Tim Allen, the actor-producer of The Santa Clause film series, has been a fixture of Christmas-season entertainment during the last two decades. The three films in that series have generated over half a billion dollars for Disney, and the corporation is doubling down on the concept with a miniseries called The Santa Clauses, which premieres on Disney+ this weekend.
Allen’s three Christmas movies are packed with family-friendly entertainment, wide comedy, and physical gags, but with the streaming series, the Disney Legend wants to go deeper. He informed The Wrap that he contributed a faith-based component to The Santa Clauses, which revolves around Allen’s character’s impending retirement as Santa.”How exactly religion will play a part remains uncertain,” writes Andi Ortiz of The Wrap. “However, Allen felt it was crucial that ‘The Santa Clauses’ did, and prevented any form of strange monsters or spirits.”
“It used to have a lot of unearthly characters, ghouls, and monsters. No, I said, it’s Christmas. It’s Christmastime. It’s a religious holiday,” the actor explained. “We don’t need to blast trumpets, but I do would like you to recognize it. That is the point of this. If you want to understand Santa Claus, you have to go back in time, and it all comes down to religion.”
Allen went on to say that the reference towards the faith surrounding Christmas will not appear until about the fifth and sixth chapters of the miniseries, but that the authors “took a chance” at incorporating Christianity into the story in an original way and “did it really effectively.”
It’s not the first time a family holiday show has highlighted the actual essence of Christmas. When filmmakers approached Charles M. Schulz, founder of the Peanuts comic strip, about creating an animated Christmas special in 1965, Schulz insisted on including a reference to the biblical Christmas story.
Producer Lee Mendelson objected, claiming that religion had no place in cartoons, but Schulz stayed firm, asking, “If we do not do it, who will? We’ll be OK.” And, over 60 years later, A Charlie Brown Christmas remains one of the most lasting holiday specials.
Author: Steven Sinclaire
