The 12 Best Christmas Movies on Netflix in 2023

Angela’s Christmas (2017)

Based on the children’s story of the same name by Frank McCourt (who won a Pulitzer for his memoir Angela’s Ashes), the 30-minute animated film is set in 1910s Ireland.

And Ireland in December is cold and damp.

So on Christmas Eve, 6-year-old Angela decides she wants to keep Baby Jesus warm. Even though nobody else is particularly warm to her plan, she goes through with it anyway.

And kidnaps Baby Jesus.

Full of love and compassion, Netflix did a wonderful job of bringing the timeless classic to the screen.

Netflix Original: Yes

Klaus (2019)

When the Postmaster General’s spoiled brat of a son Jesper succeeds in being the worst student at the postal academy, he gets shipped off to a distant northern town both as punishment and a way to prove himself.

Because failing this final assignment will see him cut off from the family fortune.

Once settled in his snowy outpost he befriends a reclusive toymaker names Klaus — and this alternate origin story for Santa Claus truly begins.

The Spanish film was nominated for the Best Animated Feature Oscar and won a swath of other awards, including all 7 Annie Awards it was nominated for in 2020.

A week after its theatrical release, it landed on Netflix, becoming the first original animated feature film on the platform. Let’s hope it stays there, because it’s definitely on the list of annual viewing.

Netflix Original: Yes

Shaun the Sheep: The Flight Before Christmas (2021)

Shaun wants bigger Christmas stockings to hang on the hearth. After he eyes a bigger sock through the farmhouse window, he sets out to retrieve it.

But Christmas quickly goes awry when little Timmy getting wrapped up in a gift box and taken away.

Banding together, the whole family embarks on mission to save Shaun’s son and get Christmas back on track.

Anyone who’s a fan of Shaun the Sheep is bound to enjoy this holiday special. At just 30 minutes long, it’s the perfect length for shorter attention spans or when you’re short on time.

Netflix Original: Yes

The Christmas Chronicles (2018)

Starring Kurt Russell as the big man himself, he’s not your typical jolly Santa Claus. (Even clarifying that Ho Ho Ho is “fake news”.) He’s gruff, edgy, and even a bit of a grump (but not without reason).

But this one of the things that makes The Christmas Chronicles stand out from the pack of Christmas movies on Netflix and elsewhere.

Troubled teen Teddy and his younger sister Kate end up in the back of Santa’s sleigh on Christmas Eve. Surprising Claus mid-flight, they cause him to crash and lose his magic hat.

The kids implore Santa to let them help find his reindeer and magic hat, and he begrudgingly agrees. Good thing too, because after Santa gets arrested, it’s up to them to save Christmas.

While not as magical as the first, The Christmas Chronicles 2 is also worth a watch.

Netflix Original: Yes

A Boy Called Christmas (2021)

The boy’s name is actually Nikolas. As in Saint Nick. As in… Christmas. Because if anyone deserves an origin story, it’s Santa Claus.

On a quest to find his father, Nikolas embarks on an adventure — and finds his destiny — in the magical land of Elfhelm, the fabled kingdom of the elves.

With stunning effects, heart-warming scenes, and teachable moments, you can’t ask for more from a family Christmas movie.

There are multiple layers in this story to follow and enjoy, making it a perfect Christmas movie for the whole family to watch together.

Netflix Original: Yes

Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey (2020)

Hollywood doesn’t make as many musicals as it used to, and that’s a pity. Especially if they could all be like Jingle Jangle. Because this Pinocchio meets The Greatest Showman Christmas musical is a dazzling display of color and sound, with a heartwarming story to boot.

As eccentric toymaker Jeronicus Jangle finally creates his masterpiece — a doll with a mind of its own — only to have it escape… then lose everything.

Almost.

Fast-forward 30 years and the disgruntled Jeronicus is really about to lose everything. Fortunately, his estranged granddaughter comes to stay with him just before Christmas. And, as kids tend to do, she’ll help him see the light and turn it all around.

Jingle Jangle is bursting with talent as much as it is with Christmas spirit, with a cast that includes Forest Whitaker, Keegan-Michael, Key, Ricky Martin, Phylicia Rashad, and young newcomer Madalen Mills in her spectacular debut.

Netflix Original: Yes

Love Actually (2003)

Hugh Grant owned romantic comedy in the 90s and rode the genre into the start of the new century. But he’s only a fraction of this ensemble cast Christmas rom-com.

The plot winds through 10 (yes, ten!) different stories about love and relationships in a countdown to Christmas Day. If that’s not enough, it also clocks in at 136 minutes — which is about 45 minutes longer than average for a romantic comedy.

