That Christmas is an animated Netflix movie that will bring to life Richard Curtis’ much-loved children’s book trilogy, and it boasts an impressive voice cast, including Succession star Brian Cox as Santa alongside Bill Nighy, Rhys Darby, Guz Khan, Jodie Whittaker, Fiona Shaw, Sindhu Vee, Lolly Adefope and Katherine Parkinson.
This festive comedy movie follows a series of intertwined tales of family and friends with themes such as loneliness, love, a fallible Santa and an enormous amount of turkeys. Set in a charming seaside town, we'll see what happens when the residents’ usual Christmases are turned upside down.
“This has been the most amazing adventure, my first animated film,” says writer Richard Curtis. “It’s been especially exciting to see the whole world I imagined come to life beyond my wildest dreams — and populated by a dream bunch of actors, their wonderful voices turned into such rich and funny characters.”
Here’s everything we know about the Netflix movie That Christmas…
That Christmas release date
That Christmas premieres worldwide on Netflix from Wednesday December 4 2024, so just in time for the festive season. That means it may give Richard Curtis’ yuletide favourite Love Actually a run for its money.
Is there a trailer?
Yes a That Christmas trailer has arrived the build-up to the festive season so you can hear Brian Cox as Santa. Take a look below...
That Christmas plot
That Christmas connects several different stories of family and friends in the run-up to the big day. The synopsis for the book tells us ‘Christmas is the same every year, isn't it? Same food, same routine, same visiting the neighbours and going for a walk. Except for the year of That Christmas. Find out what happens when traditions are upturned, when chaos reigns, and what's really important when people come together’.
That Christmas cast
The voice cast behind That Christmas includes Succession’s Brian Cox who voices Santa while Love Actually’s Bill Nighy (The Beautiful Game, Joy) is a character called Bill. Killing Eve’s Fiona Shaw is Ms Trapper and former Doctor Who star Jodie Whittaker is Mrs. Williams.
Mr Chop (Dermot O'Leary) and Mr Hack (Jordan North) run the Christmas tree stall in winter, trim hedges in the summer and spend a little too much time in the pub in spring and autumn!
Rhys Darby, Guz Khan, Paul Kaye, Katherine Parkinson, Lolly Adefope, Rosie Cavaliero, Sindhu Vee, Andy Nyman,Alex Macqueen, India Brown, Zazie Hayhurst, Sienna Sayer, Jack Wisniewski, Rosie Cavaliero, Kuhu Agarwal, Bronte Smith, Freddie Spry, and Ava Talbot also lend their voices to the film.
Exclusive interview with Richard Curtis on That Christmas
Here, in an exclusive interview, Richard Curtis, 68, who also penned box-office hits Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) and Notting Hill (1999), tells WTW writer Victoria Wilson what to expect from That Christmas…
What do you enjoy most about making films set around this time of year, Richard?
Richard Curtis says: "For me, Christmas is the definitive annual ‘plot’ deadline. In Love Actually, Christmas is the moment by which everybody must have a boyfriend or girlfriend. In this story, there are twin sisters – one naughty and one nice – whose deadline is, ‘Is Santa gonna deliver?’ Then there’s a teen who must follow her parents’ rules for 24 hours, and a boy whose divorcee mum works all hours and he misses dad – that deadline is, ‘Does dad turn up for Christmas?’
How did you find the process of turning your book trilogy into an animated movie?
"I was intrigued by, ‘What can we do that’s different from what I’ve done before?’ So while our director, Simon Otto, was trying to make That Christmas a ‘Richard Curtis film’, I was trying to make it less like one! I was dazzled by how quickly animation can do emotion – you could get those little faces to be happy, then disappointed, then afraid, all in a split second."
For many people, watching Love Actually has become a Christmas tradition. Are you hoping for That Christmas to have a similar impact?
"It would be lovely if it did. I think people watch Love Actually repeatedly because, with all the different stories, you don’t always remember what’s going to happen next. That Christmas, with its three stories, also has that charm, so I love the thought that people might watch it again and again! I hope that people will come away from this film believing that Christmas is a time to be with, and be understanding of, the ones you love."
Finally, do you have any standout memories from your own Christmases while growing up?
"Yes – the agony of every family Christmas was always the clash between Christmas lunch, served at 1.30pm, and the Top of the Pops Christmas special, which started at 2pm! I’d always want to ‘help out’, saying, ‘You relax, Mum, I can pop to the kitchen to get some salt’, just so I could sneakily watch Elton John singing Step Into Christmas on TV! Growing up in Sweden, Christmas was always magical because of the snow. It’s an unrealistically snowy Christmas in this movie – I live in Suffolk now and it hasn’t snowed that much there in a while!"
Exclusive interview with Fiona Shaw on That Christmas
BAFTA-winning actor and Bad Sisters, Killing Eve and True Detective star Fiona Shaw voices a strict school teacher Ms Tapper. He she reveals to WTW writer Victoria Wilson a little more...
