Buzz
In 1898, George Albert Smith made one of the earliest recorded Christmas films. This simple black-and-white clip showed Santa Claus descending a chimney to deliver gifts to children fast asleep. At just over a minute long, this silent film demonstrates how much the film industry has evolved since then.
Christmas films have grown into a huge industry today, with everything from major blockbuster movies to cozy TV films. Starting in July, Christmas decorations begin appearing in parts of British Columbia, Canada, as film crews descend to create dozens of festive movies for networks like Hallmark and Lifetime (Hallmark, in fact, produced 24 of them in 2019 alone). Streaming services such as Netflix are also getting involved in the Christmas movie craze.
As the holiday season arrives, with many people still staying home, it's the perfect opportunity to catch up on some classic Christmas films. So, let’s dive into 10 fascinating facts about Christmas movies that might surprise you.
10. John Candy Earned a Small Fee for His Role in Home Alone
Home Alone was created on a tight budget of just $18 million. Originally, Warner Brothers was leading the project, but when production costs shot up beyond the initial $10 million, they stepped away. John Hughes, the writer of Home Alone, foresaw this and quietly arranged for an alternate studio to take over. He secretly left a copy of the script at 20th Century Fox's headquarters. "Basically a screenplay was left somewhere so someone could pick it up. It was clandestinely delivered," explained producer Scott Rosenfelt. When Warner dropped the film, Hughes and his team were ready to move forward with a new studio backing them.
Financing remained a challenge throughout production. Daniel Stern, who played Marv, quit when he was asked to work two additional weeks without extra pay. After issues arose with his replacement, the studio convinced Stern to return. Meanwhile, John Candy was paid almost nothing for his role as Gus Polinski, the kind-hearted musician who helps reunite Kevin McCallister with his mother. Candy filmed his scenes in just one day and earned far less than the actor who played the pizza delivery guy ($414). Despite these hurdles, the film has since earned nearly half a billion dollars.
9. A Pregnancy Led to Die Hard's Creation
Bruce Willis wasn’t initially the studio’s top pick to play John McClane. Eager to cast a proven action star, they first approached big names like Sylvester Stallone and Harrison Ford. Even Clint Eastwood, who had the film rights in the ‘80s, was considered. The studio was so doubtful of Willis' box office appeal that they even marketed the film posters showcasing just the Nakatomi Plaza building.
At the time, Willis was starring in the hit TV show Moonlighting alongside Cybill Shepherd. The filming of Die Hard clashed with the show’s schedule, so Willis initially had to turn down the role. In 2013, Willis revealed how the situation changed: “Thank God Cybill Shepherd got pregnant. [Producer] Glenn Caron gave us off 11 weeks and I went to go do Die Hard.”
Willis endured a lot during his role as the tough, no-nonsense New York cop. He lost two-thirds of his hearing in one ear after firing blank rounds from a prop gun. On his first day on set, he performed a stunt involving an explosion on the rooftop of Nakatomi Plaza (which was actually just a five-story parking garage). The crew used bags of gasoline to simulate a massive building explosion, covering Willis in fire-resistant goo to protect him from the flames. The blast was so intense it nearly launched him off the airbag: "I was like, ‘Why would you shoot this scene first?’ And they were like, ‘If you were killed at the end of the movie, it would cost us a lot more money to reshoot the whole thing with another actor.’"
8. The Unlikely Success of It’s a Wonderful Life
Frank Capra’s *It’s a Wonderful Life* is now considered one of the greatest films ever made, but this wasn’t always the case. Upon its release in December 1946, the movie received mixed reviews and initially failed to make back its production costs. It quickly faded from public memory, only to be rediscovered many years later.
