The 2023 /Film Holiday Gift Guide: Action Figures, Toys, Collectibles, Games, Prop Replicas & More

SlashFilm

By Ethan AndertonUpdated: Dec. 8, 2023 11:56 pm EST

It's time to wrap up the 2023 /Film Holiday Gift Guide with what kids of all ages want for Christmas: toys and collectibles! Sure, it might seem unwise to spend your money on molded plastic and various other materials in this economy, but if we're going to engage in capitalism when Christmas is just around the corner, we might as well buy things that bring us joy.

In this installment of the gift guide, we've got quite a collection of action figures and whatnot from the "Star Wars," "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," "Jurassic Park" and Marvel Studios franchises. Plus, there's an eclectic assortment of Funko POPs, some fun board games inspired by movies and TV shows, and plenty of LEGO sets to build. On the pricier side, you can also snag some superb prop replicas and other high-end collectibles. There's something for movie fans of every kind here, so let's dig in!

Get building with LEGO sets

LEGO

This year has delivered a spectacular mix of LEGO sets, ranging from awesome modular buildings to incredible vehicles from our favorite franchise. Whether it's the Ghost and Phantom II that came from "Star Wars Rebels" into "Ahsoka," or a model of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry castle grounds with magical secrets, or a slickly engineered Indiana Jones LEGO set that brings the opening scene of "Raiders of the Lost Ark" to life, LEGO has delivered some of the coolest pieces of memorabilia. Most recently, they unveiled a massive building brick version of Avengers Tower from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And even though it's not from a movie, there's a set of the Orient Express train, which you can use to create your own makeshift "Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One" LEGO set.

Star Wars

Harry Potter

LEGO

The Battle of Hogwarts
Diagon Alley: Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes
Expecto Patronum
Hogwarts Castle and Grounds
Hogwarts Castle Common Room – Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Slythierin
Hogwarts Express & Hogsmeade Station
Hogwarts – Room of Requirement
Quidditch Trunk
Triwizard Tournament: The Black Lake

Marvel and DC Comics

LEGO

Disney

LEGO

Jurassic Park

LEGO

Indiana Jones

LEGO

Other Pop Culture LEGO Sets

LEGO

Enter the DC Multiverse with McFarlane Toys

McFarlane Toys

McFarlane Toys has been churning out endless variations of DC Comics superheroes and villains for years now. Many of them come from the pages of comic books, but we always like to see the figures based on the big screen adaptations of DC characters, and this year's line-up also includes some figures from the small screen too. Along with the sequels to "Shazam!" and "Aquaman," we've got the solo outings for "The Flash" and "Blue Beetle." On top of that, we get a few other iterations of Batman from the past, including figures from "Batman: The Animated Series," Christopher Nolan's "Dark Knight" trilogy, and "Batman & Robin." Lots of good stuff here!

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom

Blue Beetle

Batman and Robin (Mr. Freeze Build-a-Figure)

Batman: The Animated Series (Condiment King Build-a-Figure)

McFarlane Toys

The Dark Knight Trilogy (Bane Build-a-Figure)

The Flash

Shazam: Fury of the Gods

Shazam!

Journey into the MCU with Marvel Legends

Hasbro

Over in the Marvel Legends line, there's even more to choose from. That because on top of all the theatrical releases from Marvel Studios, we also have all those TV shows getting action figures now too. Alongside the return of characters from "Ant-Man," "Guardians of the Galaxy," "The Marvels," and the Spider-Man franchise, we've got an assortment of figures from the likes of "Hawkeye" and "WandaVision." Hasbro is also updating certain movies from The Infinity Saga with new figures that needed better head sculpts. But that's not all; we also have the animated side of Marvel, which includes "What If...?" and the forthcoming "X-Men '97," as well as "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse."

Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Hawkeye

The Infinity Saga

Hasbro

The Marvels

Secret Invasion

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Spider-Man: No Way Home

Hasbro

WandaVision

Marvel's What If...?

X-Men '97

Enter the Star Wars universe

Hasbro

There are always ample amounts of "Star Wars" figures hitting shelves. That's what happens when you have a franchise that's been around for nearly 50 years that continues to expand. In fact, with Disney+ making the "Star Wars" universe even more prominent, there are more new "Star Wars" figures than ever, especially with the Black Series and Vintage Collection growing simultaneously. This year marked the 40th anniversary of "Return of the Jedi," so we highlighted some of the re-released figures that got a bit harder to find for awhile. But we've also cherry-picked new figures from "Andor," "Obi-Wan Kenobi," "Ahsoka," "The Book of Boba Fett," and "The Mandalorian." There are also the silly holiday figures that turn certain "Star Wars" troopers, droids, and creatures into Christmas-themed creations.

