The 10 Best Holiday Movie Tropes in Santas

The new Disney+ series The Santas pick up where Santa Claus The trilogy ended with Scott Calvin and his family enjoying a nice, comfortable life in the North Pole. Tim Allen tells parade that he didn’t think he would reprise that role after the 2006 film: “Nope! Absolutely not [singing] ‘do not ever do that again.'”

The Santas will have six festive and happy episodes, and there are plenty of Christmas movie tropes present throughout. Exploring the world of this cheerful character and his family, the series also features elves working hard to ensure children have a perfect holiday year after year.

A workaholic parent

One of the best Christmas movie tropes is when a character works too much and then finds love. Since they’re meeting their soulmate at the most wonderful time of the year, it’s even sweeter. The Santas contains no love stories in the first episodes. But the show has a workaholic parent in Simon Choksi.

Simon loves his daughter Grace dearly, but he has career ambitions that lead to stress and a busy schedule. There’s definitely hope that this trope catches on so that Simon finds someone to share his life with, or at least some peace and happiness.

lose christmas magic

There’s nothing sadder than when characters stop thinking that Christmas is worth celebrating. In the first episode, Grace explains that kids say “Santa is over” and don’t believe in Christmas magic anymore.

When Santa Claus delivers presents with his pal Noel on Christmas Eve, he is shocked to find that the list of children has dwindled over the years. Santa Claus realizes that people don’t love the holiday as much anymore, which is devastating. This threatens his sense of purpose and makes him wonder what it all means.

Santa Claus and his family

Santa’s best film portrayals often involve his family members as well, and this is always a heartwarming trope. Happily married, Scott loves being a father to his two children and living in the cozy North Pole.

This Santa Claus is busy spreading the Christmas cheer and keeping his workshop running smoothly. He loves his family, but it’s clear from the first few episodes that he doesn’t spend as much time with them as they would like. It’s all part of the trope.

Mrs Clause

While some movies use Christmas movie tropes in a simple way, others are fun or add a twist. That’s what The Santas does with his portrayal of Mrs. Clause.

Mrs. Clause is one of the best characters on the show. Aware of the general meaning of this character, she explains that Mrs. Clause traditionally wears a red and white dress and has no first name. She wonders why she doesn’t know her own name and it’s clear she wants to be more independent.

So that Christmas can still be celebrated

In the original film, Scott is tasked with taking on Santa Claus and his goal is for Christmas to be as wonderful as ever. The trope of making sure the vacation runs smoothly is present in the Disney+ series.

Of course, Christmas stories always have obstacles, and that’s part of the fun of watching. It is clear that like other holiday stories before it, The Santas will have a happy ending, which is what makes the genre so appealing.

Families race for a popular toy

Santa Claus The trilogy has funny characters but also some serious moments. Before becoming the happy and cheerful character he is, Scott works at a toy company and no longer cares about Christmas as he is sad and lonely. Simon has a similar career despite being the CEO of Everything Now.

The image of families trying to buy a popular toy for Christmas has been used in several films, most famously in Jingle all the way. The Santas picks up on this trope by having Simon answer questions on the TV news about why parents can’t find the toys he’s selling in time for the holidays.

Santa Claus has problems with a chimney

Although there are a few twists in Santa Clause in the film’s story, viewers always know what to expect: a man in a red and white outfit who loves cookies, travels in a reindeer sleigh and delivers gifts down a chimney. The series uses the trope that Santa Claus is finding it harder to use the chimney than he expected.

In a sweet and heartwarming scene, Santa visits Sarah, whom he visited in the first film and who is now grown. Santa cannot leave their house down the chimney as he realizes he has lost his magic due to children not believing anymore.

Elves in Santa’s workshop

Another fun factor is seeing the elves in Santa’s workshop. Often the environment is stressful and chaotic, although the elves are having a lot of fun. There are some compelling scenes between Santa and Betty, his chief of staff, who is also married to Noel. Santa Claus relies on Betty to make Christmas as flawless as ever. There’s also a fun version of the Cyndi Lauper song “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” but with new lyrics about the elves.

When Santa jokes about the elves having a holiday, everyone is excited to start preparing toys for next Christmas. It’s clear that the elves love their work and believe that what they do matters.

A family grieving the loss of a parent/partner

The best Hallmark Christmas movies often feature the image of a family who has lost someone. in the The SantasSimon and Grace are grieving the loss of his wife/mother and that loss feels even more painful at Christmas time.

This trope often results in someone falling in love again, whether they have ended their marriage or lost a mate. It’s unclear if that’s going to happen here since Simon’s storyline seems to be mostly job-focused, but it’s definitely a possibility.

Will a new Santa take over?

Several films use the trope of a new Santa Claus donning the red suit and bringing presents to happy and hopeful children. Since Scott becomes Santa Claus in the original 1994 film, it makes sense that in the TV series he would think about passing the torch. Santa Claus is struggling as he has lost his magic and he doesn’t think he has a great future at the North Pole.

As The Santas As we head into the season finale, it will be interesting to see if Scott keeps his job or if he decides to go back to a normal life. One thing is for sure, he loves the joy he brings to children and has treasured every moment of his joyful journey.

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