The Greatest Christmas Movie Franchises of All Time

Surprisingly, despite the success of many holiday films, few ever expand into full franchises or get sequels.

This is likely because the formula of many holiday films (a character who has soured on Christmas undergoes some obstacle that forces them to transform into a being of holiday cheer and love) doesn't lend itself to multiple films. You wouldn't want to make the same movie over and over again, relying only on IP and holiday goodwill, right?

I say that, fully aware of Hallmark's cookie-cutter success with dozens of films. Which I also love.

But if you want a few holiday series to binge this December, we've got some options lined up for you.

Best Christmas Movie Franchises

Home Alone

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The king of Christmas comedy franchises began in 1990 with John Hughes' Home Alone, which spawned six films.

Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) is accidentally left at home when his family rushes off to Paris for Christmas. After the initial shock wears off, Kevin lives every kid's dream until burglars Harry and Marv (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern) target his neighborhood. Kevin rigs elaborate booby traps to protect his house.

The first film grossed $476 million worldwide and became the highest-grossing film of 1990. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York brought back the main cast, but this time Kevin is lost in Manhattan, where he again faces off against the same bumbling criminals.

Home Alone 3 ditched the McCallister family entirely, replacing them with a new protagonist who faced off against international spies. Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House brought back Kevin but recast everyone, and Home Alone: The Holiday Heist introduced yet another family.

Most recently, Home Sweet Home Alone landed on Disney+.

The sequels saw diminishing returns both critically and financially, but the original remains a December classic.

The Santa Clause

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Tim Allen's accidental Santa story kicked off in 1994 and gave us three films and a TV series. It also gave us Bernard (David Krumholtz). Yeah, I'm still obsessed.

Divorced dad Scott Calvin causes Santa to fall off his roof on Christmas Eve. When Scott puts on the red suit, he unknowingly agrees to become the new Santa.

The first film became a massive hit, earning $190 million worldwide and establishing Allen as a bankable family film star. The Santa Clause 2 revealed another important point in Santa's contract. He has to get married. The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause brought in Martin Short as the villainous Jack Frost.

Disney+ revived the franchise with The Santa Clauses, a six-episode series in which an aging Scott looks for his successor. A second season followed in 2023.

As we saw with Home Alone, the premise got a bit thinner the further we got from the original, but the characters were always fun in this world, and magic abounded.

A Christmas Prince

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I just watched Jenny Nicholson's video essay on this film, so it's fresh in my mind. In this holiday movie, Rose McIver stars as Amber, an American blogger who travels to the fictional European kingdom of Aldovia to cover Prince Richard (Ben Lamb). When she goes undercover as a tutor to his younger sister, she uncovers royal secrets and falls in love. Of course.

A Christmas Prince became Netflix's breakout holiday romance, competing with the likes of Hallmark and Lifetime and launching what many call the "Netflix Christmas Universe."

Next, we got A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding, which follows Amber as she struggles to adapt to royal life while planning her wedding. She also uncovers financial corruption, because... why wouldn't she? A Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby completed the trilogy, with Amber and Richard dealing with impending parenthood.

Each successive film received worse reviews than its predecessor. But the trilogy built a devoted fanbase. The films also connect with other Netflix Christmas movies, such as The Princess Switch.

McIver has publicly lobbied for a fourth film, jokingly suggesting it could be called A Christmas Second Royal Baby.

Haul Out the Holly

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Look, I do love Hallmark films, but it is sort of a war of attrition as you wade through them all in search of the standout charmers. Haul Out the Holly is one of them, mostly because of its great cast. I mean, come on. You get two comedy greats in Melissa Peterman and Stephen Tobolowsky (who plays Ned, an obvious nod to Groundhog Day).

Lacey Chabert wins her Christmas movie crown with this franchise about the most competitive neighborhood you've ever seen. Emily (Chabert) returns to her parents' home in Evergreen Lane and discovers the cul-de-sac takes its holiday decorating very, very seriously. She's at odds with neighbor Jared (Wes Brown) as she navigates the HOA's elaborate Christmas traditions.

Soon after, the series spawned Haul Out the Holly: Lit Up, set a year later, with Emily and Jared now a couple. When over-the-top reality TV stars move in next door and challenge their decorating supremacy, the stakes get even more ridiculous.

The franchise took an unexpected turn with Haul Out the Halloween, which pivots to spooky season. Cast members have already said they'd be happy to return for a fourth film.

Silent Night, Deadly Night

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You know we need a horror series in here, too. Silent Night, Deadly Night is a Christmas slasher. It tells the story of Billy Chapman, who witnesses his parents being murdered by a criminal in a Santa suit on Christmas Eve. Years of trauma later, Billy snaps when forced to wear a Santa costume and goes on a killing spree.

The film sparked massive controversy when released. (What are the holidays without a little moral panic?) TriStar yanked it from theaters after just a week, though it had already pulled in $2.5 million. Despite the backlash, it became a cult classic and spawned four sequels.

Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2 follows Billy's brother, Ricky, also a traumatized killer. (FYI, this is where that iconic "Garbage day!" line read comes from.) Silent Night, Deadly Night 3: Better Watch Out! concludes the Billy/Ricky storyline.

The franchise took a turn with Silent Night, Deadly Night 4: Initiation, which explores a coven. Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker is about deadly toys and stars Mickey Rooney. A loose remake titled Silent Night arrived in 2012. A second remake premiered at Fantastic Fest in September 2025.

Bad Santa

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Let's look at a very different take on the big guy. Billy Bob Thornton gives us one of cinema's most hedonistic Christmas performances as Willie T. Stokes, a criminal who poses as a mall Santa with his partner Marcus (Tony Cox) to rob department stores on Christmas Eve.

Bad Santa became a sleeper hit by being everything a typical Christmas movie isn't. The Coen brothers executive-produced. It grossed over $76 million worldwide and became a cult classic, particularly popular with audiences tired of the saccharine mainstay holiday movies.

Thirteen years later, we got Bad Santa 2. This time, Willie's criminal mother, Sunny (Kathy Bates), joins the heist to rob a Chicago charity. The sequel bombed at the box office. Thornton said he'd return for a third film if audiences showed up, but Bad Santa 3 seems unlikely given the sequel's poor performance.

Still, the original Bad Santa is one of the best R-rated Christmas comedies ever made. Holiday movies don't have to be wholesome.

The Christmas Chronicles

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Case in point—another bad Santa, but this time on Netflix. Kurt Russell's version wears a leather duster and is downright mean in Netflix's The Christmas Chronicles.

When siblings Kate and Teddy Pierce stow away in Santa's sleigh on Christmas Eve, they accidentally cause it to crash. With presents scattered across Chicago and Christmas morning approaching, the kids team up with Santa to save the holiday.

The film was reportedly watched by 20 million households in its first week on Netflix.

The Christmas Chronicles 2 expanded the world by introducing Goldie Hawn as Mrs. Claus. Julian Dennison and Tyrese Gibson joined the cast, and Chris Columbus (he of Home Alone fame, who produced the first film) stepped in to direct.

Fans have been on the lookout for a third film for a few years now, and rumors are that Netflix has looked at continuing the series. Both Columbus and Russell have said they'd be down, so we'll just have to wait and see.