| Santa Who? | |
|---|---|
 Region 2 DVD Cover | |
| Written by | Debra Frank Steve L. Hayes |
| Directed by | William Dear |
| Starring | Leslie Nielsen Steven Eckholdt Robyn Lively |
| Music by | Joel McNeely |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producer | Frank Siracusa |
| Cinematography | Derick V. Underschultz |
| Editor | Edgar Burcksen |
| Running time | 88 minutes |
| Production companies | Gleneagle Productions Hearst Entertainment |
| Original release | |
| Release | November 19, 2000 (2000-11-19) |
Santa Who? is a 2000 American made-for-television fantasy-comedy film starring Leslie Nielsen and directed by William Dear, in which Santa Claus develops a case of amnesia right before Christmas.
Plot
Santa feels unwell and goes out for fresh air whilst on a flight in his sleigh. Because of bad weather, he falls out and lands in Los Angeles and is unable to remember who he is. A TV news reporter called Peter, finds him and uses him to increase his ratings, asking his audience to find the family of, who he assumes to be, the lost old man.
Santa gets a job working in a mall and Peter's girlfriend's son, repeatedly tries to convince the adults that he is the real Santa Claus, which no one believes.
Santa still remembers certain details about Christmas but is unable to recollect how he knows them, as typically happens with source amnesia. Meanwhile, Santa's elves are looking for him, but a couple have seen him on TV and think it could be their missing grandfather and claim him. Santa begins to realise who he truly is though and Peter gains salvation when he acknowledges that Santa is genuine.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Leslie Nielsen | Santa Claus (reprises his role from All I Want for Christmas) |
| Steven Eckholdt | Peter Albright |
| Robyn Lively | Claire Dreyer, Peter's Girlfriend |
| Max Morrow | Zack Dreyer, Claire's Son |
| Tommy Davidson | Max the Elf |
| Aron Tager | Grandpa |
| Darren Frost | Rupert the Elf |
| Karen LeBlanc | Lenny the Camera Person |
| R.D. Reid | Grady |
| Ted Atherton | George, Ch. 12 Manager |
| Stewart Arnott | Lusby, Claire's Boss |
| Carol Lempert | Ellen, Claire's Secretary |
| Roger Clown | Ray Engles |
| Elizabeth Brown | Nancy Engles |
| Laura DeCarteret | Sister Greta |
| Richard Fitzpatrick | Detective Lohenry |
Reception
Christopher Null of Filmcritic.com gave Santa Who? 2 out of 5 stars. Perry Seibert of AllMovie gave the film 3 stars out of 5.
Laura Fries of Variety wrote "Santa Who?, an original Wonderful World of Disney film, does its best to imitate the great holiday classics, but in the end it's about as rewarding as a lump of coal in your stocking". Aliya Whiteley of Den of Geek gave it a mixed review.
Announced remake
In July 2021, Lionsgate, which holds rights to this film as the owner of the Hearst Entertainment library, told Deadline that it planned to remake it, alongside The Babysitter's Seduction, Sex, Lies, & Obsession, Blue Valley Songbird, Sex & Mrs. X, A Different Kind of Christmas, and other Hearst titles with MarVista Entertainment, which will work with Lionsgate in distributing these films. Neither studio released details about these remakes, which they plan to release to an undetermined streaming service.
See also
- List of television films produced for American Broadcasting Company
- List of Christmas films
- Santa Claus in film
References
- Null, Christopher (2001). "Santa Who? Movie Review, DVD Release". Filmcritic.com. Archived from the original on August 1, 2007. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
- Seibert, Perry. "Santa Who? (2000)". AllMovie. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
- Fries, Laura (November 16, 2000). "Santa Who?". Variety.
- Whiteley, Aliya (December 22, 2015). "Less-known Christmas movies: Santa Who?". Den of Geek. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
- White, Peter (2021-07-09). "Are TV Movies Back? Lionsgate & MarVista Strike Deal To Remake Classic MOWs Including Keri Russell's 'The Babysitter's Seduction'". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-08-27.
- "'The Babysitter's Seduction' Among TV Movies Getting a Remake in Lionsgate / MarVista Deal". Movieweb. 2021-07-13. Retrieved 2021-08-27.
External links
- Santa Who? at IMDb
| Films directed by William Dear | |
|---|---|
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