A Christmas Story Christmas (2022)
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2025-09 to 2026-08
A struggling novelist returns to his childhood home to deliver a magical Christmas for his family after his father's death.
The story
In December 1973, 42-year-old Ralph Parker lives in Chicago with his wife, Sandy, and two young children, Mark and Julie. Ralph has been taking the year off from his job to write his first novel, but its excessive length leads multiple publishers to reject it. Mrs. Parker calls to tell Ralph that his father, "the Old Man", has died, and the grief-stricken family makes its way to Hohman, Indiana, to be with her. She gives Ralph two tasks: write his father's obituary and take up his mantle of making Christmas special for the family.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In December 1973, 42-year-old Ralph Parker, a struggling novelist in Chicago, returns to Hohman, Indiana, following the death of his father, "the Old Man." His mother tasks him with writing the obituary and making Christmas special. Ralph reunites with childhood friends Flick and Schwartz. After a series of mishaps—including a car burglary, a broken arm for his son Mark, and a rejected manuscript—Ralph is inspired by memories of his father's Christmases. On Christmas Eve, after the star on their tree breaks, Ralph breaks into Flick's tavern to "borrow" a new one, where he is caught by his former bully Scut Farkus, now a police officer. Scut brings him home, revealing he owes Ralph for a childhood fight. On Christmas morning, the family finds pre-wrapped gifts from the Old Man. Sandy reveals she submitted Ralph's high-quality obituary manuscript to the local paper, leading to a job offer as a syndicated columnist. The film ends with the family listening to Ralph read his story about his father, transitioning into the original film's narration.
- First release year
- 2022
- Runtime (minutes)
- 98
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Clay Kaytis
- Writers
- Nick Schenk · screenplay; Nick Schenk · story; Peter Billingsley · story
- Cast and characters
- Peter Billingsley · Ralph "Ralphie" Parker; Erinn Hayes · Sandy Parker; Julie Hagerty · Mrs. Parker; Ian Petrella · Randy Parker; Scott Schwartz · Flick; R. D. Robb · Schwartz; Zack Ward · Officer Scut Farkus; River Drosche · Mark Parker
- Genres
- comedy; children's comedy; Christmas comedy
- Themes
- nostalgia; family; grief; legacy
- Tone and mood
- sweet; nostalgic; family-oriented
- Premise and plot tags
- sequel; legacy sequel; continuity sequel; midlife crisis
- Source material / true-story basis
- A Christmas Story
- Franchise connections
- A Christmas Story
- Reception
- The film received generally positive reviews from critics, with some praising its nostalgia and others finding it formulaic.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 55 · scale: 100 · review count: 10
- Production trivia
- The film is dedicated to Darren McGavin, who played "The Old Man" in the original film.; The staff acquired option rights to much of original author Jean Shepherd's bibliography for use in the film.; Peter Billingsley had conceived the film as both a sequel to and an origin story for the original film.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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