Unravel the Mysteries of the Netflix Christmas Universe
Where and when does this take place?
Most of the proceedings take place in the five boroughs of present-day New York City, with our protagonist, Layla, hailing from Poughkeepsie. In another movie, we find ourselves in the small, snowy fictional town of Hope Springs, New York, seemingly in the present day. And yet another takes place in a snow-capped fictional town called Sycamore Creek, also in the present.
There's also a story set in present-day Ohio, one in present-day Scotland where Brooke Shields's character Sophie Brown flees to escape fan backlash, and a movie in present-day Utah where the snobby hotel heiress Sierra Belmont has a skiing accident and loses her memory.
What perfectly plausible scenario happens in this movie?
In one movie, Christina Milian plays Layla, a hopeless romantic and Pentatonix fan who gets trapped in an airport lounge and befriends two hot gentlemen. In another, Lacey Chabert plays a restaurant owner named Kathy whose dilapidated house is a metaphor for grief-induced self-abandonment. Britt Robertson plays a "Jingle Belle" dancer named Ashley who loses her job and tries to save her parents' music venue.
Lindsay Lohan plays Avery who visits her boyfriend's family and gets tangled up in a web of exes. Ellen, an English heiress played by Eliza Taylor, plays Survivor in Snow Falls to prove to her dad she's ready to take over the family business. Abby, a struggling photographer played by Kat Graham, inherits a wooden Advent calendar that can predict the future.
What part of this movie will make me question the very nature of reality itself?
In some movies, there are absurd running jokes like how Layla is a clueless yokel despite coming from Poughkeepsie. Hot Frosty doesn't know what food is but can read and write well enough to ask about cancer. All the men in one movie are too good at stripping to be amateurs. Avery gets hangry on weed gummies and has a wild experience at the family church's Christmas service.
In another, sending Ellen with $100 cash and no credit cards to prove her responsibility seems wild. Abby's apartment looks too luxe for a struggling artist. And the ending of one movie where a hot-air balloon defies aviation laws is hard to fathom.
How does this movie connect with the broader NCU?
A Christmas Prince shows up in the background of The Princess Switch. In The Princess Switch: Switched Again, King Richard, Queen Amber, and Princess Elleri are in the crowd at Queen Margaret's coronation. The Christmas Prince characters are canonically Netflix characters in the NCU. Many of these movies also have other Netflix movies playing in the background, like Christmas Inheritance and The Knight Before Christmas.
Where and when does this trilogy take place?
Netflix's first big Christmas property transported us to the Disney-coded fictional kingdom of Aldovia in what appears to be the present day. A year later, in A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding, we were in the same universe. And in 2019, A Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby continued the story.
Which random noteworthy people will I see in this movie?
Of course, Pentatonix shows up in some movies and gets a surprising amount of screen time. Devale Ellis, who plays Teddy, previously starred in other shows. Canada's Drag Race alum Priyanka shows up for a lip-synching competition. Craig Robinson and Joe Lo Truglio play local cops. American Housewife star Katy Mixon Greer plays Kathy's friend. NCIS and Family Law alum Lauren Holly and Queer as Folk star Sherry Miller also make appearances. And there are many more, like Dan Bucatinsky, Tim Meadows, Judy Reyes, and Chris Parnell.