“We are really focused on continuing our commitment to the authenticity in our storytelling for all of our characters, and making sure that everyone can see themselves represented on Hallmark services,” she said. Michelle Vicary, executive vice president of programming and network publicity at Crown Media Family Networks, the parent company of the Hallmark Channel, said in an interview that her chief goal this year was to make “a bigger holiday table where people can see themselves on TV.” In 2021, Hallmark “will be moving forward, not backward,” she said, with more L.G.B.T.Q. Days later, Hallmark apologized for removing the commercials, and said it would work with GLAAD, the media advocacy organization, “to better represent the L.G.B.T.Q. Last December, the Hallmark Channel faced a firestorm when it pulled four television ads with kissing brides after a conservative group petitioned the network to “reconsider airing commercials with same-sex couples” and to refrain from adding L.G.B.T.Q. What’s most striking about “The Christmas House” is that Brandon and Jake, played by Jonathan Bennett and Brad Harder, are unconditionally accepted as part of the family.
This shift is most seismic for Hallmark, which has become shorthand for “holiday movie.” “The Christmas House” is one of 40 new holiday films released this year on the Hallmark Channel and its sister network Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, the leaders in the holiday moviemaking machine. “Our studio felt confident that the script and Clea’s vision and her ambition were aligned to make a commercial story, and that the quality of her storytelling would bring everybody in. “Film has always been under the assumption that the safest kind of characters are the way to go,” Brown said.
Nicole Brown, the president of TriStar Pictures, which sold “Happiest Season” to Hulu in October, called the queering of the Christmas picture “very organic.” So what took so long? “It’s the start of something bigger,” said Clea DuVall, the director and co-writer of “Happiest Season.” She added, “Networks and streamers are starting to see the value in telling these stories that have always been there but were not given the platform to get out to wider audiences.”Īccording to Hulu, “Happiest Season” is the first holiday rom-com about a same-sex couple from a major Hollywood studio. More under the radar but still noteworthy are two indies: “A New York Christmas Wedding,” a drama on Netflix about a woman who has relationships with both a man and a woman, and the scrappy on-demand “I Hate New Year’s” (for rent on major platforms), a lesbian romance set on New Year’s Eve in Nashville. Others include Hulu’s “Happiest Season,” a lesbian coming-out comedy starring Kristen Stewart “The Christmas Setup,” a Lifetime rom-com debuting Saturday and starring the real-life husbands Ben Lewis and Blake Lee and “Dashing in December,” a drama starting Sunday on the Paramount Network about two men who fall in love on a ranch. “The Christmas House” is one of six new original holiday films released since November with something rare: main characters in same-sex relationships.
But this is disruptive 2020, so here’s the thing: the couple are Brandon and Jake and the channel is Hallmark.
#Christmas gay movies on netflix tv#
The “White Lotus” star, known for playing spacey characters who deliver brilliant one-liners, appears to be at her comedic best in this latest role.Will the adorable couple adopt a baby in time to celebrate Christmas with Mom and Dad and the neighborhood kids? Sounds like a delightful holiday TV movie. It looks like a funny holiday romp all around, but many people online are freaking out about one character in particular in the trailer: Aunt Sandy, played by Jennifer Coolidge. Chambers and Urie star in the first Netflix holiday rom-com to focus on a romance between men. But when Peter’s mother sets him up on a blind date with James (Luke Macfarlane), an awkward romantic triangle ensues. 2, has a classic Christmas rom-com premise: Peter (Michael Urie) doesn’t want to be judged for being single when he goes back home to his small town for Christmas, so he enlists his best friend, Nick (Philemon Chambers), to pose as his boyfriend.
#Christmas gay movies on netflix full#
Netflix just dropped a full trailer for “Single All the Way,” its first holiday romantic comedy featuring gay lead characters.
All we want for Christmas is Jennifer Coolidge!