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A white farmhouse glows beside open snowfields at dusk. A ladder, coloured lights, two mugs and a blank sign decorate its porch, with a snowplough passing beyond the right-hand fence.

Essential Christmas · 2021

Single All the Way

Name: Single All the Way
Released: 2021
Duration: 100 min
Cast: Michael Urie, Philemon Chambers, Jennifer Coolidge, Kathy Najimy, Luke Macfarlane

44/100Festive FactorWhy it scores 44 ↓

UK certificate 12100 min
Comedy · Romance

A man tired of turning up single to his family's Christmas talks his best friend into posing as his…

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Explore this film 10 sections

The CineClaus Christmas score

Festive Factor

Christmas in good measure.

Two paper elves inspect a snowy farmhouse model with a ladder, tiny mugs, a blank sign and a snowplough. One holds coloured lights while the other examines it with a magnifying glass. — 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 details4 of the 10 kinds of Christmas icon we count turn up on screen.6/15

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 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.

85/100

Cosiness Rating Rating

Warm in tone. Nothing bad can really happen. 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 23 Oct 2026

Netflix

Included with a subscription

Open Single All the Way 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 Single All the Way

A Los Angeles social media manager, tired of arriving home single every Christmas, talks his best friend and housemate into coming to New Hampshire for the holidays and posing as his boyfriend. Before the pretence can start, his mother fixes him up on a blind date with her fitness instructor, and the rest of the family start scheming to put the two friends together for real, while an aunt drafts them into the town's children's Christmas pageant. A Netflix Christmas romcom with Michael Urie, Philemon Chambers, Kathy Najimy and Jennifer Coolidge.

The CineClaus verdict

A man tired of turning up single to his family's Christmas talks his best friend into posing as his boyfriend, only for his mother to fix him up with her fitness instructor before the pretence has even started. You will see where it is heading from the first scene.

The pleasure is the company: Michael Urie and Philemon Chambers are easy to root for, Kathy Najimy fusses beautifully, and Jennifer Coolidge steals every scene as an aunt staging the town's Christmas pageant. Twinkly, kind and very easy to watch.

The family desk

Can the kids watch?

No family note from us yet. The 12 certificate is the guide for now.

Content advice & accessibility

Our age guidance: Editorial, separate from the official 12 certificate, and never looser than it.
Subtitles: Check your chosen service and edition for supported tracks.

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

Michael Urie smiling and looking to one side, seated against an orange backdrop, wearing a tan knit polo shirt.

Michael Urieas Peter

Philemon Chambersas Nick

Jennifer Coolidge

Kathy Najimy laughing at an event, with shoulder-length brown hair, hoop earrings and a gold pendant necklace.

Kathy Najimyas Carole

Smiling man with short brown hair and stubble, in a blue shirt, speaking at a convention panel table with a microphone.

Luke Macfarlaneas James

Older man with swept-back white hair and a grey goatee, wearing a dark jacket and checked shirt, smiling against a light blue backdrop.

Barry Bostwickas Harold

Madison Brydges

Dan Finnerty

Behind the camera

Directed by

Michael Mayer

Original score

Anton Sanko

Writing & production credits

Writer: Chad Hodge

Photo credits

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

Michael Urie · Kevin Paul · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab).

Jennifer Coolidge · Adam Chitayat · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab).

Kathy Najimy · MingleMediaTVNetwork · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 2.0 (opens in a new tab).

Luke Macfarlane · Kevin Paul · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab).

Barry Bostwick · Super Festivals · Source image (opens in a new tab) · CC BY 2.0 (opens in a new tab).

Step into the story

Filming locations

The real places behind Single All the Way. Choose one to explore.

Find it on the mapMontreal

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Filming location

Montreal

Canada

The production shot around Montreal in spring 2021, including interior work in a church in Montreal West, standing in for a small New England town.

Open in OpenStreetMap ↗ (opens in a new tab)Scene source ↗ (Montreal Secret, opens in a new tab)

Choose your next scene

3 places from Single All the Way

There’s more behind the film.
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A little more Single All the Way

Film facts &
behind the scenes

For the fans who stay after the credits.

On set

A New England Christmas shot in and around Montreal

The story is set in New England, but the production filmed in and around Montreal in spring 2021, with filming notices reporting interior work in a Montreal West church. The festive look was dressed in rather than found.

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On your next watchThe snowy streets and cosy houses are Quebec locations.

Source: MTL Blog ↗ (opens in a new tab) · Montreal Secret ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Movie magic

Snowy exteriors came from the Laurentians

Reports say the wintry outdoor scenes were shot in the Laurentians at Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts, north of Montreal, while much of the suburban filming happened in Pointe-Claire.

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On your next watchThe change from suburban streets to deep-snow town scenes.

Source: Montreal Secret ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Music & sound

The title song comes from a cast member

Dan Finnerty, who appears in the film, performs its title song, which he co-wrote with David Wilder. The track was released for download and streaming in early December 2021, as the film arrived on Netflix.

Read the story

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