It turns out that films produced before 1968 fall under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1909. Under this law, any film automatically receives a 28-year copyright term, which can be extended for another 28 years if the copyright holder files for it. However, Republic Pictures missed the deadline for renewing the copyright and lost its rights to the film. This oversight allowed *It’s a Wonderful Life* to enter the public domain in 1978. This mistake led to television networks broadcasting the film during the holiday season, and after years of being shown royalty-free, it became synonymous with Christmas.
In 1993, Republic Pictures took the case to the Supreme Court, arguing that it still held copyright over the movie because it owned the rights to the story it was based on, *The Greatest Gift*. The court ruled in the studio's favor, and Republic subsequently granted NBC exclusive broadcasting rights to the film.
7. The Grinch and His Impact on Mental Health
The Grinch proved to be a taxing experience for everyone involved in the film. Jim Carrey’s first day in the Grinch makeup took over eight hours. Carrey was not pleased with the process and, in a fit of frustration, he kicked a hole in his trailer wall. To help him cope, the studio brought in a specialist who had trained CIA agents to withstand torture. In total, Carrey had to endure wearing the Grinch suit 100 times throughout production.
The tough process also affected the film’s makeup artist, Kazuhiro Tsuji. In 2017, Tsuji revealed that the production was delayed due to Carrey’s frequent meltdowns, during which he would disappear for long stretches of time. Though the atmosphere on set eventually improved, the makeup artist admitted he needed therapy sessions after working with Carrey.
6. Bill Murray's Struggles on the Set of Scrooged
In 1988, Bill Murray gave a comedic twist to *A Christmas Carol* in *Scrooged*. Murray played Frank Cross, a high-powered TV exec obsessed with network ratings. Like Dickens’ Ebenezer Scrooge, Frank is visited by three ghosts who teach him about the value of family and friendship at Christmas. One of the more memorable characters is the Ghost of Christmas Present (Carol Kane), a mischievous fairy who relentlessly slaps, pinches, and beats Frank into submission. Much of this slapstick violence was actually real.
Bill Murray made the mistake of telling Carol Kane to make the scenes as realistic as possible. "There’s a piece of skin that connects your lip with your gums and it was really pulled away," Murray recalls. "She really hurt me." Filming was temporarily halted to allow Murray’s lip to heal. One of his brothers, who also appeared in the film, found the experience especially entertaining: "[I]t was fun watching Carol Kane almost take his nose off with a toaster repeatedly."
The impact of the scenes took an emotional toll on Carol Kane as well. In an interview with the now-defunct *Starlog* magazine, Murray and director Richard Donner revealed that Kane would often break down in tears for up to 20 minutes after filming these intense moments.
5. The Reason Elf 2 Never Came to Be
Will Ferrell's role in *Elf* marked a significant milestone in his career, as it was his first major lead role in a film. The movie received rave reviews and went on to make an impressive $220 million. So, when news broke that a sequel was no longer happening, many were surprised. Officially, Ferrell claims he turned down the opportunity because he didn’t want to play “Buddy the middle-aged elf.”
James Caan, who played Buddy’s father in *Elf*, offered a different perspective on why *Elf 2* never materialized. According to Caan, "The director [Jon Favreau] and Will didn’t get along very well. Will wanted to do it, and he didn’t want the director. He had it in his contract. It was one of those things."
The studio offered Will Ferrell a staggering $29 million to reprise his role in the green tights, but Ferrell turned down the offer. In a 2006 interview, the comedy legend explained that he couldn’t bring himself to make a subpar sequel just for a quick payday.
4. The Incredible Effort Behind The Nightmare Before Christmas
To bring Jack Skellington and his eerie friends to life, *The Nightmare Before Christmas* used intricate stop-motion animation. Since the film was shot at 24 frames per second, animators had to move each character 24 times for every second of footage. With each minute of the film taking up to a week to complete, it’s no surprise that the entire production spanned three years.
Early in production, a team of sculptors worked tirelessly to create hundreds of detailed puppets. Each character mold had embedded movable skeletons, allowing animators to adjust them easily. Many of the characters' facial expressions were achieved by switching out model heads. For instance, Jack Skellington had around 400 different heads.
