That Christmas is a 2024 British animated Christmas fantasy comedy film produced by Locksmith Animation and DNEG Animation, and directed by Simon Otto in his directorial debut. Written by Richard Curtis and Peter Souter, it follows entwined storylines based on short stories from That Christmas and Other Stories by Curtis and illustrator Rebecca Cobb. The voice cast features Brian Cox, Fiona Shaw, Jodie Whittaker and Bill Nighy. That Christmas premiered at the BFI London Film Festival on 19 October 2024, and was released on Netflix on 4 December 2024. It received mixed reviews from critics.

Plot

That Christmas follows a series of entwined tales about love and loneliness, family and friends, and Santa Claus making a big mistake, not to mention an enormous number of turkeys!

Cast

Brian Cox as Santa Claus Fiona Shaw as Mrs. Trapper Jodie Whittaker as Mrs. Williams Lolly Adefope as Mrs. McNutt Alex Macqueen as Mr. Forrest Katherine Parkinson as Mrs. Forrest Sindhu Vee as Mrs. Mulji India Brown as Bernadette "Bernie" McNutt Zazie Hayhurst as Sam Beccles Sienna Sayer as Charlie Beccles Jack Wisniewski as Danny Williams Rosie Cavaliero as Mrs. Beccles Paul Kaye as Farmer Yirrell Guz Khan as Dasher Andy Nyman as Mr. Beccles Kuhu Agarwal as Nisha Mulji Bronte Smith as Eve "Evie" McNutt Freddie Spry as Teddy Forrest Ava Talbot as Scarlett Forrest Bill Nighy as Lighthouse Bill Rhys Darby as Mr. McNutt Deborah Findlay as Mrs. Horton Alicia Davies as a weather person Jordan North and Dermot O'Leary as Mr. Hack and Mr. Chop in cameo appearances Jordan North and Dermot O'Leary also do all the additional voices in the film with Isabella Hopkins, Luke Jameson, Mary Moss and the film's director Simon Otto.

Production

In November 2019, it was announced That Locksmith Animation was developing The Empty Stocking, an animated feature film based on the children's Christmas book trilogy That Christmas and Other Stories written by Richard Curtis. In June 2021, Locksmith announced That Simon Otto would be directing the film, in his directorial debut, which had been retitled That Christmas. In May 2022, Locksmith confirmed That it awarded the digital production of the film to DNEG Animation, following their collaboration on Locksmith’s first animated feature film Ron's Gone Wrong (2021). In June 2022, That Christmas was unveiled as part of Netflix's slate of animated films with the first look of the film. On March 20, 2024, Brian Cox, Fiona Shaw, Jodie Whittaker and Bill Nighy were announced to star in the film.

Music

In November 2023, it was announced That John Powell would compose the film's musical score. In August 2024, it was announced That English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran would write and contribute a song for the film, titled "Under the Tree". Sheeran's song was released as a digital single on November 26, 2024. A separate album containing John Powell's score was released digitally on December 4, 2024.

Release

= Premiere and release

= That Christmas premiered at the BFI London Film Festival on October 19, 2024, and was released on Netflix on December 4, 2024. The film was originally set to be theatrically released by 20th Century Fox as part of a deal with Locksmith Animation until Disney's acquisition of the studio in 2019. After leaving Fox and announcing a new deal with Warner Bros. Pictures and Warner Animation Group in October 2019, the film was originally expected to be theatrically released by the studio, but in June 2022, Netflix took over the worldwide distribution rights.

Reception

= Critical response

= On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 64% of 39 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.7/10. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 60 out of 100, based on 13 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.

= Accolades

= Powell was nominated for a HMMA Award for Best Original Score in an Animated Film.

See also

List of Christmas films Santa Claus in film

References

External links

That Christmas on Netflix That Christmas at IMDb