Over the years there have been many Christmas movies, telling their own festive tales, however, there is one individual in particular that has had a more extensive career on the silver screen than any other. He sees you when you’re sleeping, he knows when you’re awake, he knows if you’ve been bad or good… If you still haven’t got it, it’s Santa Claus, not just some creepy stalker who watches you sleep.
Anyway, given that it’s the season to be jolly, we thought we’d take a look at the jolliest one of them all. So, without further ado here is a list of the most memorable interpretations of Father Christmas on the big screen.
Huge Santa – ‘Jingle All The Way’
After trying to find a Turbo Man action figure for his son on Christmas Eve, Hal (Arnold Schwarzenegger) bumps into a shopping mall Santa (Jim Belushi) who offers to help him out. After being taken to a warehouse filled with numerous Santa’s of different shapes and sizes, things get messy when Hal realizes things aren’t quite “kosher”.
However, there’s one Santa impersonator that stands out the most, a big musclebound Santa (Paul Wight AKA Big Show) who towers over his peers. He doesn’t hold a candle to the real deal, but one thing’s for sure, he could definitely “deck your halls, bub”.
North – ‘Rise of the Guardians’
The story sees North AKA Santa Claus (Alec Baldwin) and his fellow guardians (the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy etc) recruit an individual by the name of, Jack Frost in a bid to aid their fight against the boogeyman and protect the children of the world.
In short, North is a badass Russian interpretation of Father Christmas who can handle a sword, what’s not to love?
Chris – ‘Fatman’
Years of government interference with Christmas production have left us with this bitter and cynical Santa Claus AKA Chris (Mel Gibson).
Now, some kids don’t always learn their lesson after winding up on the naughty list, and that’s certainly the case with Billy (Chance Hurstfield). After receiving a lump of coal in his stocking, instead of getting good, he decides to get even and hires a hitman to take out this old grump of a Saint Nick!
As if his morbid outlook – after being chewed out over the years – wasn’t enough, along with fighting to save his dwindling business now, Chris also has to fight for his life!
Santa – ‘Violent Night’
Even though inflicting any sort of pain on jolly old Saint Nick is the last thing you’d want to do, this particular Santa (David Harbour) is someone you definitely don’t want to mess with.
Imagine Father Christmas as an 80s action hero and you’ll pretty much have Violent Night’s interpretation. However, although he pulls no punches when it comes to executing mercenaries with his “season beatings”, his priority is pretty much like every other Santa Claus… saving Christmas.
Santa – ‘Arthur Christmas’
Following the story of several Claus’, we have the man himself Santa (Jim Broadbent), his father, Grandsanta (Bill Nighy) and his two sons, Steve (Hugh Laurie) and Arthur (James McAvoy).
After 70 years of delivering presents around the world, Santa still isn’t ready to hand over the reins just yet and announces he will be looking forward to the 71st year. Due to his clumsiness, Arthur is responsible for answering the letters for Santa, but nothing more.
However, after a present gets misplaced and goes undelivered to a child one Christmas Eve, Arthur – with the help of Grandsanta – takes it upon himself to make sure the child gets their present, only, it isn’t an easy trip that’s for sure.
Santa Claus may not be front and centre for this tale, but he definitely shows up when needed most!
Nick Claus – ‘Fred Claus’
Practically a saint from a young age we have one of the jolliest, kindest, most giving individuals in existence, Nicholas Claus AKA Santa. However, this causes quite a feud between him and his bitter older sibling, Fred. Forever living in his brother’s shadow, Fred grows up to despise him and the Christmas holiday.
Just when all seems lost – after Nick is unable to make his yearly deliveries due to ill health – Fred steps up to the plate and helps his brother in his hour of need, ensuring that everyone has a very merry Christmas.
Not to mention, Nick cheers up a very grumpy efficiency inspector by gifting him a Superman cape, whatta guy!
Santa – ‘Elf’
After accidentally bringing a baby stow away to the North Pole one Christmas Eve, Santa (Ed Asner) decides to entrust the human child, Buddy (Will Ferrell), to one of his elves. It’s not long before Buddy realizes he’s a lot greater in size than his peers and embarks to the Big Apple to find his real father.
It just goes to show how much of a positive impact Saint Nick has had on Buddy’s life, given how much he loses it, when mistaking a shopping mall Santa for the real deal. Come Christmas Eve, Santa bumps into Buddy in NYC in great peril as there isn’t enough Christmas spirit to power his sleigh. Thankfully, Buddy reignites the festive cheer in everyone’s hearts and ensures the safety of Christmas.
Santa Claus – ‘The Polar Express’
The Polar Express is a Christmas story about a young boy (Tom Hanks) on his trip to the North Pole via a festively enchanted locomotive. Although numerous magical characters appear along the boy’s travels, you just can’t beat the man himself, Santa Claus (also Tom Hanks).