Return of the Jedi 40th Anniversary

Andor

The Mandalorian

Obi-Wan Kenobi

Hasbro

The Book of Boba Fett

Ahsoka (Star Wars Rebels)

Star Wars: Holiday Figures

Hasbro

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

Hasbro

For fans of the video game side of the "Star Wars" universe, there's a Starkiller and Troopers deluxe figure set that includes the powerful main characters from "The Force Unleashed" video game franchise, as well as a couple of stormtroopers for him to mess up. Starkiller comes with an outstanding assembly of accessories, including Force blasts, energy explosions, Force lighting, lightsaber pieces that makes it look like the blades (both red and blue) are in motion, and several head sculpts. Even if you don't care about "The Force Unleashed," this set is worth buying for the accessories alone.

The Vintage Collection

Star Wars Vintage Collection N-1 Starfighter

Hasbro

We're not going to dig into the Vintage Collection as deep as the Black Series, because they're not churning out figures as often. But there are a few stellar additions that are worth highlighting. First of all, the N-1 Starfighter from "The Mandalorian" has finally been released, and it looks spectacular. Even though you probably have enough versions of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader, there's a two-pack that comes with a battle-damaged Darth Vader, featuring that cool slashed helmet. And finally, Sabine Wren gets a cool deluxe figure that comes loaded with accessories, including a cute little lothcat as her buddy. Honestly, I wish more "Star Wars" figures got the deluxe treatment like this.

Heroes in a half-shell...Turtle Power!

Playmates

We've already provided a close-up look at the outstanding action figures for "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem," but the line is already expanding with more of the mutants, including a big "Mega Mutant" version of the mutated Super Fly (though he's not nearly as big as he should be, when compared to the movie's scale). There are even figures of the adorable kid versions of the turtles, affectionately labeled as "Turtle Tots."

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem

Playmates

Aside from the figures, there's also an outstanding new Sewer Playset that takes some cues from the original sewer playset from the Playmates toyline from the '90s. Plus, you can get the Pizza Fire Delivery Van for the turtles to cruise around in and shoot pizzas from. The new figures, vehicles, and playset for "Mutant Mayhem" really capture the spirit of the classic toys while bringing new style to them.

Classic Playmates Re-Releases

Playmates

Did you know Playmates has been re-releasing the classic "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" toys from the '90s? They started with the basic turtles, but they also sent out a multi-pack of the original villains: Shredder, Krang, Bebop, and Rocksteady. Plus, they dug into some of the cool variants, such as the Mutatin' line, that allows you to transform the heroes into unmutated turtles. There's also the classic Movie Star versions of the turtles, with skin details that more accurately represented the movies, as well as the Storage Shell figures, which hide weapons in their backs. They even brought back the old Turtle Van Party Wagon!

Mutatin' Turtles (Target Exclusives): Leo, Raph, Donnie, Mikey
Movie Star Turtles
Storage Shell Turtles
Classic Villains (Shredder, Krang, Rocksteady, Bebop)
Turtle Van Party Wagon

NECA

NECA

NECA is still delivering new action figures inspired by the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" movies and animated series, but the former collection may be running out of characters. They just released a two-pack of Professor Perry from "The Secret of the Ooze," as well as an Ultimate version of Shredder in the sequel. From the animated series, we've got an Ultimate version of April O'Neil. They're all packed with plenty of accessories.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze – Professor Perry Two-Pack
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze – Ultimate Shredder
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Animated Series – Ultimate April O'Neil (No longer available)

Super7

Super7

Super7 has yet another wave of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" Ultimates figures up for pre-order, but only until December 15. This Ultimates line has been providing upgraded, and more detailed versions of the action figures original released by Playmates in the '90s. This time, Wave 11 gives us Rapper Mike, Ninja Nomad Leonardo, Rat King, and a Battle Damaged Foot Soldier. You can grab them all for $220, which includes a special pack of extra weapons for each figure, or if you only want specific figures, they're $55 each.

Welcome to Jurassic Park

Mattel

In case you haven't heard, Mattel has an impressive collection of action figures based on the "Jurassic Park" and "Jurassic World" franchises, including both humans and dinosaurs. More recently, the Jurassic World Legacy Collection and Hammond Collecton toy lines have been digging into franchise history with new action figures, vehicles, and dinosaurs based on scenes from the movies. We've rounded up our favorites from "Jurassic Park" and "The Lost World," as well as one from "Jurassic Park III" that you just can't resist. The details on the humans aren't great, but the accessories for them are oustanding. For my money, it's the vehicles and the dinosaurs (especially that Hammond Collection T-Rex) that make this line worth seeking out for display. And make sure you get that awesome Steven Spielberg figure from Mattel Creations.

