A Christmas Story Christmas continues Ralphie's story, resulting in the Christmas Story 2022 sequel taking place several decades later. The original Christmas classic film directed by Bob Clark has now become a somewhat unexpected beginning to a franchise. HBO Max is now the home to a new A Christmas Story sequel that brings back many of the original cast members nearly 40 years after the first film was released in 1983. The passage of time connects directly to the story that A Christmas Story Christmas wants to tell.
To continue Ralphie Parker's story, the A Christmas Story 2022 sequel takes place in December 1973. The movie takes place firmly over the span of about a week, as Ralphie's dad dies on December 19, 1973, and the movie ends on Christmas Day of the same year. This means that A Christmas Story Christmas is set roughly 33 or 34 years after the original movie. There are conflicting pieces of evidence for when A Christmas Story takes place, but the movie either takes place in December 1939 or December 1940. Either way, the 2022 sequel takes place over 30 years after Peter Billingsley starred in A Christmas Story.
Why A Christmas Story Christmas Is Set So Long After The First Movie
It was necessary for A Christmas Story Christmas to be set so long after the first movie. The sequel's release comes 39 years after the original's. Since A Christmas Story's 2022 sequel wanted to use Peter Billingsley's Ralphie and other cast members from the first film, having such a large passage of time was the only option. The sequel's decision to close the gap between how much time has passed between installments and the characters' lives is not terribly consequential and leaves room for more A Christmas Story sequels to happen if the 2022 film is a hit.
Having A Christmas Story Christmas take place over 30 years after A Christmas Story does allow the movie to closely mirror Ralphie's life as an adult with that of Ralphie's dad. Ralphie is now married with two kids, just like his Old Man was during the original. His dad's passing means Ralphie must literally try to replace his father at certain points, while he also mirrors his actions when trying to barter for a real Christmas tree, fix the car, and more.
Why It Took So Long To Make A True Christmas Story Legacy Sequel
The release of A Christmas Story Christmas makes it the first true legacy sequel, but there were several attempts to continue the story before. Bob Clark returned to direct My Summer Story in 1994, which saw Kieran Culkin play Ralphie. 2012 also saw the straight-to-DVD release of A Christmas Story 2, which followed Ralphie as a 15-year-old and ignored the events of the summer sequel. The difficulty with making a true legacy sequel came with the cast's ages, forcing decades to pass before Billingsley and others could realistically return in A Christmas Story Christmas.