And they certainly save the best for last, teasing the infamous, jolly figure here and there before showing him in all his entirety, allowing the young boy and his friends to have the best Christmas ever.
Santa – ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’
After discovering the existence of Christmas, Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon/Danny Elfman), the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, takes it upon himself to hijack the holiday and bring his own sense of joy and merriment to children all over the world.
Not only does he kidnap the real Santa (Edward Ivory) – sporting a wonderful stop-motion look that could only come from the minds of Tim Burton and Henry Selick – to assume his role, but the presents Jack delivers are, shall we say, not to everyone’s taste. Sadly, it isn’t long before the army gets wind of this Saint Nick imposter and blows him (and his undead reindeer) out of the sky.
Thankfully, Santa (being the nice guy he is) had no hard feelings, and was able to save Christmas in time. Jack resumed his post as the Pumpkin King, doing what he does best.
Santa Claus – ‘The Christmas Chronicles’
An alternate take on the classic look of Saint Nick, we have The Christmas Chronicles‘ Santa Claus (Kurt Russell). As well as looking more like something from an action movie, Mr Kringle is packed with gadgets and is ridiculously light on his feet when it comes to delivering gifts.
He might not say “ho, ho, ho” or look as jolly as his other interpretations, but he more than makes up for it with his awesome, badassery.
Klaus – ‘Klaus’
After being sent into the middle of the Arctic Circle, postman Jesper (Jason Schwartzman) is tasked with getting 6000 letters sent out – in order to return to his life of luxury. It’s in this icy town, that Jesper befriends a carpenter by the name of Klaus (J.K. Simmons), who specializes in toymaking, and together, the two make quite the team.
With a slight sadness about Klaus’ past, along with the history of how things went down being told a little differently in this tale, that doesn’t stop it being a magical interpretation of the jolly man himself.
The Grinch – ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’
A bit of a technicality, as this individual initially starts out as more of a reverse Santa. The Grinch (Jim Carrey) despises Christmas and everything that comes with it, so, he decides to stop the whole holiday from coming to his hometown of Whoville. He goes about this by impersonating Saint Nick himself, sneaking down Whos’ chimneys and stealing their presents.
After realizing that the Whos’ spirits can’t be broken and Christmas means much more than just gifts, the Grinch’s small heart grows three sizes and he returns the presents after realizing the error of his ways.
We do see the actual Santa at one point, but only for a moment and it’s from a distance.
Kriss Kringle – ‘Miracle on 34th Street’
A remake of the 1947 classic, we have Miracle on 34th Street. After a shopping mall’s Santa leaves them high and dry, they are forced to find a replacement at short notice. However, the person they find to fill the position is almost a little too perfect. He has his own attire, complete with hat, and boots and goes by the name… Kriss Kringle (Richard Attenborough).
A movie that makes Santa more real than ever and this portrayal will certainly make you a believer!
Willie – ‘Bad Santa’
Definitely not the real Santa (thank god), Willie (Billy Bob Thornton) is pretty much a combination of every bad Santa impersonator rolled into one. He drinks, swears, sleeps around… he even beats up kids! (the kid had it coming but still).
He may not be the real deal, but he’s certainly magical when it comes to his safe-cracking abilities, not to mention hilarious. Rest assured though, this is one Santa’s lap, you don’t want to sit on.
Scott Calvin – ‘The Santa Clause’
The Santa Clause tells a different tale in that you don’t necessarily need to be born as Saint Nick to become him. After accidentally knocking the jolly old man off his roof, businessman Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) puts on his clothes and decides to finish Santa’s shift on Christmas Eve.
Only, what Scott didn’t realize was that by putting on the infamous red suit and hat, he was then committing himself to certain contractual obligations of the Santa Clause. He then has one year to get his affairs in order, all the while his beard begins to grow, his hair begins to whiten, and the more each day passes, his belly starts to resemble a bowl full of jelly. Eventually, he takes the torch, filling the role of the latest Father Christmas.
Santa Claus – ‘Santa Claus: The Movie’
One of the all-time classics, we have Santa Claus: The Movie. The story sees Santa Claus (David Huddleston), a man who starts out as a simple toymaker, making presents for friends and family. One stormy night, Santa and his wife find themselves lost in a blizzard somewhere in the North Pole.
Thankfully, they are rescued by a group of magical elves who realize Santa’s talents when it comes to generosity and giving. So, they give him the magic and resources to be able to spread his cheer worldwide every Christmas Eve. He is also the only Santa Claus to date who has managed to pull off the “super duper looper” with his trusty reindeer.
Jacked In Recommends ‘Klaus’ (2019)
After being labelled as the postal academy’s worst employee, Jesper (Jason Schwartzman) is reassigned to a frozen […]
Jacked In Recommends ‘The Santa Clause’ (1994)
A movie responsible for a generation of adults spelling Santa Claus wrong, we have The Santa Clause. The story […]