The movie has failed to withstand the wrath of current critics — frequently deemed problematic — and is an easy target for contemporary critics. But the charming vignettes can be enjoyed as simply that — charming. Actually.

Netflix Original: No

Holidate (2020)

Sloane and Jackson meet while returning Christmas gifts. Fed up with the dating life and the perennial pressure to have a date for special occasions, they come up with a plan. They’ll be each other’s plus-one for every holiday throughout the year with no strings — or feelings — attached.

It’s the classic Let’s Make a Deal rom-com formula of 2 attractive people attempting a platonic relationship without falling for each other.

It’s cheesy, cliché, and full of unlikable characters. And, as it’s a rom-com, you know exactly how it’s going to play out and how it’s going to end.

So why should you watch it? For all those reasons just listed, of course!

Netflix Original: Yes

1000 Miles From Christmas (2021)

Thirtysomething auditor Raúl hates Christmas. So much so that he books a beach vacation every year when the holiday rolls around.

But his annual plan of fun in the sun is derailed when he’s assigned to audit a confectionery factory in a snowy village — not unlike Hooville — that loves Christmas.

Enter romance.

It doesn’t take him long to meet Paula, a local teacher on a quest to build the world’s largest living nativity scene. And Paula quickly find herself on a side quest — to change Raúl’s view of the greatest holiday of the year.

Netflix Original: Yes

Love Hard (2021)

L.A.-based Carrie-Bradshaw-for-the-Tinder-generation columnist Natalie can’t win in the dating game. As her most recent app-based relationship blossoms, she flies across the country to surprise the guy she thinks she’s been talking to.

Only to discover she’s been catfished.

That sounds like a troublesome — and rapey — foundation for a rom-com, but that is sternly addressed by Natalie and not quickly swept aside. So there are a few more layers here than the genre usually serves up.

In a romantic comedy starring thirst trap Darren Barnet and Jimmy O. Yang, it’s a safe bet that most people don’t expect the 5’6″ Chinese-American comedian in glasses to be the romantic lead.

Which is one of the things that makes Love Hard one of the best Christmas rom-coms ever. Not only is it smart, touching, and funny, it’s shows us that you don’t need to be Hugh Grant to get the girl.

If you’re tired of seeing the same old white Christmas, grab some eggnog, sit back, and Love Hard.

Netflix Original: Yes

Falling for Christmas (2022)

Lindsay Lohan returned to form in 2022 with this lighthearted Christmas rom-com. She stars as a Hiltonesque hotel heiress who gets amnesia — and goes missing! — in a skiing accident moments after getting engaged to her equally shallow fiancé.

Fortunately, she is rescued from a snow bank by the aptly named hunky, down-to-earth Jake. Who just happens to be the proprietor of a family-owned ski lodge on the brink of foreclosure.

The plot is clearly telegraphed from the get-go and there are some definite Hallmark vibes going on — but it’s a Christmas movie! What do you expect?

Clearly a lot of people expect more. It only holds a 53% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a near-identical 5.2/10 on IMDb.

Bah humbug! to those grinches.

Anyone looking for a Lindsay Lohan Christmas movie is going to thoroughly enjoy Falling for Christmas.

Netflix Original: Yes

Cold Pursuit (2019)

Liam Neeson starred in his first action film in 2009 at the age of 56. He’s kinda like Stallone and Arnie — without 30 years of action movies under his belt. This is one of his best, yet it’s one of his least known.

There’s a lot of snow, so it looks like Christmas. But we never get to see a Christmas tree, Christmas lights, or even hear a Christmas song. The closest Cold Pursuit gets to being a Christmas movie is that Santa is in it.

No, not the Santa. Just a guy called Santa. And he’s a drug trafficker.

Regadless, it’s a criminally underrated film that’s definitely worth watching. Based on the 2014 Norwegian film In Order of Disappearance (starring the same-aged Stellan Skarsgård), it’s a black comedy action thriller that’s best enjoyed without knowing much about it.

Netflix Original: No

Black Christmas (2019)

Filmmaker Sophia Takal’s Black Christmas is the best Christmas horror movie on Netflix. But that’s simply because it’s the only Christmas horror movie on Netflix.

This is the second remake of the classic 1974 Canadian slasher of the the same name. And while the first remake in 2006 wasn’t particularly great, at least it had gore. And Mary Elizabeth Winstead.

This Black Christmas is so bad it deserves a lump of coal. (If movies had stockings.)

There’s really not much to say about this newest iteration of Black Christmas except that it’s a testament to why slashers shouldn’t be PG-13. If you’re really in the mood for Christmas horror films, you’re better off checking out Hulu — or Shudder, of course.

Netflix original: No