Christmas brings the holiday to the rest of the world. In addition to its fantastical settings, the first trailer for the film offers a fun look at its ensemble cast, namely that of Sally Hawkins' villainous Mother Something and Wiig's antagonistic Aunt Carlotta. With the film set to hit theaters internationally on November 18, U.S. audiences should look forward to catching it on Netflix just in time for the holiday season.
Source: StudioCanal