Mattel

Mattel Creations

Jurassic Park Steven Spielberg Action Figure

Mattel

It's morphin' time!

Power Rangers Tommy Oliver Master Morpher

Hasbro

Hasbro has been unfolding the Lightning Collection of "Power Rangers" for awhile now, covering the various iterations of the teenage superheroes. For the most part, we're only interested in the original "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" line-up, and even though they've already covered all of those Power Rangers in previous action figure lines, a new remastered line of figures provides additional accessories and updated head sculpts. Plus, for the roleplaying fans out there, there's a new Tommy Oliver Master Morpher that includes all of Tommy's power coins from over the years. It might be sold out already, so you may have to seek it out on the secondary market.

Hasbro Lightning Collection (Remastered Line)

Power Rangers Lightning Collection Figures

Hasbro

Adventure has a name

Hasbro

Hasbro unleashed a whole new collection of Indiana Jones figures this year, stretching from the new adventure in "Dial of Destiny" back to the debut of the man with the hat in "Raiders of the Lost Ark." What's great is that each of the action figure waves lets you build the key artifacts from the original trilogy, if you collect all the figures in that line. If you're a "Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" fan, you'll be disappointed to see the film hasn't been covered here at all, but otherwise, this is a stellar assortment of Indiana Jones action figures. (Ethan Anderton)

Raiders of the Lost Ark (Build an Artifact – The Ark of the Covenant)

Temple of Doom and Dial of Destiny (Build an Artifact – Temple Skull and Sankara Stones)

Hasbro

The Last Crusade and Dial of Destiny (Build an Artifact – Grail Table with Holy Grail)

Hasbro

All Other Figures (No Pieces to Build Artifact)

Hasbro

What's this? There's Nightmare Before Christmas dolls everywhere!

Nightmare Before Christmas 30th Anniversary Limited Edition Doll Set

Disney

It's been 30 years since "The Nightmare Before Christmas" hit theaters and became an instant holiday classic that works on Halloween and Christmas. To celebrate, Disney is releasing a special limited edition doll set featuring Jack Skellington and Sally and a wonderful display to show them off. Skellington comes with a Santa Claus suit so he can be suited up as Santa Jack, and his ghost dog Zero is included, as well as multiple heads for different facial expressions on each doll.

This is a limited edition release with only 3,700 available for fans. Grab it at ShopDisney now.

Super Mario Bros. The Movie levels up!

Universal Pictures

"The Super Mario Bros. Movie" made huge waves at the box office earlier this year, and when you have a hit animated movie based on a beloved video game franchise that's been around for decades, you have the perfect opportunity for plenty of merchandise. When it comes to the best goods, the action figure line inspired by the movie is pretty dang good. On top of that, though they're not directly tied to the movie, the Super Mario LEGO sets that feature interactive electronic elements are an outstanding adaptation of the classic video games.

Action Figures

LEGO Sets

LEGO

Over at LEGO, they've got a series of playsets that actually work in tandem with each other thanks to a buildable LEGO Mario figure with expressive responses and iconic sounds that interact with the playset pieces. There are starter packs featuring Mario, Luigi, and Princess Peach, and all of those sets can be used with various expansion packs that include Bowser, Donkey Kong, and familiar locations from the Mario video games. There's also a cool adult collector set that let's you build one of the Piranha Plants.

Pacific Rim: Jaegers vs Kaiju

McFarlane Toys

When "Pacific Rim" hit theaters, the toy makers at NECA had the duty of delivering action figures inspired by the Jaegers and kaiju that fought each other and destroyed buildings around the world. They were fantastic, detailed figures, but they were missing the destruction that makes the fighting between Jaegers and kaiju so exciting. That's where the new line of "Pacific Rim" action figures from McFarlane Toys comes into play.

The new "Pacific Rim" figure and playset collection features 4-inch figures of various Jaegers and kaiju, but along with them comes buildings that can be wrecked and tiny military vehicles like helicopters and tanks to toss around, perfect for creating destruction. But that's not all, because each figure set comes with a comic book too. There's a cool Starter Pack that comes with Striker Eureka, Gipsy Danger and Raiju, as well as four rebuildable towers, four street sections and 24 vehicles. Otherwise, each figure set comes with a tower, street section, and two vehicles. Other than the Starter Pack (which is currently out of stock at Amazon, so keep checking back), here's the full roster of the first wave right here:

Kaiju

Jaegers

McFarlane's Movie Maniacs have returned

McFarlane Toys

Back in the '90s, McFarlane Toys were giving adult collectors incredibly detailed action figures that most toy manufacturers weren't providing to grown up fans. Nowadays, plenty of toy makers are catering to the older fans, but McFarlane is still at it. This year they relaunched their Movie Maniacs line, providing detailed action figures of various characters from movies and TV shows, and they're typically characters that aren't usually given this kind of action figure treatment.