Ms Trapper might be dubbed ‘a terrifying old trout’ in That Christmas, but Fiona believes there’s more to her character than meets the eye…
Fiona Shaw says: "Ms Trapper is presented as the teacher who kids might be frightened of, but, actually, she’s a very nice person. She is lonely and full of loss, and she’s set to have a very dull Christmas on her own, just looking back at old memories. Christmas often fails to live up to expectations, but this film shows how, by facing challenges in your life, good things can emerge.’"
The tight-knit community in Wellington-on-Sea reminds Fiona of the one in her native Ireland.
"I come from a country where people are very social at this time of year. About 10 years ago, there was a flood and all the electricity went out. We had no lights, only candles and the fire, and food was cooked elsewhere and brought to us. It was quite like a Victorian Christmas and really good fun!"
Exclusive interview with Rhys Darby on voicing Mr McNutt
Known for his energetic comedy routines, Our Flag Means Death star Rhys Darby threw himself into his vocal portrayal of Mr McNutt. "The character is quite physical, so I did lots of “yelps” and vocal gymnastics,’ explains the actor, 50, who also had a role in the 2009 Richard Curtis comedy-drama movie The Boat That Rocked.
"Mr McNutt is also the king of optimism, who drives a cool van that all the local parents end up in, to go off on an adventure. It’s this positive energy the others need as they try to get out of the trouble they run into thanks to this storm of the century.
"There’s danger and bizarre moments but, mostly, Richard Curtis’ films remind us how we can all be our best"
The story’s charming setting of Wellington-on-Sea is inspired by Richard’s birthplace – the New Zealand’s capital city Wellington, a place proud Kiwi Rhys knows very well… "I’ve been there many times,’ he says. ‘It’s very windy and quite a 'weathery'place, so rather fitting for this movie. It’s a nice little nod to New Zealand."
Ed Sheeran on his music in That Christmas
Ed Sheeran has written and recorded an original song for That Christmas. The track is called Under The Tree.
Ed Sheeran says: “I’ve been mates with Richard Curtis for years, and we’ve done a load of fun work for charity, and then both were heavily involved in the movie Yesterday. He came to me two years ago to play me the rough of That Christmas. It was just sketches and voices, but it blew me away. So emotional, yet so heartwarmingly funny, like all Richard Curtis movies. I find since having kids, there’s a real lack of great animated children’s Christmas movies, so I thought this was such an amazing thing to make and put into the world. The scene that we wrote this song for is so heartbreaking, but so real for many people at Christmas spending it without the ones they love, for so many reasons. I got to work with my older brother on this which is such a rarity and a gift to work so closely with my only sibling, it felt so good to create something my children would watch, with their uncle, based in the country they live in. I find it mad that there isn’t more animated Christmas films for kids, but this is going to become a holiday staple, at least in our household. Hope everyone loves it, and enjoys the song, we had such a great time creating it.”
All about the That Christmas book trilogy by Richard Curtis
Richard Curtis’ trilogy of children’s books The Empty Stocking, Snow Day and That Christmas all tell of family stories taking place during the festive season.
The Empty Stocking follows twins Sam and Charlie. They are worried because Charlie has been very naughty this year and it’s unlikely she’ll get anything in her stocking. But then Santa makes a big mistake.
Snow Day sees Danny turn up at school only to find it deserted, except for his least favourite teacher.
That Christmas shows what happens when Christmas traditions fall apart and chaos reigns. The stories were all illustrated by the award-winning artist Rebecca Cobb.
All about Richard Curtis
Director and scriptwriter Richard Curtis has a number of hit movies to his name, including Four Weddings and a Funeral, Love Actually, Notting Hill, Yesterday and Mr Bean. He also wrote About Time, Genie, The Boat That Rocked and the hit 1980s TV comedy series Blackadder. He also wrote the screenplays for Bridget Jones’s Diary, War Horse and Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again.
Behind the scenes and more on That Christmas
Richard Curtis co-wrote the script of That Christmas with Peter Souter, and the director is Simon Otto. The festive feature boasts a score from Academy Award® and BAFTA®-nominated composer John Powell (How To Train Your Dragon trilogy, Happy Feet, Shrek). The Animation is produced by Locksmith Animation with animation production from DNEG.
“This movie tells the story of a troubled Christmas, forcing a group of kids and parents to accept that you can’t always plan life,” director Simon Otto revealed. “Life is chaotic, relationships are messy, and traditions sometimes must be re-evaluated. And regardless of whether you celebrate Christmas or not, I hope that audiences will laugh at the family dynamics and identify with the universal truth behind most traditions: It’s ultimately not about the rules and the expectations we put on these events — we tend to forget that what really matters is that we can be together with our loved ones.”
