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24 October · 62 days to ChristmasThe advent calendar opens 1 December →
A green paper hat and striped stockings rest on a stool beside an open guitar case. An ivory gown hangs by a grotto door beneath warm fairy lights.

Not really, no · 2019

A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish

36/100Festive FactorWhy it scores 36 ↓
UK certificate Parental Guidance85 min
Family · Romance

The fairy tale with the ball traded for a Christmas gala and the prince hidden inside a Santa costume, and…

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Plan this film night ↓Can the kids watch? ↓
Explore this film 10 sections

The CineClaus Christmas score

Festive Factor

A different kind of Christmas.

Two paper elves inspect a miniature grotto room containing a hanging ivory gown, open guitar case, green hat and striped stockings beneath tiny fairy lights.

A little magic in the making.

Five ingredients make the Festive Factor.
Open an ingredient to find out more.

Christmas in the storyChristmas is the deadline.15/30

What we ask: Take Christmas out. Does the plot survive? Worth up to 30 of the 100 points.

A world dressed for ChristmasVisibly Christmas for about half.10/20

What we ask: How much of the running time is visibly Christmas? Worth up to 20 of the 100 points.

The little seasonal details2 of the 10 kinds of Christmas icon we count turn up on screen.3/15

What we ask: How many kinds of Christmas icon turn up on screen: trees, lights, snow, carols and the rest? Worth up to 15 of the 100 points.

A Christmas heartHow far the ending rests on goodwill, family and belief: incidentally.5/20

What we ask: Does the ending depend on what Christmas means: goodwill, family, redemption, belief? Worth up to 20 of the 100 points.

A returning traditionNiche at Christmas (under 25,000).3/15

What we ask: Is it actually watched at Christmas in the UK? Worth up to 15 of the 100 points.

67/100

Cosiness Rating Rating

Mostly warm in tone. Mild threat. A happy ending.

How we score →
What do these scores mean?

Festive Factor measures how Christmassy a film is. Five ingredients add up to 100: story (30), setting (20), seasonal details (15), emotional heart (20) and returning tradition (15).

Cosiness is a separate score for warmth of tone, sense of safety, visual comfort, a reassuring ending and how easily you can settle into it.

How the Festive Factor works →
Your next film night

Where to watch

United KingdomChecked

Apple TV

Rent or buy
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Prime Video

Rent or buy
See viewing options on Prime Video (affiliate link, opens in a new tab)

A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish · Rental and purchase cost extra, separately from membership.

As an Amazon Associate, Cine Claus earns from qualifying purchases. Buying through a link helps pay for the site - it never changes a score.

Streaming changes constantly and we cannot promise it is still right - check the service before you settle in. Streaming availability information provided by Streaming Availability API by Movie of the Night (opens in a new tab).

The story

About A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish

An orphaned teenager with dreams of a singing career is bullied by her stepmother and stepsisters and stuck working as a costumed elf at a billionaire's Christmas attraction. She falls for the new Santa there without realising he is the billionaire's son, and has to get past her stepfamily's schemes to reach his father's Christmas gala and claim what is hers.

The CineClaus verdict

The fairy tale with the ball traded for a Christmas gala and the prince hidden inside a Santa costume, and precious little else rethought. Laura Marano and Gregg Sulkin share easy chemistry and keep it ticking along. The weak spot is the music: the vocals are so heavily autotuned that a film about a gifted singer never lets you hear her properly.

The stepfamily schemes are cartoonish, and the finale lands right on schedule. A safe sleepover choice for tweens who know Marano from her Disney Channel work.

The family desk

Can the kids watch?

PG

Our take: sleepover-safe from about eight: stepfamily meanness, a handful of rude and suggestive gags, and no peril to speak of before a happy finish.

Content advice & accessibility
Our age guidance
Editorial, separate from the official PG certificate, and never looser than it.
The people behind the film

Cast and crew

The faces in front of the camera, and the people who brought the story to life.

Main cast

In billing order
Laura Marano smiling on stage in a pink sequinned outfit, holding a microphone against a purple-lit background.Laura Marano
Gregg Sulkin with swept-up brown hair in a pinstriped jacket and lilac shirt, looking off to the side in front of a blue curtain.Gregg Sulkinas Nick Wintergarden
Isabella Gomezas Isla
Barclay Hopeas Terence Wintergarden

Behind the camera

Original score
Jake Monaco
Photo credits

Portraits via Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence, approved for this page by a person. Sources and full photographer credits:

Laura Marano · Justin Higuchi · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 2.0 (opens in a new tab).

Gregg Sulkin · Dominick D · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 2.0 (opens in a new tab).

Keep the Christmas feeling

Music & soundtrack

That tune you recognised. That score you loved. Take a little of the film into the rest of your Christmas.

Every track on the soundtrack album, in album order.

Behind the music. Jake Monaco composed the score.

About this music list

These are the songs and soundtrack we hold for the film, not a complete cue sheet, and they give no scene timings. Album track lists and durations come from MusicBrainz. Spotify and Apple Music links open the matched recordings; links marked Search open a search on that service. Album covers are each release's own, from the Cover Art Archive, credited under the cover.

Film Music Reporter ↗ (opens in a new tab) TMDB crew ↗ (opens in a new tab) MusicBrainz ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Step into the story

Filming locations

The real places behind A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish. Choose one to explore.

Find it on the mapVancouver

© OpenStreetMap contributors (opens in a new tab)

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Map shows the selected place. Drag to explore; use + and − to zoom.

Location sources

Vancouver · Wikipedia (secondary) (opens in a new tab)

Map pins mark the place, not a camera position or a route. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), including any pin positions read from OpenStreetMap.

A little more A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish

Film facts &
behind the scenes

For the fans who stay after the credits.

Music & sound

The songs came out as a six-track EP

WaterTower Music put out a six-track soundtrack EP in November 2019. Laura Marano sings most of it, including two versions of Everybody Loves Christmas, one of them a short solo piano take.

Read the story
On your next watchListen for the piano version of the theme song behind a quieter scene.

Source: Film Music Reporter ↗ (opens in a new tab)

On set

One writer, one director

Michelle Johnston both wrote and directed the film, working from the characters created for the earlier Cinderella Story films by Leigh Dunlap.

Read the story

Source: TMDB crew ↗ (opens in a new tab)

And at a glance

Releases and certificates
: On streaming (US). Released digitally in the US by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.
: On disc (US). DVD release from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.
Sources & a note on these facts

Each production story is linked to its source, in our own words. Ending details stay behind a spoiler reveal.

Good to know

Questions about A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish

When was A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish released?

It came out digitally on 15 October 2019, with a DVD release on 29 October 2019, both from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

Who stars in A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish?

Laura Marano and Gregg Sulkin lead the cast, with Isabella Gomez and Barclay Hope in support. Jake Monaco is credited with the music.

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Elsewhere on CineClaus

More places to find A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish, and a few good reasons to keep exploring.

In this collection

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A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish is in this collection

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Collection

Feel-good Christmas films for a cosy night in

Explore the collection
Stay for another story.All collections · The Christmas Edit