Trailer
Plot summary
In the Middle Ages, a woodcutter called Claus brings his carved toys to village children every Christmas, with Anya, his wife, and the reindeer Donner and Blitzen. A blizzard catches their sleigh, the cold overcomes them, and they wake in the North Pole, where everyone becomes immortal. Elves welcome them, and Dooley, their leader, says their coming was foretold: Claus is to carry elven-made gifts to children everywhere. The Ancient Elf names him Santa Claus and says the night will last as long as he needs to reach every child.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Santa Claus (1985)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Freddie Mercury recorded a demo for the House/Hobbs song at Pinewood Studios but turned the project down, saying Queen had become overcrowded with requests to work on film soundtracks; Sheena Easton was ultimately chosen to record the tune.
- The role of the Ancient Elf was written with James Cagney in mind, but at 84 he turned it down due to being too weakened by age to perform it; Fred Astaire was considered before Dudley Moore suggested his friend Burgess Meredith, who won the role.
- For the role of B.Z. the producers wanted a star of a stature similar to Gene Hackman's Lex Luthor, and offered it to Harrison Ford, Dustin Hoffman, Burt Reynolds and Johnny Carson, who all turned it down; John Lithgow was settled on after Ilya Salkind watched Terms of Endearment.
- John Carpenter was originally offered the chance to direct but wanted a say in the writing, musical score and final cut; his original choice for Santa Claus was Brian Dennehy, and Szwarc felt he needed an actor with more warmth, while Carpenter's demands were too much.
- John Lithgow said in a 2019 interview that Santa Claus was "one of the tackiest movies I've ever been in" and that it certainly never stuck except in England, where it is huge and amounts to half of what he is known for.
- As Jeannot Szwarc mentions on the film's DVD commentary, Paul McCartney was asked to compose songs for the film, though it is unknown why he did not do so in the end.
- David Newman's first script draft named Moore's character Ollie, but Moore decided that the name should be changed to Patch, which was the nickname of his young son.
- The song "It's Christmas (All Over the World)" was written with Freddie Mercury in mind, and he recorded a demo at Pinewood Studios, but turned the film down because Queen had become overcrowded with requests to work on soundtracks; Sheena Easton recorded the tune instead.
