7 Classic Movies That Released in Christmas Week

With the rise of streaming, the theatrical industry has been hurting, but there’s at least one day of the 365 per year that is a can’t miss for big screens. That would be Christmas, so it makes sense that, for decades now, studios have been debuting high-profile movies between December 19th and December 25th. Christmas Day itself also tends to be when studios debut a big budget adventure they’re pretty sure is going to fail, so why not open it when audiences are guaranteed to being going to the theater. For instance, The Spirit in 2008 and 47 Ronin in 2013. There have also been some odd choices to release around the holidays, too, like Hellbound: Hellraiser II in 1988, Trespass in 1992, Street Fighter in 1994, Dracula 2000 in, well, 2000, and Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem in 2007. But, today, we’re going to be focusing on the best movies released during Christmas week. If they were odd choices, they were still subject to inclusion. It just came down to overall quality of the film.

However, they had to be wide releases within that time frame, not limited release Oscar-qualifying debuts like A Beautiful Mind, Monster, Match Point, Children of Men, and The Revenant. Audiences across United States (and the world in most cases) had to have had access to the film.

7) Django Unchained (12/25/12)

One might not immediately think of Quentin Tarantino as a director whose movies are natural fits for Christmastime, but there’s actually a bit of history of that being exactly the case. Jackie Brown premiered on December 8, 1997, and went wide on Christmas Day. Django Unchained debuted on December 11, 2012, and also went wide on the 25th. And, most recently, The Hateful Eight debuted on December 7, 2015, and went wide on, you guessed it, December 25th.

Any one of these three movies could serve as the owner of this entry, but we’re giving it to Django Unchained. One has to wonder why Christmas was chosen as the wide release date for these movies. The latter two are fairly long, so perhaps they provided an opportunity for some families to spend an extended amount of time together without getting into arguments. And, to a degree, it makes sense for Django and Hateful to have been released in the holiday season given how the former has a chunk set during the wintertime while the latter is coated top to bottom in snow. But, in terms of narratives, they are not particularly jolly.

Stream Django Unchained on Paramount+.

6) Tombstone (12/24/93)

Arguably the most important film of Kurt Russell’s career, Tombstone is many film fans’ pick for the greatest Western there is. And as Tarantino’s Christmas releases have proved, Christmas is actually a pretty solid time to release a Western, though one wouldn’t immediately assume that would be the case.

Tombstone is such a well-cast, tightly paced, and thoroughly entertaining film that, even if one doesn’t think it’s the best Western of all time, they must admit it’s the most rewatchable. Val Kilmer’s performance as Doc Holliday alone is nothing short of magnetic. Everything that Wyatt Earp, the slog with Kevin Costner, attempted to be Tombstone pulled off perfectly. Films that debut around Christmas need to be one thing first and foremost, and that’s entertaining. People are either happy or sad on Christmas; there isn’t much between. So, if they’re happy, they don’t want a movie that is going to yank them down and, if they’re sad, they want a movie that is going to pick them up. Tombstone is just such a movie.

Stream Tombstone on fuboTV.

5) As Good as It Gets (12/23/97)

James L. Brooks’ three most recent movies, Spanglish, Ella McKay and How Do You Know, both hit theaters in December to the tune of poor reviews and even worse box office hauls. But it’s easy to see why he and the studios funding his movies thought it would be a good idea to release his feel-good movies at this time of the year, because it worked out magnificently for his As Good as It Gets.

But what As Good as It Gets proves is that to be feel-good isn’t enough to succeed around Christmas. It also needs to display human emotions and growth that feel organic to the characters. Spanglish, Ella McKay, and, especially, How Do You Know are all very hollow movies. As Good as It Gets is moving, heartfelt, and features phenomenal performances by Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt, and Greg Kinnear. It was the ideal movie to release on Christmas Day, and it remains a favorite in many households to this day.

Stream As Good as It Gets on Netflix.

4) Cast Away (12/22/00)

One of the great survival dramas, Cast Away can be a sad movie, but its tone is overall very accessible (as all Robert Zemeckis movies are) and very much the type of thing that excels around the holidays. And it did, ultimately netting nearly $430 million worldwide on a $90 million price tag.

Cast Away was the choice for general audiences in 2000, even though The Family Man, which was released the same day, was timelier to the frame. If Cast Away is about anything it’s about hope and valuing the connections to others in your life. That’s pretty much what Christmas is all about, too. Toss in the film’s engrossing concept, how beloved Tom Hanks was in the early aughts (not that he’s unpopular now) and it’s easy to see how this film was such a cultural event.

Stream Cast Away on Netflix.

3) Titanic (12/19/97)

A massive box office juggernaut that broke record after record, James Cameron’s Titanic was, of course, not the last of his movies to nab Christmastime release dates. All three of the Avatar movies, which are the only movies he’s made since Titanic‘s release, were debuted in December.

The historical drama slash romance even had some particularly steep competition. It opened the same day as the Bond adventure Tomorrow Never Dies and was facing the solid second weekend of Scream 2. It got used to that top spot, too, as Cameron’s sweeping epic was the number one pick for a massive 15 consecutive weekends.

Stream Titanic on fuboTV.

2) The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (12/19/01)

One of the best Oscar-winning movies of all time, Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring was a revelation. It took what was previously a niche world and invited everyone inside, and there weren’t many who passed on the opportunity.

This was the exact type of blockbuster to release around Christmas. Its messages of hope and friendship were perfect holiday fare and the franchise kept to that release time frame. The Two Towers, The Return of the King, The Hobbit trilogy, and the animated The Lord of the Rings: The War of Rohirrim also debuted in December (it didn’t work out so great for Rohirrim).

Stream The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring on HBO Max.

1) Scream (12/20/96)

A chilling, funny, and supremely well-acted classic from Wes Craven, Scream is solely responsible for revitalizing the horror genre in the late ’90s. It’s a masterpiece, and an incredibly rewatchable timepiece for those who love the decade in which it was released.

Even still, it’s not the type of movie you would expect to debut around Christmas. It has moments of levity, but it also has a young woman getting her head crunched in a high lift garage door.

Stream Scream on Paramount+.

Netflix Lost 3 Christmas Movies at Once (Including One of the Best Christmas Movies of All Time)