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Bad Santa

Play trailer Poster for Bad Santa R Released Nov 26, 2003 1h 33m Holiday Comedy Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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78% Tomatometer 218 Reviews 75% Popcornmeter 100,000+ Ratings
In this dark comedy, the crotchety Willie T. Stokes (Billy Bob Thornton) and his partner (Tony Cox) reunite once a year for a holiday con. Posing as a mall Santa and his elf, they rip off shopping outlets on Christmas Eve. This year, however, Willie is falling apart. He's depressed and alcoholic, and his erratic behavior draws the suspicion of mall security (Bernie Mac). But when befriending a small boy brings out his kinder side, Willie begins to wonder if there is still some hope for him.
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Bad Santa

Bad Santa

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Critics Consensus

A gloriously rude and gleefully offensive black comedy, Bad Santa isn't for everyone, but grinches will find it uproariously funny.

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Critics Reviews

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Nick Schager The Daily Beast Climactic uplift is far less important than the bawdy, nasty, inappropriate hilarity peddled by Terry Zwigoff’s 2003 gem, which also benefits from the participation of the late Bernie Mac and John Ritter. Dec 5, 2022 Full Review Paul Byrnes Sydney Morning Herald In the annals of movie profanity, this movie would rate an Oscar, but it's actually pretty sweet at heart, although never sentimental. And if you don't believe me, you know what you can do. Dec 14, 2014 Full Review David Ansen Newsweek An antidote to forced holiday cheer, this scabrously funny misanthropic comedy is not for the whole family. Dec 14, 2014 Full Review David Walsh World Socialist Web Site The film contains perhaps 90 seconds of genuine amusement. The rest is forced, juvenile, "off." Feb 15, 2021 Full Review Mike Massie Gone With The Twins His journey of humanization (or the softening of a terribly hardened heart) is sometimes genuinely poignant, even when it's surrounded by preposterously reprehensible conduct. Rated: 8/10 Sep 25, 2020 Full Review Richard Propes TheIndependentCritic.com Lauren Graham was wonderful as the sweet, at times horny, bartender with a thing for Santa. Rated: 3.0/4.0 Sep 2, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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bad santa himself😘 fucking reco-fucking-mend it fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck duck duck duck duck dic Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/04/24 Full Review Kay M The original that kicked off a new genre, this Bad Santa version is the original and the best. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 10/15/24 Full Review Chris T The best Christmas movie of all time! And one of the best comedy movies of all time! A conman alcoholic santa and an elf is all you need to make this happen. And the kid who is the star of the show helps bring out the good in Bad Santa. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/17/24 Full Review Jameson S The Funniest Adult Christmas Movie Ever. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/23/24 Full Review Donald C Funny, sweet, disgusting and tasteless. Billy bob Thornton rules Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/11/24 Full Review Madie R It took me a long time to watch this movie...mainly b/c I'm not the biggest fan of Billy Bob Thornton. However, I was happily surprised by the dark, twisted comedy. He's not your typical mall Santa. Watched this movie back-to-back b/c I was crying with laughter the first time. Especially when the one kid sneezes chocolate ice cream in Willie's face. "Bad Santa" is a demented, twisted, unreasonably funny Christmas comedy style with great performances from Billy Bob Thornton, Tony Cox, Bernie Mac, and Brett Kelly. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/01/24 Full Review Read all reviews
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Cast & Crew

Bad Santa

Bad Santa: Official Clip - I'm a Dwarf! Bad Santa: Official Clip - I'm a Dwarf! 2:10 Bad Santa: Official Clip - Santa's Staying Over Bad Santa: Official Clip - Santa's Staying Over 2:09 Bad Santa: Official Clip - Santa's Fatherly Advice Bad Santa: Official Clip - Santa's Fatherly Advice 1:48 Bad Santa: Official Clip - He's Freakin' Me Out Bad Santa: Official Clip - He's Freakin' Me Out 2:05 Bad Santa: Official Clip - Nutcracker Bad Santa: Official Clip - Nutcracker 1:58 Bad Santa: Official Clip - Bob Chipeska Bad Santa: Official Clip - Bob Chipeska 1:42 Bad Santa: Official Clip - The Three B's Bad Santa: Official Clip - The Three B's 2:03 Bad Santa: Official Clip - Wooden Pickle Bad Santa: Official Clip - Wooden Pickle 2:13 Bad Santa: Official Clip - You People Bad Santa: Official Clip - You People 1:54 Bad Santa: Official Clip - I Always Had a Thing For Santa Claus Bad Santa: Official Clip - I Always Had a Thing For Santa Claus 2:05 View more videos
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Movie Info

Synopsis In this dark comedy, the crotchety Willie T. Stokes (Billy Bob Thornton) and his partner (Tony Cox) reunite once a year for a holiday con. Posing as a mall Santa and his elf, they rip off shopping outlets on Christmas Eve. This year, however, Willie is falling apart. He's depressed and alcoholic, and his erratic behavior draws the suspicion of mall security (Bernie Mac). But when befriending a small boy brings out his kinder side, Willie begins to wonder if there is still some hope for him.
Director
Terry Zwigoff
Producer
John Cameron, Sarah Aubrey, Bob Weinstein
Screenwriter
Glenn Ficarra, John Requa
Production Co
Columbia Pictures, Dimension Films, Triptych Pictures, The KL Line
Rating
R (Some Violence|Pervasive Language|Strong Sexual Content)
Genre
Holiday, Comedy, Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Nov 26, 2003, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 21, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$60.1M
Runtime
1h 33m
Sound Mix
Surround
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