The studio built hundreds of model sets across 19 sound stages, and incorporated trap doors in each to give crew members space to reposition the puppets. This meticulous process was prone to setbacks, however. A single mistake with the lighting or camera work could cost hours of precious time. As supervising animator Eric Leighton explained, "If you have a problem with a frame, you have to re-photograph the entire thing."
3. TV Executives Didn’t Believe in A Charlie Brown Christmas
*A Charlie Brown Christmas* defied expectations when it aired in 1965, with nearly half of the TV-owning public tuning in. Today, it’s a cherished part of the American Christmas tradition. However, in the lead-up to its broadcast, TV executives were far from convinced. The special featured Charlie Brown expressing his Christmas blues, and other characters critiquing the commercialization of the holiday. The network executives were unimpressed, saying the material was "better suited to the comic page." CBS only agreed to air it because it was already listed in the TV guide.
The creators themselves were also uncertain. Bill Melendez, the animation director, believed the religious ending was too risky. In one iconic moment, a downcast Charlie Brown asks, "Isn’t there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?" Linus then steps forward and beautifully recites the Gospel of Luke, delivering the story of Christ’s birth.
It was Charles Schulz, the creator of the Peanuts gang, who insisted on including the Biblical passage. After converting to Christianity post-World War II, much of Schulz’s work was influenced by his faith. Despite Melendez’s concerns about the religious content—since most TV shows avoided such themes—Schulz told him, "Bill, if we don’t do it, who else can?" This bold decision paid off, and *A Charlie Brown Christmas* is now poised to celebrate its 55th anniversary.
2. The Missing Story Thread in Love Actually
*Love Actually* follows a group of everyday people as they prepare for the Christmas season. The film’s intertwining storylines turned into a box-office sensation after its 2003 release, grossing an impressive $250 million. However, one major storyline was ultimately cut from the final version of the film.
Richard Curtis, the writer and director of *Love Actually*, had originally penned a heartbreaking subplot about a lesbian headmistress who loses her partner to cancer. The audience first meets the headmistress when she chastises a student for a strange Christmas wish – to see a person’s farts. As the story unfolds, we discover the reason for her lack of humor: after school, she cares for her terminally ill partner, Geraldine.
"I was really sorry to lose this," Curtis admitted. The well-known writer explained that the subplot was removed because one of the scenes didn’t quite fit after the editing process. He also discussed the abruptness of Geraldine’s death, which is only briefly referenced before the film reaches its conclusion.
1. The Reshot Ending of White Christmas for Royalty
The 1950s marked the Golden Age of Television, as TV sets began filling living rooms across America. This shift caused concern among movie executives, who noticed that many of their top stars were moving to television. To draw audiences back into theaters, new technologies like VistaVision were introduced. Released in 1954, *White Christmas* was one of the first films to use VistaVision, offering a richer color palette and a sharper widescreen image. The gamble paid off: the film became a box office sensation, earning over $12 million and receiving glowing reviews.
*White Christmas* follows two movie producers, Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye, who work to rescue their former army buddy's struggling inn. To help save the business, they organize a stage show and invite their old comrades to attend. The film culminates in an iconic closing number where Crosby and Kaye perform the famous song, *White Christmas*.
Rosemary Clooney, who played Crosby’s romantic interest (and is George Clooney’s aunt), recalls that the cast had just completed filming the musical finale when director Michael Curtiz asked them to redo the entire scene. His reasoning? He wanted to impress some very important visitors— the king and queen of Greece. However, Crosby wasn’t particularly thrilled with the idea.
"Michael Curtiz said, 'The king and queen of Greece are coming to visit the set, and I want to pretend that we’re shooting this over again,'" Clooney shared. "I overheard Bing whispering, 'Not me.' So, I asked, 'Where are you going?' And he replied, 'Golf.'"