For example, the first wave included these characters:

More recently, McFarlane did an entire line of "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" figures for all four characters used in the movie:

McFarlane Toys

As of now, the Movie Maniacs has expanded to included these characters:

Funky Funko POPs

Funko

There are so many Funko POPs out there that a ton of them ended up in a landfill. It seems like Funko has cut back somewhat as far as how many characters from movies and TV shows get the Funko POP treatment, but there are still plenty being made all the time. If anything, Funko has tried to make the POP figures a little more unique, rather than relying on the basic POP design that once defined the figures. Since it would take far too long to list all the new figures from 2023, we've highlighted some of our favorites here.

Funko

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers

Funko

Yellowjackets Season 2

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The Nightmare Before Christmas 30th Anniversary

Funko

The Muppet Christmas Carol

Funko

Deluxe, Rides, and Moments

Funko

MGA's Miniverse Holiday Series with Elf Spaghetti

MGA Miniverse

MGA's Miniverse line of tiny foods allows kids and adults to prep, set, and display adorable little meal replicas. Using tiny ingredients and utensils, you can put together plates of delicious little food, and this year there's a holiday series that features a gingerbread house, mugs of hot chocolate, and a full turkey with dressing. Each MGA Miniverse container comes with a random item to create, and you simply follow the "recipe" card on the back to prep it. Once you've finished creating your mini creation, set your replica in any UV light until the resin has hardened. Once it's set, you've got a holiday collectible ready for display!

Why are we including this here? Because the holiday series includes a rare "Elf" spaghetti dish in the roster. It might be hard to find, but if you get it, you'll get tiny noodles, marshmallows, syrup, candy canes, and sprinkles to create Buddy the Elf's famous spaghetti. Plus, it comes with the Christmas card Buddy makes for his father, featuring a tiny illustration of himself. It's pretty dang cute, and if you want to give the kids something to occupy their time, or you like piecing together food models yourself, then this is a fun treat. Find it at Walmart for around $10, but beware that you might not get the "Elf" spaghetti!

The Noble Collection

Noble Collection

The Noble Collection has a few key licenses that allow them to make outstanding prop replicas inspired by the Harry Potter franchise, Middle-earth, "Game of Thrones," and a few other key properties. Their Harry Potter collection is easily the most impressive, with prop replicas of Voldemort's various horcruxes, Harry Potter's Firebolt broomstick, the Marauder's Map, and more. Prepare to take the One Ring to Mordor with the sword Sting and an Elven Brooch to keep your cloak secure, but not until you've smoked out of Gandalf's pipe. Collect dragon eggs from "Game of Thrones," or prepare for brightest day and darkest night with the Green Lantern and its ring. Perhaps you'd just like to play a game of Jumanji with a carefully crafted prop replica of the game from the original movie. Just stay out of the jungle.

Harry Potter

Noble Collection

Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit

Noble Collection

Game of Thrones and DC Comics

Noble Collection

Special shoutout to this "Jumanji" replica. It isn't quite as great as it would be if it were made out of wood, but when it comes to an affordable prop replica of the game that you can actually play, this is pretty much as good as you can get.

Perfect prop replicas

SlashFilm

For the die hard cinephile, having artifacts from the movies you love is a great way to show your fandom. Sadly, getting ahold of any real props from movies is rather pricey. But slightly more affordable are prop replicas that bring home some of the most awesome pieces of movie history. Whether it's an elegant weapon from a more civilized age like Ahsoka's lightsaber or the deadly tomahawk wielded by DC's Peacemaker, there are weapons ready for display. For those who aren't preparing for battle, you can collect dino DNA in a cryogenic canister from "Jurassic Park" or wipe away memories with the "Men in Black" neuralyzer. Take a sip from the Holy Grail from "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade," or summon spirits with the party hand from "Talk to Me." Catch ghosts with the "Ghostbusters" Ghost Trap and PKE Meter, only available until December 12 from HasLab. Keep in mind, it takes a long time to produce these high quality items, so some of these are pre-orders that won't be fulfilled for awhile.

Star Wars

Marvel and DC Comics

SlashFilm

More Movie & TV Prop Replicas

Paragon FX Group

SlashFilm

Games of all kinds!

