The Santa Clauses Teaser: Tim Allen Needs To Find The New Santa
At this point, we should probably just take it for granted that if you can think up a nostalgia-heavy Disney legacy sequel, reboot, remake, or revival you can think of, the Mouse House will most likely make it. So while we're sitting here waiting for the live-action re-do of "A Goofy Movie" (give us Bruno Mars as Powerline, baby!), let's talk about "The Santa Clauses."
Tim Allen, aka the man who voiced the toy inspired by the movie about the human Buzz Lightyear, reprises his role as cynical toy salesman-turned jolly ol' gift-deliverer Scott Calvin for "The Santa Clauses," a sequel series to the three "Santa Clause" films Disney made from 1994 to 2006. With his 65th birthday right around the corner, Scott realizes the time has come for him to pass his Santa hat to someone else. Seeing as he would prefer to find a replacement without having to fall to his death off a roof and hope the first person to put on his suit is good Santa material (yeah, that scene in "The Santa Clause" was pretty morbid in hindsight), Scott sets out from the North Pole in search of his successor.
With "The Santa Clauses" slated to premiere on Disney+ in the near future, Disney unveiled a sneak peek at the show during the D23 Expo. More on that below.
The Santa Clauses teaser
Jack Burditt, the creator of Allen's sitcom "Last Man Standing," is serving as show-runner and an executive producer on "The Santa Clauses," with Jason Winer ("Modern Family") directing. Among those joining Allen in the cast are Elizabeth Mitchell and David Krumholtz as, respectively, Scott's wife Carol Calvin-Claus and his right-hand elf Bernard from the previous "Santa Clause" movies. Kal Penn also stars as Simon Choksi, a career-driven game inventor and single dad who dreams of being the next Jeff Bezos but might just end up changing his mind after a surprise visit to the North Pole. (Nudge nudge, wink wink.)
Your guess is as good as mine, so far as how much nostalgia people actually have for Allen's comedy heyday in the 1990s. That said, if the longevity of "Last Man Standing" if any indicator (that show ran nine, count 'em, nine seasons), Disney's got the right idea tapping into it sooner than later. We'll see how that strategy works for the Mouse when "The Santa Clauses" hits Disney+ this fall.
In the Disney+ series, Scott Calvin is on the brink of his 65th birthday and realizing that he can't be Santa forever. He's starting to lose a step in his Santa duties, and more importantly, he's got a family who could benefit from a life in the normal world, especially his two kids who have grown up at the Pole. With a lot of elves, children, and family to please, Scott sets out to find a suitable replacement Santa while preparing his family for a new adventure in a life south of the pole.