The Santa Clauses Star Elizabeth Mitchell Talks About Her Modern Mrs. Claus (Exclusive)

In The Santa Clauses, a follow-up to Tim Allen’s beloved trilogy of Santa Clause films, Elizabeth Mitchell reprises her role as Scott’s love interest, now known simply as “Mrs. Claus.” But when Scott and his wife decide it might be time to return to a life without quite so much holiday cheer, there is a conversation about the role that Mrs. Claus plays in Santa’s mythology, and how the part could be modernized a bit. It’s a little big of winking, silly meta-commentary that touches on how a woman’s role is defined when she was developed as a supporting player for a man — especially a man like Santa, who is larger than life in so many ways.

The series tackles this a bit — although obviously not too much, since there’s a lot more going on. That said, Mitchell understands why it took so long for all the “updated Santa takes” to include an updated take on his wife.

“I think that we have such comfort from the classics,” Mitchell said. “We get such comfort from things staying the same, because things change so quickly. And there was something really incredible about coming onto the set as Mrs. Claus. I didn’t have that experience in the first two movies that I did, so to experience littl kids’ faces and all of a sudden the room goes quiet, and it’s really just because I showed up as Mrs. Claus, you can see why it works. It’s that idea we have in our head; it’s ‘mother me,’ it’s comforting. But I also love the idea that she’s a real human person, and she wants to mix it up a little bit and maybe grow and change and find more colors in her life. I think as women, and people, and everybody, we do that all the time. It’s like, ‘Wait a minute. There’s more. I can be more. I’ll just do it!’”

There’s a joke in the series, seen in one of the teasers, where Mrs. Claus bursts out with the realization that she doesn’t even have a first name, having given up her “civilian” identity to take on the role of Santa’s wife. And it’s not unlikely that many fans didn’t realize that was even the case.

“I don’t think she did either,” Mitchell admitted. “I think she was very happy drinking cocoa and reading and not worrying about what she looked like, to be honest with you, but I do think it’s a good experiment, right?”

According to the show’s synopsis, The Santa Clauses will catch up with Calvin on the brink of his 65th birthday as he realizes 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. 

In addition to the returning franchise stars, The Santa Clauses will also feature Allen’s real-life daughter, Elizabeth Allen-Dick, as Scott’s daughter. Other cast members include Austin Kane, Rupali Redd, and Devin Bright as series regulars in addition to Kal Penn who will reportedly appear as a potential successor to Scott as Santa. 

The Santa Clauses premieres today on Disney+.