No, there’s no place like home for the holidays. But no matter how far away you roam you can find your favorite holiday movies wherever on streaming services.
From the classics of your childhood to the new favorites to the unconventional, here is a list of holiday films and where to find them online.
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1. Muppet Christmas Carol – Disney+
Disney+ restored the theatrical version of the 1992 film starring the Muppets as characters in the iconic Charles Dickens story and Michael Caine as Ebenezer Scrooge. This was the first Muppet movie that was made after the death of Muppets creator Jim Henson, and it has a special place in many people’s hearts.
2. Nothing Like the Holidays – Tubi, Amazon
Dysfunctional family movies are a Christmas subgenre and this 2008 film has all the hallmarks. A Puerto Rican family comes together for what could be their last Christmas.
3. Falling for Christmas – Netflix
Lindsay Lohan makes a big comeback in this new Netflix film for 2022. A newly-engaged heiress has amnesia after a skiing accident and finds herself spending Christmas with the lodge owner who found her.
4. The Christmas Chronicles – Netflix
Kurt Russell dazzled as Santa Claus in this 2018 Netflix film about a brother and sister who try to catch the big red man on camera and get more than they bargained for.
5. Elf – HBO Max
Chances are that even if you’re not a Will Ferrell fan, you’re a fan of this 2003 comedy about a human raised by Santa’s head elf at the North Pole who goes to New York City to find his birth father – who is not a fan of Christmas.
6. Die Hard – Hulu
Is any Christmas movie list complete without Die Hard? Of course, not everyone agrees. But even Bruce Willis himself will tell you this action-thriller is a Christmas movie at heart. And who is going to argue with Bruce Willis?
7. Gremlins – HBO Max
A teen gets more than he bargained for in a Christmas pet in this 1984 film. Do sets full of Christmas decorations make a movie a Christmas film? We’ll let you decide.
8. A Charlie Brown Christmas – Apple TV
“Isn’t there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?” Charlie Brown exclaims as he battles with commercialism and competition in the search for the true meaning of Christmas. You won’t find this Christmas classic on regular TV this year, only on Apple TV.
9. Love Actually – Peacock
Christmas is the backdrop for this 2003 romantic comedy about eight couples dealing with the tangle of their love lives. For many, Christmas isn’t Christmas without this film.
10. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation – HBO Max
It wouldn’t be a vacation for the Griswolds if everything worked out, and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation from 1989 is no exception. But then, isn’t chaos what makes a family holiday perfect?
11. A Christmas Story – HBO Max
HBO Max has all of the Christmas Story films, including the new A Christmas Story Christmas featuring a grown-up Ralphie Parker (Pete Billingsley). Do you have a favorite scene in this holiday classic?
12. Home Alone – Disney+
Disney+ is where you’ll find the 1990 classic Home Alone, in which Macaulay Culkin is accidentally left behind for the family Christmas trip and has to defend his home from burglars. Disney+ has the sequels too.
13. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (live-action) – HBO Max, Hulu
Jim Carrey’s titular Grinch is a tour-de-force in this live-action adaptation of the Dr. Seuss Christmas tale about a green recluse who must stop Christmas in Whoville from coming.
14. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (animated) – Peacock
If you’re a bigger fan of the 1966 animated film narrated by Boris Karloff, Peacock is where you’ll find it.
15. Scrooged – Amazon Prime
There are some two dozen Christmas Carol adaptations out there, and Scrooged is right near the top of the list. Bill Murray stars as Frank Cross, a TV executive who wants to capitalize on Christmas, and gets his visits from the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future. For a more traditional Christmas Carol, check out the 1984 adaptation on Amazon Prime, featuring an all-star cast led by George C. Scott as the eponymous Scrooge.
16. It’s a Wonderful Life – Amazon Prime
No Christmas film list is complete without this classic from 1946. Jimmy Stewart’s George Bailey gets his wish on Christmas Eve and sees just how much his life has meant to so many in his town and beyond.
17. Jingle All the Way – Hulu
How many parents (or kids) have a Christmas toy war story? Be it Cabbage Patch dolls or Tickle Me Elmos, parents definitely have trauma from trying to get their kids the perfect Christmas present. But how many have gone to the extremes that Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sinbad go to?
18. Miracle on 34th Street – Disney+
Edmund Gwenn is the perfect Santa Claus in this classic from 1947 that also stars Maureen O’Hara and a young Natalie Wood. Did you know the film was actually released in May of 1947 because the studio head at Fox thought more people go to the movies when the weather is warmer?
19. The Santa Clause – Disney+
What happens if something happens to Santa Claus? Tim Allen finds out the hard way in this 1994 film that spawns two sequels plus a new mini-series, all of which are on Disney+.
20. Krampus – Peacock
Not all Christmas stories are holly jolly so why should all Christmas movies be? In Krampus, a kid accidentally summons the legendary demon who punishes non-believers, and his dysfunctional family has to fight for its life.
21. Unaccompanied Minors – HBO Max
Flying by yourself as a kid can be scary and exhilarating. But the kids in this 2006 film are hardly by themselves after they get snowed in at an airport over the holidays.
22. Spirited – Apple TV
Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds sing and dance in this modern twist on “A Christmas Carol” that will (hopefully!) have you questioning how you use social media.
23. Rare Exports – Tubi
Santa Claus is real, but he’s not the St. Nick you know. This Finnish horror film from 2010 puts a new spin on the classic Christmas story.
What is your favorite Christmas movie? Tell us in the comments below.
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