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That Christmas

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That Christmas
Promotional release poster
Directed bySimon Otto
Written by
Based onThat Christmas and Other Stories
by Richard Curtis
Produced by
  • Nicole P. Hearon
  • Adam Tandy
  • Aaron Dem
Starring
Edited bySim Evan-Jones
Music byJohn Powell
Production
companies
Distributed byNetflix[1]
Release dates
Running time
95 minutes
Countries
  • United Kingdom
  • United States
LanguageEnglish

That Christmas is a 2024 animated Christmas fantasy comedy film produced by Netflix Animation, Locksmith Animation and DNEG Animation, and directed by Simon Otto in his directorial debut. Written by Richard Curtis and Peter Souter, and based on Curtis's children's Christmas book trilogy That Christmas and Other Stories, it features the voices of Brian Cox, Fiona Shaw, Jodie Whittaker and Bill Nighy. The film premiered at the BFI London Film Festival on October 19, 2024, and is scheduled to be released on Netflix on December 4, 2024.[2]

Premise

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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!

— Locksmith Animation and Netflix

Cast

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Production

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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 by British filmmaker Richard Curtis.[5] In June 2021, Locksmith announced that Simon Otto would be directing the film, in his directorial debut, which had been retitled That Christmas.[6][7][8][9] 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).[10] In June 2022, That Christmas was unveiled as part of Netflix's slate of animated films with the first look of the film.[1] On March 20, 2024, Brian Cox, Fiona Shaw, Jodie Whittaker and Bill Nighy were announced to star in the film.[11]

Music

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In November 2023, it was announced that Blue Sky Studios and DreamWorks Animation collaborator John Powell would compose the film's musical score.[12][13] In August 2024, it was announced that English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran would write and contribute a song, titled "Under the Tree", for the film and it's soundtrack album.[14][15] The soundtrack would also feature "Thin Ice", a 2014 instrumental song by New Zealand composer and producer Rhian Sheehan.[16]

Release

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Premiere and release

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That Christmas premiered at the BFI London Film Festival on October 19, 2024, and is scheduled to be released on Netflix on December 4, 2024.[2][17][15] 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 Bros. Pictures Animation (formerly known as Warner Animation Group) in October 2019, the film was expected to be theatrically released by the studio,[18] but in June 2022, Netflix acquired the worldwide distribution rights to release the film online under the Netflix Animation label instead.[1]

Reception

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Critical response

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On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 60% of 15 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.6/10.[19] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 73 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[20]

Award nomination

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Year Award Category Nominee Result
2024 HMMA Award Best Original Score - Animated Film John Powell Nominated

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Milligan, Mercedes (June 9, 2022). "Netflix Sets Bold Slate of Animation from Europe Ahead of Annecy". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on August 19, 2022. Retrieved June 16, 2022.
  2. ^ a b Schimautz, Julia (August 28, 2024). "The New Netflix Movies You Can Watch This Fall". Netflix. Retrieved August 28, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Milligan, Mercedes (March 20, 2024). "'That Christmas' Unwraps Voice Cast Starring Brian Cox, Fiona Shaw, Jodie Whittaker and Bill Nighy". Animation Magazine. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
  4. ^ "Jordan North issues huge career update and will star in festive Netflix film". Lancashire Telegraph. October 23, 2024. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
  5. ^ Clarke, Stewart (November 6, 2019). "Richard Curtis Kids' Books Being Adapted as Animated Feature 'The Empty Stocking'". Variety. Archived from the original on November 6, 2019. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  6. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (June 8, 2021). "Locksmith's Debut 'Ron's Gone Wrong' Boots Up with Trailer, Cast Reveal". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved June 12, 2021.
  7. ^ Motayor, Rafael (June 14, 2021). "Simon Otto to Helm Animated 'That Christmas' Adaptation, Based on Books by 'Love Actually' Writer". Collider. Archived from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
  8. ^ Yossman, K. J. (June 14, 2021). "Locksmith Animation Taps Simon Otto to Direct Adaptation of Richard Curtis' 'That Christmas'". Variety. Archived from the original on June 12, 2022. Retrieved June 24, 2022.
  9. ^ "That Christmas | Locksmith Animation". locksmithanimation.com. Retrieved December 5, 2023.
  10. ^ Sarto, Debbie (May 19, 2022). "Locksmith Taps DNEG Animation for 'That Christmas'". Animation World Network. Archived from the original on June 10, 2022. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
  11. ^ Ntim, Zac (March 20, 2024). "'That Christmas': Brian Cox, Fiona Shaw, Jodie Whittaker & Bill Nighy To Voice Netflix Animated Feature Penned By Richard Curtis". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
  12. ^ Powell, John (November 30, 2023). "Scoring my 25th animated film and my first Xmas movie at Abbey Road Studios this week 🎶 Coming next winter! ❄️ #JohnPowell #soundtrack…". Instagram. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  13. ^ "John Powell Scoring Locksmith Animation's 'That Christmas'". Film Music Reporter. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  14. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (August 7, 2024). "Animated Feature 'That Christmas' Unwraps Ed Sheeran Original on Dec. 6". Animation Magazine. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
  15. ^ a b Ramachandran, Naman (August 7, 2024). "Ed Sheeran Records Original Song for Netflix's Richard Curtis Film 'That Christmas' – Global Bulletin". Variety. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
  16. ^ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14855468/soundtrack/?ref_=tt_dyk_snd
  17. ^ Tasha Robinson (April 25, 2023). "Netflix reveals every original animated movie set for release in the next two years". Polygon. Archived from the original on April 25, 2023. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  18. ^ Clarke, Stewart (October 31, 2019). "Warner Signs Multi-Picture Deal With Elisabeth Murdoch's Locksmith Animation". Variety. Archived from the original on November 25, 2020. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  19. ^ "That Christmas". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 17, 2024.
  20. ^ "That Christmas". Metacritic. Retrieved November 17, 2024.
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