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A burgundy scarf hangs over a snowy bench beside a glowing teal diner and unfinished paper snow sculpture, with a festive town in the distance.

Christmas-adjacent · 2024

Hot Frosty

41/100Festive FactorWhy it scores 41 ↓
UK certificate Parental Guidance92 min
Comedy · Romance

Netflix made a snowman romcom with a straight face and a ripped leading man, and the joke mostly carries it.

On Netflix · UK subscription →
Plan this film night ↓Can the kids watch? ↓
Explore this film 9 sections

The CineClaus Christmas score

Festive Factor

Christmas in good measure.

Two paper elves examine a snowy diner model with a burgundy scarf on a bench, an unfinished snow sculpture and a cup of ice in the window.

A little magic in the making.

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

Christmas in the storyChristmas is only the occasion.10/30

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 details3 of the 10 kinds of Christmas icon we count turn up on screen.5/15

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.

85/100

Cosiness Rating Rating

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

Netflix

Included with a subscription
Open Hot Frosty on Netflix (opens in a new tab)

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 Hot Frosty

A widow running a small-town diner wraps an old scarf around a snowman sculpture, and it comes to life as a handsome, entirely naive man. While he learns about the world at speed and must keep cool to avoid melting, the pair fall for each other, and the town closes ranks when the local law comes after him.

The CineClaus verdict

Netflix made a snowman romcom with a straight face and a ripped leading man, and the joke mostly carries it.

Lacey Chabert plays the widowed diner owner with more sincerity than the premise asks for, which helps a great deal. The Christmas is largely scenery, snow and strung lights, while the story runs on winter magic and a gentle romance.

It is daft and generous to everyone in it, including the lawmen. Worth a lazy evening for a light laugh and a warm finish, even if it never becomes an annual habit.

The family desk

Can the kids watch?

PG

Our take: rated PG for upsetting scenes and sex references. Suitable for most children: the grief running through it is handled gently, and the references should sail over younger heads.

BBFC advice: Upsetting scenes, sex references.

Content advice & accessibility
Where the advice comes from
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC).
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
Dustin Milligan in profile, speaking, with tousled light brown hair and a plaid shirt, in front of a press backdrop.Dustin Milligan
Katy Mixon
Lauren Holly
Joe Lo Truglio
Craig Robinson laughing as he speaks into a microphone at a convention panel, wearing a blue and white patterned shirt.Craig Robinson
Chrishell Stause

Behind the camera

Directed by
Jerry Ciccoritti
Original score
Ari Posner
Photo credits

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

Lacey Chabert · Sixsteps · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 2.0 (opens in a new tab).

Dustin Milligan · watchwithkristin · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 2.0 (opens in a new tab).

Craig Robinson · Gage Skidmore · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 3.0 (opens in a new tab).

Step into the story

Filming locations

The real places behind Hot Frosty. Choose one to explore.

Find it on the mapBrockville

© OpenStreetMap contributors (opens in a new tab)

Open larger map ↗ (OpenStreetMap, opens in a new tab)

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

Choose your next scene

2 places from Hot Frosty

There’s more behind the film.
Explore the next place.

Location sources

Brockville · ctvnews.ca (opens in a new tab)

Ottawa · ctvnews.ca (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 Hot Frosty

Film facts &
behind the scenes

For the fans who stay after the credits.

Movie magic

A snowy square built in spring

The shoot ran for about three weeks in spring 2024, long after any real snow. The crew built faux snow over several days and sculpted it into drifts across the town square so it would read as deep winter on camera.

Read the story

Source: thousandislandslife.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

On set

Locals were cast as extras

Residents of the host city applied online to appear as extras and were picked against the production's criteria. The city worked with the production on road closures and nearby businesses, and visitors and school groups came to watch filming.

Read the story

Source: thousandislandslife.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

And at a glance

Releases and certificates
: On streaming. Arrived on Netflix worldwide on this date.
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.

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In this collection

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Hot Frosty 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