Santa Claus has been embodied in film many, many times. It can be hard to keep track of all the different depictions of Santa. Some movies include the Christmas figure as a peripheral character, but others focus almost entirely on his life and career in the North Pole.
Both animated and live-action films have offered creative Santa origin stories. The fanciful tales are something to look forward to every season. It's amazing how Hollywood so readily reinvents Santa Claus, as in these ten movies.
Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town (1970)
Santa Claus is Comin' to Town is the definitive animated Santa story. The classic Rankin/Bass special starts Kris Kringle's journey at birth, when he is orphaned and carried to the land of Sombertown. The baby, whose tag simply reads "Claus," is rejected by the ruling Burgermeister and finds his way to the Kringles' workshop on the other side of the mountain. He trains under Tanta Kringle and becomes a gifted toymaker. Kris (iconically voiced by Mickey Rooney) starts delivering toys illegally, finds the love of his life, gets captured, is freed, and grows old with Mrs. Claus. Narrated by Fred Astaire, this special is a piece of Christmas history. It celebrates its fiftieth anniversary in December 2020.
The Life And Adventures Of Santa Claus (1985)
Several years later, Rankin/Bass tried a new angle for Santa's lineage. The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus is based on L. Frank Baum's book of the same name. The movie takes on a much more mythical aura, with future Santa living in a forest under the watch of an immortal woodsman and a lion. After this 1985 work, the tale was told again in a completely separate animated version in 2000.
The Christmas Chronicles 1 & 2 (2018 & 2020)
The Christmas Chronicles films are creative Netflix Originals that put quite a twist on the traditional Santa look. Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn aren't the typical Mr. and Mrs. Claus. Santa, especially, has a rock and roll look about him. The edgy ensemble is cemented by his performance at the jail cell in the first movie.
There are some fun clues to North Pole culture in the first movie (like animalistic elves that actually speak Elvish), but the sequel dives further into Santa's actual origins. The Christmas Chronicles 2 includes the Christian St. Nicholas but really simplifies his story. The movie also further develops the world of the North Pole, which is powered by the Star of Bethlehem.
Santa Claus: The Movie (1985)
Though this 1985 Christmas movie might not be an annual tradition for everyone, it also provides a backstory for Santa. Claus is a toymaker in a small village who winds up at the North Pole and becomes Santa with the help of an elf expert named Patch. Patch might ruin Christmas with a new toymaking job, but at least he helps Claus fulfill his calling.
Fred Claus (2007)
Fred Claus brought an eccentric North Pole story to the 2000s. Fred and Nicholas Claus (modern-day Santa) are complete opposites, with Nick being the angel and Fred being the troublemaker. Nick has to help Fred out of some big trouble, but a North Pole job is required for Fred to pay his dues. When Nick is injured, Fred steps in and delivers toys in his own unique way. This movie shows that Santa might have a wild brother who is able to change for the better.
Klaus (2019)
Directed by Sergio Pablos, this unique animated Netflix Original begins Santa's journey as a carpenter and toymaker. Klaus's fictional village of Smeerenburg is based on a Norwegian community including the indigenous Sami people. With the help of Jesper, who is sent to Smeerenburg to be a mailman, Klaus transforms the town with joy and toys. Jesper convinces the children to write Klaus letters asking for toys, thus creating the Santa figure and simultaneously saving the postal service.
Noelle (2019)
Noelle is a Disney+ original movie that puts Santa's daughter in charge of things. The revelation here deals with the Santa inheritance pecking order. Noelle's brother, Nick, is supposed to take his dad's place when the older man passes on, and that's just the way it is.
Nick becomes overwhelmed with the expectations of the job and would rather be in yoga class. Noelle seizes the opportunity to take over Kris Kringle's duties and carves out a new place for herself at the North Pole.
Santa Baby (2006)
Before Anna Kendrick took the notoriety for being Santa's daughter, Jenny McCarthy did it in the Santa Baby movies as Mary. Mary is the typical work-obsessed businesswoman. Her focus is on her career, but she is unexpectedly called back to the North Pole when her dad gets sick. Mary uses her business savvy to reorganize the North Pole's systems and even finds love in the process. This movie presents the idea that Santa can have children who live lives totally removed from the mystery of the North Pole -- until they must come home, that is.
Ernest Saves Christmas (1988)
Ernest Saves Christmas is a 1980s movie that allows Santa Claus to look for his own successor. A taxi driver named Ernest helps Santa make the journey to pass the baton. Ernest and a teenage girl must help Santa out of some trouble in this comedic Christmas tale. It's interesting to see a version of the mythology in which Santa chooses a replacement, and the movie also reveals that Santa is 151 years old at the time of this changeover.
The Santa Clause (1994)
The Santa Clause is the best Santa story of the 1990s. The movie reveals that Santa typically works until he dies, and any old guy who puts on the suit will become the next Santa. Scott Calvin has no idea what he is in for when he throws on that red coat. He and his son, Charlie, go on the adventure of their lives and find out that it isn't going to end. The film's imagining of the North Pole is memorable and aesthetically pleasing, and this first story opened the door for two sequels with additional Santa details.