Kurt Russell
Santa Claus
The Christmas Chronicles: Part Two
“The battle to save Christmas is on.”
2020
1h 52m
Director: Chris Columbus
Overview
Kate Pierce is reluctantly spending Christmas with her mom’s new boyfriend and his son Jack. But when the North Pole and Christmas are threatened to be destroyed, Kate and Jack are unexpectedly pulled into a new adventure with Santa Claus.
Cast
12 people
Reviews
4 min readThe North Pole as a Second Marriage
I’ll admit it: I went into The Christmas Chronicles: Part Two expecting a lump of coal. The first film, while charming, had the kind of manic energy that makes you wonder if the elves are mainlining espresso. But this sequel—well, it’s different.
Not necessarily better, but different in a way that lingers. It’s less about the spectacle of Santa’s sleigh heists and more about the quiet, almost domestic magic of the North Pole itself. And at the center of that magic?
Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn, playing a married couple who feel like they’ve been together for centuries.
That’s the real surprise here. Not the CGI elves (though they’re… a choice), not the villain who’s more annoying than threatening, but the way Russell and Hawn make Santa and Mrs. Claus feel like a real couple.
Not the cuddly, mythic figures of holiday lore, but two people who’ve weathered time together—bickering over the thermostat, finishing each other’s sentences, and, in one lovely moment, slow-dancing in the kitchen while Darlene Love’s voice wraps around them like a scarf. It’s the kind of chemistry that makes you forget you’re watching a Netflix algorithm’s idea of a Christmas movie.
The plot, such as it is, follows Kate Pierce (Darby Camp), now a teenager, as she’s dragged into another North Pole adventure—this time with a new stepbrother, Jack (Jahzir Bruno), in tow. The villain is Belsnickel, a disgruntled elf who wants to cancel Christmas (literally) because he feels underappreciated. It’s a premise that should feel fresh—an elf with a grudge is at least more interesting than the usual mustache-twirling baddie—but the execution is clunky.
Audience Opinions
Audience 6.0/10
"Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn's chemistry lifts a colorful but formulaic sequel that charms kids more than it satisfies adults."
Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn are widely seen as the movie's strongest asset, bringing warmth, humor, and a lived-in partnership to Santa and Mrs. Claus against a cozy, festive North Pole backdrop. latestnetflix.com's read is that at the same time, the story is criticized as contrived and padded with CGI spectacle, with an underwhelming villain, a sidelined Teddy, and a more child-targeted tone that feels flatter and less magical than the first film.
What viewers praise
- Kurt Russell's charismatic Santa Russell is often singled out as perfectly cast, with his presence, humor, and even his look (notably the beard and hair) giving the film its strongest spark.
- Goldie Hawn as Mrs. Claus Hawn is praised as a delightful addition whose scenes feel joyful, with several viewers noting how much fun she seems to be having whenever she is on screen.
- Natural lead chemistry The real‑life couple’s interactions provide genuine warmth and make their shared scenes feel heartfelt and engaging even when the plot stumbles.
- Festive family atmosphere Bright North Pole sets, elves, sleigh chases, and musical moments create a strong Christmas mood that works well for family viewing and keeps younger viewers entertained.
Common complaints
- Contrived sequel plotting The narrative is frequently described as derivative and clumsy, with several calling the script bad or lifeless and the story far weaker than the first film.
- Heavy, cartoonish CGI Extensive use of digital elves and spectacle is seen as overdone, making the movie feel noisy and artificial rather than cozy or magical.
- Weak villain and characters The elf antagonist is viewed as poorly cast and not intimidating, while side characters such as the new boy and some comic beats are called annoying or misjudged.
- Teddy pushed to the background The brother who was a key part of the first film is barely involved here, disappointing viewers who expected him to share in the North Pole adventure.
- Less appeal for adults The focus on broad kid-friendly antics, including the elves and some joke choices, leaves older viewers bored or frustrated compared with the more balanced tone of the original.
Recommended for
Family holiday movie nights Kurt Russell fans Goldie Hawn fans Christmas movie completists Families with young children Light festive background viewing
Full Plot (Spoilers)
Spoiler warning
This section contains the full plot, including major story reveals. Overview above stays spoiler-free.
Buzz & Rumors
Public reportsGoldie brought the house down, so they built a sequel around her
Chris Columbus produced the first Christmas Chronicles and watched Goldie Hawn walk into the last scene as Mrs. Claus. "When Goldie appeared on screen, she brought the house down," he told the Associated Press. latestnetflix.com's view is that "We knew we had to do the next one with Goldie, if she would do it, if she would have us."
Kurt Russell and Hawn had been offered hundreds of co-starring reunions since Overboard in 1987. Santa and Mrs. Claus was the pairing that stuck. Clay Kaytis had directed the 2018 original, the one Netflix said 20 million accounts played in week one. For Part Two, Kaytis stepped aside. Columbus wrote with Matt Lieberman and sat in the director's chair himself, his first feature since Pixels. Russell took a producer credit. , ,
The mythology got a homework packet. Columbus told Forbes the first film was two kids on a night run. For the sequel, "we wanted to open up the mythology. That's what Kurt was interested in." Russell wrote about 200 pages of Santa backstory before cameras, including how Nick met his wife. Columbus compared the North Pole build to the visual scale of Harry Potter. Hawn, who had acted sparingly for decades, was now the co-lead. Darlene Love came in to sing. Malcolm McDowell turned up as Hakan. Julian Dennison, off Deadpool 2, played Belsnickel, the holiday pest trying to cancel Christmas. ,
A chain theater, then the algorithm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVzBwSOcBaI
Netflix did something it had not done with its own movies. The week before the November 25, 2020 stream date, Cinemark booked the film in about 32 houses across Dallas, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. The chain called it a "limited three-market test" in a pandemic booking climate. Wikipedia still treats that booking as the first time the streamer let one of its films play a theatrical chain. TMDB lists the US date as November 18, the theatrical start. The Kurt-and-Goldie trailer stayed in heavy rotation. , ,
Family business leaked onto the call sheet. Hawn's son Oliver Hudson had played Kate's dead father Doug in the first film. Sunny Suljic plays young Doug here. Columbus's daughter Violet pops up as a cashier. Tyrese Gibson signed on in December 2019 as mom's new boyfriend, the Cancun complication that sends teenage Kate running. IGN noted Hawn had not led a movie with Russell, outside that first-film cameo, since Overboard. The sequel was the point of the cameo. , , ,
Six years later Russell sounded finished. He told MovieWeb he loved the role because his own father "was a tremendous Santa Claus." He also said streamers run on algorithms, and a third film would not grow the audience the way the first two did. "I don't know if they'll ever do [another] one or not." Holiday charts in 2025 still put both titles in Netflix's kids top ten. The couple got their Overboard reunion. The North Pole bible stayed in two volumes.
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.
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