The Santa Clause

For films with similar titles, see Santa Claus (disambiguation). For the media franchise, see The Santa Clause (franchise).
The Santa Clause
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJohn Pasquin
Written byLeo Benvenuti
Steve Rudnick
Produced byBrian Reilly
Jeffrey Silver
Robert Newmyer
Starring
CinematographyWalt Lloyd
Edited byLarry Bock
Music byMichael Convertino
Production
companies
Distributed byBuena Vista Pictures Distribution
Release dates
  • November 5, 1994 (1994-11-05) (Hollywood)
  • November 11, 1994 (1994-11-11) (United States)
Running time
97 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$22 million[1]
Box office$190.3 million[1]

The Santa Clause is a 1994 American Christmas fantasy comedy film directed by John Pasquin and written by Leo Benvenuti and Steve Rudnick. The first installment in The Santa Clause franchise, it stars Tim Allen as Scott Calvin, an ordinary man who accidentally causes Santa Claus (played by Tim Allen's actual stunt double, Steve Lucescu) to fall from his roof to his supposed death on Christmas Eve. When he and his young son, Charlie, finish the late St. Nick's trip and deliveries, they go to the North Pole where Scott learns that he must become the new Santa and convince those he loves that he is indeed Santa Claus.

The Santa Clause premiered at Hollywood on November 5, 1994, and was theatrically released in the United States on November 11. It grossed $190 million worldwide, and received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics, and it has since become a Christmas-time staple among viewers.[2][3][4] Its success led to two sequels, The Santa Clause 2 (2002) and The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause (2006), which were both financially successful despite the former's mixed and the latter's negative reception. The franchise continues with a follow-up series, The Santa Clauses, which premiered November 16, 2022 on Disney+.

The film was originally going to be released under the Hollywood Pictures banner, but following positive test screenings among children, it was transferred to the Walt Disney Pictures banner.[citation needed]

  1. ^ a b "The Santa Clause (1994)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on July 28, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  2. ^ "Top Ten Christmas Movies Of All Time". Thetoptens.com. Archived from the original on June 18, 2013. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
  3. ^ "The 50 Best Christmas Movies of All Time". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on November 7, 2015. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
  4. ^ Patches, Dan Jackson, Matt (December 22, 2017). "The 50 Best Christmas Movies of All Time". Thrillist. Archived from the original on October 9, 2017. Retrieved November 22, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)