A Merry Little Ex-Mas: Age Rating & Verdict

Name: A Merry Little Ex-Mas
Released: 2025
Duration: 91 min
Cast: Alicia Silverstone, Oliver Hudson, Jameela Jamil, Pierson Fodé, Linda Kash

The CineClaus Christmas score

Festive Factor

Christmas in good measure.

Two paper elves inspect a miniature snowy red house with scalloped cream trim, a glowing tree, two porch mugs and a blank red sign beside its gate. — A little magic in the making.

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

Christmas in the storyChristmas drives it, but another occasion could stand in.20/30

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 most of it.15/20

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: partly.10/20

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 traditionA December regular (25,000+).6/15

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

80/100

Cosiness Rating Rating

Warm in tone. Mild threat. A content 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 21 Oct 2026

Netflix

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The story

About A Merry Little Ex-Mas

A newly separated mother wants one last picture-perfect family Christmas in the house she is about to sell, with her soon-to-be ex-husband and the family all home for the holidays. Her careful plans unravel when he arrives with a new girlfriend in tow. A broad, snowy Netflix romcom about letting go, starring Alicia Silverstone, Oliver Hudson and Jameela Jamil.

The CineClaus verdict

A divorce comedy in fairy lights, and a tidy, good-natured one.

Alicia Silverstone is good company as the mother staging one last family Christmas in the house she is selling, and the real Canadian snow looks the part. Nobody is cast as a villain, not even the new girlfriend, which is kinder than the premise suggests.

It also means nothing surprises you. Every turn arrives on schedule and the ending goes quietly flat. Fine with the wrapping on your lap, but don't expect to remember much of it by Boxing Day.

The family desk

Can the kids watch?

12

Our take: rated 12 for sex references and language. Nothing frightening at all, but it sits with twelve and up rather than little ones.

BBFC advice: Sex references, language.

Content advice & accessibility

Where the advice comes from: The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC).
Our age guidance: Editorial, separate from the official 12 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

Head and shoulders photograph of a woman with long streaked light brown hair and a faint smile, in a dark top against a dark background.

Alicia Silverstoneas Kate

A man with dark tousled hair and stubble in a brown corduroy shirt, speaking to a microphone in front of a media backdrop.

Oliver Hudsonas Everett

A woman with long dark hair and a fringe, in a black and white spotted top, speaking at a microphone at a press event.

Jameela Jamilas Tess

Pierson Fodéas Chet

Linda Kash

Geoffrey Owens

Behind the camera

Directed by

Steve Carr

Original score

Jeff Cardoni

Step into the story

Filming locations

The real places behind A Merry Little Ex-Mas. Choose one to explore.

Find it on the mapToronto

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Filming location

Toronto

Canada

Principal photography ran in Toronto and around Ontario from early February to mid March 2025, including a studio base.

Open in OpenStreetMap ↗ (opens in a new tab)Scene source ↗ (whats-on-netflix.com, opens in a new tab)

A little more A Merry Little Ex-Mas

Film facts &
behind the scenes

For the fans who stay after the credits.

On set

Shot in the depths of an Ontario winter

Filming ran from 3 February to 17 March 2025 in and around Toronto, so the Christmas snow and decorations were made in the dead of winter and well ahead of the November release.

Read the story

Source: whats-on-netflix.com ↗ (opens in a new tab) · productionlist.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

On set

A star who also produced

Alicia Silverstone is an executive producer as well as the lead. Hartbreak Films produced, with Melissa Joan Hart, who also appears in the cast, and Paula Hart as producers.

Read the story

Source: whats-on-netflix.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)