Richard Curtis and Simon Otto Weave a Heartwarming Tale of Family, Tradition, and Holiday Magic In Netflix’s That Christmas

For fans of heartfelt storytelling and festive nostalgia, That Christmas is set to deliver a cinematic treat. Directed by Simon Otto and written by Oscar-winner Richard Curtis, this animated film brings together Curtis’s signature exploration of love, family, and community with the warmth and whimsy of holiday traditions. 

Based on Curtis’s trilogy of children’s books, That Christmas intertwines a series of holiday tales filled with laughter, love, and a few chaotic surprises. From Santa Claus making a big mistake to families navigating messy relationships and reevaluating traditions, the film captures the humor and heartache of the season. Featuring a stellar voice cast led by Brian Cox as a no-nonsense Father Christmas, the movie promises to enchant audiences of all ages. In a recent interview, Curtis and Otto shared insights into the creative process behind the film, reflecting on personal connections to the story, unique challenges of animation, and the universal truths that make holiday traditions resonate across generations.

In addition to being a renowned children’s book author, Curtis is best known for his work on Love Actually and Notting Hill. What those stories share with That Christmas are the roots in themes of human connection. “I think of Christmas now as the time when you do understand and deal with some of the complexities of family, love, and community,” he explained. “The three books were not bound together, but they were all about kids. When we had the idea of doing [the film], we thought a lot about how would they interact with each other.”

For Otto, known for his work on How to Train Your Dragon, bringing Curtis’ world to life in animation was a creative challenge. “What I found so interesting in this film is to tell a multithreaded storyline in animation,” Otto said. “We’re trying to make the small feel big, right?”

Brian Cox’s portrayal of Santa Claus is one of the film’s most unique choices. The decision to cast him involved a process of pairing voices with character designs. “We would have images of the character and then they would edit together like a minute of bits of films of various actors’ work,” Curtis described. “And so you’d listen to a minute of Brain’s voice over five images of Father Christmas.”

Otto added: “It’s the end of the character design process, right? So we haven’t built the digital puppets yet. We’re just listening to the sound. And the quality of the sound of an actor against the design. And we had heard some clips, like [Brian Cox] just reading good night stories. It was just so charming and beautiful. But we also knew that he had an edge to it.”

Curtis noted that this balance of warmth and grit made Cox a perfect fit. “Yeah, it has to be a bit cross and a bit of panic,” he said. “One of the big things, by the way, is we did want him, Santa, to be from the North.”

Curtis recounted how he approached Ed Sheeran, a friend who lives just 20 miles from where the film is set, to write an original song for the movie. Despite seeing only an early storyboard version of the film, Sheeran quickly embraced the project. “Three days later, he sent me the song, just him and a piano,” Curtis revealed. The track “Under the Tree” became an emotional anchor for the film and energized the entire creative team.

Curtis emphasized that while That Christmas centers on children, its themes resonate universally. “I hope that the real subjects are love, family, community, and everything like that,” he said. “And I do hope that it will be one of those movies that you watch, that it’ll ring bells, and maybe at the end of the movie you hug your kids or your husband a little bit tighter after having watched the movie.”

Releasing on Netflix on December 4, it’s a film Curtis cheekily suggests could offer an alternative to his iconic Love Actually. “There’s no nudity in this one,” he joked.