Disney

Disney's Lorcana

You might have already heard about Disney's Lorcana, because the new trading card game has been taking the industry by storm. Cards are hard to find and selling out everywhere, and the game had incredible hype out of D23 Expo before it was even released. The gameplay isn't dissimilar from Magic: The Gathering or Pokémon, but it uses Disney characters, locations, and elements in its own universe. You'll want to begin with a starter deck, which includes all the fundamentals you need to begin, including the rules and a booster pack with cards that will enhance your starter deck, with the possibility of finding more rare cards that will make your deck stronger for battle. The game launched back in August, but Rise of the Floodborn decks are now expanding the game, with many more new cards on the way. Finding cards can be difficult right now, but if you get your hands on some and like trading card games, this one is a lot of fun.

The Arkham Asylum Files: Panic in Gotham City

New technology has made board games more sophisticated than ever. When it comes to Infinite Rabbit Holes' game The Arkham Asylum Files: Panic in Gotham City, augmented reality tech using phones and tablets helps provide a game that is a board game, an escape room, a puzzle box, and even an animated/live-action series with a mystery adventure to bring players into the heart of Gotham City. There are multiple chapters with immersive gameplay that will really bring some refreshing excitement to game night.

Villainous

Disney

The Villainous games from Disney have become big hits, and after the success of the Disney debut game, they've since expanded into Marvel and Star Wars territory. In this tabletop card game, you'll become a villain in those respective universes and use your own unique card decks to achieve your individual goals in order to become the biggest bad of them all. There are various versions of the Villainous games, including multiple in the Star Wars and Marvel universes. Below are the newest titles to hit shelves, featuring a variety of new bad guys to play with. This one is fun for the whole family, so enjoy!

Oscilloscope's Celluloid

Oscilloscope's Celluloid card game looks like one of those games where you really need to play it in order to get the hang of it, but at the very least, it looks intriguing for all the movie fans out there. As the site describes the game:

Celluloid is the action-packed, lightning-quick multiplayer card game that uses images and word prompts to trigger memories and creativity. Use the cards you're dealt to build your answer – A real movie or TV show – and watch your friends rack their brains to guess correctly.

It looks like the cards set the stage for the dealer, and it's up to the rest of the players to figure out what movie the cards have triggered in the dealer's head. Sounds like it could be challenging and fun for all you cinephiles out there.

An Assortment of Fun

Ravensburger

For a little card battling action, check out the Star Wars Deckbuilding Game, where over 50 different cards allow players to take command of their favorite Star Wars characters, vehicles and starships, each with thematic abilities, such as the Death Star and the Rebels' base on Hoth. Meanwhile, the Lord of the Rings Adventure Book Game takes players through the journey of the movies by utilizing a unique "game book" with pages that turn to new boards representing pivotal scenes. Finally, the Nightmare Before Christmas premium dice set isn't a specific game, but they will bring some stop-motion style to your next game night that requires dice.

Fancy a Game of Chess?

Noble Collection

You can never go wrong with a good chess set. One of the best that I've seen is easily The Noble Collection's Harry Potter Wizard Chess set, inspired by the final challenge in "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone." Right alongside it is their "Lord of the Rings" chess set, which is positioned on an incredible 3D board resembling the architecture of Gondor. Within the board is an ancient map of Middle-earth mounted below the playing surface, and the base features actual images of the memorable characters and scenes. You can also play some Tridimensional Chess from "Star Trek" for a new challenge, or classic chess with some high quality pewter pieces featuring the characters of "Star Wars."

Video Games

SlashFilm

Video games based on or inspired by movies aren't as prominent as they used to be, but there are still some fun ones out there. "Spider-Man 2" is the hit sequel to the PlayStation take on the webslinger, and "Star Wars Jedi: Survivor" picks up the story after "Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order." Then we have "Alien: Dark Descent" and "Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora," immersing you in the cinematic worlds of James Cameron (and Ridley Scott). Plus, did you know there's a new "TRON" game? If you'd rather go retro, the original "Gargoyles" video game has been remastered and released, so you can relive your childhood fun. Or maybe you'd like to race with "Shrek" and "Kung Fu Panda" characters. See if anything here can keep you busy for awhile!

New Theory 11 cards!

Theory 11

Head over to the Theory 11 website to get your hands on stylish new playing cards inspired by some of your favorite movies and TV shows. Play standard card games with them or keep them pristine for a new collection. These cards have shimmering elements that make them look cooler than any regular deck of cards you've ever seen, and each of the cards has artwork featuring characters, vehicles, and elements from the respective franchises, making any regular card game a little more cool. Stay tuned to Theory 11 on December 15 for a new "Wonka" card deck that's on the way.

Theory 11