The Christmas Chronicles: Age Rating & Verdict

Name: The Christmas Chronicles
Released: 2018
Duration: 104 min
Cast: Kurt Russell, Judah Lewis, Lamorne Morris

The CineClaus Christmas score

Festive Factor

Christmas, right to its heart.

Two paper elves study a snowy city diorama with a camcorder, red gift sack, scattered parcels, gold sleigh runner and red hat on a fence. — A little magic in the making.

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

Christmas in the storyIt can't exist without Christmas.30/30

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 effectively all of it.20/20

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

The little seasonal details6 of the 10 kinds of Christmas icon we count turn up on screen.9/15

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: entirely.20/20

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.

77/100

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 22 Oct 2026

Netflix

Included with a subscription

Open The Christmas Chronicles 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 The Christmas Chronicles

On Christmas Eve, a brother and sister still grieving their late father set out to catch Father Christmas on camera, sneak aboard his sleigh and cause it to crash, scattering his reindeer and his sack of presents across a big city. With the clock running down on the night, the pair team up with a rough-edged, wisecracking Santa to recover what was lost and save Christmas, mending their own strained relationship along the way.

The CineClaus verdict

Kurt Russell's Father Christmas carries this one.

He plays him gruff and a bit rock and roll, and the film perks up whenever he is on screen. The grief running under the siblings gives it more weight than Netflix Christmas originals usually bother with, though the middle stretch of crashes and city scrapes runs long.

The Jailhouse Rock-style musical number is daft and we are fully on board. Belief stays intact throughout, making it a safe bet for young believers and a treat for parents who grew up on Escape from New York.

The family desk

Can the kids watch?

PG

Our take: rated PG for mild violence, threat and language, with cartoonish crashes and a tense stand-off with a street gang, so fine for most six-year-olds and up.

Content advice & accessibility

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

The series

The The Christmas Chronicles films

2 films, in release order

2018
You’re here
The Christmas Chronicles
2018
You’re on this film’s page
2020
The film after
The Christmas Chronicles 2
2020
The 2020 sequel continues the story.
Not in our catalogue yet

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

Close-up photograph of a smiling older man with swept grey hair and black-framed glasses, wearing a dark collared shirt.

Kurt Russellas Santa Claus

Smiling young man with brown side-swept hair and a dark zip jacket, photographed during an interview.

Judah Lewisas Teddy Pierce

Close portrait of a bearded man in a light blue blazer and gold chains, speaking to reporters at a festival.

Lamorne Morris

Behind the camera

Directed by

Clay Kaytis

Original score

Christophe Beck

Writing & production credits

Writer: Matt Lieberman
Producer: Chris Columbus

Step into the story

Filming locations

The real places behind The Christmas Chronicles. Choose one to explore.

Find it on the mapToronto

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

Aerial view of the Toronto skyline with the CN Tower, downtown towers and the lake behind.

Location photograph
Taxiarchos228 (Wikimedia Commons, opens in a new tab) · CC BY-SA 3.0 (opens in a new tab)

Filming location

Toronto

Canada

Principal photography took place in and around Toronto, Ontario, with studio work at Pinewood Toronto Studios.

Open in OpenStreetMap ↗ (opens in a new tab)Scene source ↗ (Wikipedia, secondary, opens in a new tab)

A little more The Christmas Chronicles

Film facts &
behind the scenes

For the fans who stay after the credits.

Music & sound

Kurt Russell sings lead on a Little Steven track

The Santa Claus is Back in Town number is credited to Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul with Kurt Russell on lead vocals. It is a track made for the film and has not had a separate release.

Read the story

On your next watchListen for it in the later stretch of the film.

Source: What's on Netflix soundtrack list ↗ (opens in a new tab)

On set

A real-life couple share the screen at the end

Goldie Hawn, Kurt Russell's partner off screen, has a short cameo as Mrs. Claus near the close. The part grew in the sequel, so this first appearance is a small teaser.

Reveal the story · spoiler

Source: /Film ↗ (opens in a new tab) · What's on Netflix ↗ (opens in a new tab)

And at a glance

The Christmas in it: Set on 24 December. Carols and songs heard: Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town, Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane), Please Come Home for Christmas, Santa Claus Is Back in Town. The story is set on Christmas Eve night. Songs listed are those on the film's published soundtrack listing.
Releases and certificates: 22 Nov 2018: On streaming. Released on Netflix as a Netflix original film.

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.