Holidate

2020 romantic comedy film by John Whitesell

Holidate

Official release poster

Directed by| John Whitesell
Written by| Tiffany Paulsen
Produced by|

* McG
* Mary Viola

Starring|

* Emma Roberts
* Luke Bracey
* Jake Manley
* Jessica Capshaw
* Andrew Bachelor
* Frances Fisher
* Manish Dayal
* Kristin Chenoweth

Cinematography| Shane Hurlbut
Edited by| Emma E. Hickox
Music by| Dan the Automator

Production
company

Wonderland Sound and Vision

Distributed by| Netflix

Release date

* October 28, 2020 (2020-10-28)

Running time

| 104 minutes
Country| United States
Language| English

Holidate is a 2020 American romantic comedy film directed by John Whitesell and written by Tiffany Paulsen. It stars Emma Roberts, Luke Bracey, Jake Manley, Jessica Capshaw, Andrew Bachelor, Frances Fisher, Manish Dayal and Kristin Chenoweth. The film was released on Netflix on October 28, 2020.

## Plot

[edit]

Almost 30-something Sloane Benson hates the holidays due to the judgement she receives from her family for being single. Having recently broken up with her boyfriend, her mother Elaine is constantly trying to set her up with a new man, much to Sloane's annoyance.

At Sloane's family's Christmas dinner, her younger brother York gets engaged to Liz, his girlfriend of three months, so Sloane is now the only single person left in the family. Meanwhile, Jackson, an Australian golfer, is stuck spending the holidays with a woman he has no interest in and her parents. His date becomes angry with him for not getting her a Christmas present although they had agreed not to exchange gifts, so he leaves in frustration.

After Christmas, Sloane and Jackson have a chance encounter when both are returning presents they received. Jackson suggests to avoid crazy and clingy dates, they should make a pact to be Holidates (dates only for Holidays). Though initially reluctant, she decides to take him up on his offer and they end up spending New Year's Eve together, but have no further contact.

However, on Valentine's Day, both have another chance encounter where Jackson pretends to be her boyfriend in front of her ex and his young and beautiful girlfriend. They slowly become friends after spending various holidays together.

After Sloane and Jackson become closer when he loses a finger on July 4, he fears he is not good enough for her. So, he tries to set her up with a better date. This leads to a fight at her brother's wedding, where his and her dates hook up.

While at a Halloween costume party together, Sloane becomes unwell after unknowingly swallowing laxatives. Jackson takes care of her until they end up falling asleep together. They then have sex the morning after, then Sloane's married sister arrives freaking out about kissing somebody else. Sloane uses it as an excuse to shove Jackson out, much to his dismay.

At Thanksgiving, they fight after Jackson opens up to Sloane and tells her how he feels about them. In the store when Sloane says "Ryan Gosling would never do his own shopping" there is a blurred customer in the background who looks like the actor. Both break off contact afterwards.

In the days leading to Christmas, Sloane visits Jackson's place but loses her nerve, still unable to speak to him. When shopping at the mall, they have another chance encounter. In front of hundreds of people, she finally confesses her love for Jackson and the two embrace.

The end credits reveal that all of the couples are still together. With Sloane and Jackson travelling to Australia for the holidays, Aunt Susan being engaged to Farooq, Wally and Sloane's mother dating, just like Neil and Carly (Jackson's date from the beginning of the film).

## Cast

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* Emma Roberts as Sloane Benson
* Luke Bracey as Jackson Piretti
* Andrew Bachelor as Neil
* Jessica Capshaw as Abby
* Manish Dayal as Faarooq
* Alex Moffat as Peter
* Jake Manley as York
* Cynthy Wu as Liz
* Frances Fisher as Elaine
* Kristin Chenoweth as Aunt Susan
* Dan Lauria as Wally
* Carl McDowell as Scruffy Santa
* Nicola Peltz as Felicity
* Julien Marlon as Luc
* Mikaela Hoover as Annie
* Aimee Carrero as Carly
* Meeghan Holaway as Carly's Mom
* Savannah Reina as Daisy
* Billy Slaughter as Barry
* Carlos Lacamara as Carly's Dad

## Production

[edit]

In March 2019, it was announced Emma Roberts had joined the cast of the film, with John Whitesell directing from a screenplay by Tiffany Paulsen. McG and Mary Viola would serve as producers on the film under their Wonderland Sound and Vision banner, while Netflix would distribute.[1] In May 2019, Luke Bracey, Jake Manley, Jessica Capshaw, Andrew Bachelor, Frances Fisher, Manish Dayal and Kristin Chenoweth joined the cast of the film.[2] In June 2019, Alex Moffat joined the cast of the film.[3]

### Filming

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Principal photography began in May 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia.[4]

### Music

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The film's original score was composed by Dan the Automator.[5]

## Release

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Holidate was digitally released by Netflix on October 28, 2020.[6] It was the top-streamed item in its debut weekend.[7] On November 4, Variety reported the film was the 25th-most watched straight-to-streaming title of 2020 up to that point.[8] In January 2021, Netflix reported 68 million households had watched the film.[9]

## Reception

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On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 45% based on 60 reviews, with an average rating of 5.2/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Holidate's self-aware approach to rom-com formula is refreshing, but it's offset by a questionable premise and unnecessarily vulgar jokes."[10] On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 44 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[11]

## See also

[edit]

* List of Christmas films

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Kroll, Justin (March 1, 2019). "Emma Roberts to Star in Netflix Rom-Com 'Holidate'". Variety. Archived from the original on March 1, 2019. Retrieved May 14, 2019.
2. ^ N'Duka, Amanda (May 14, 2019). "Luke Bracey, Jessica Capshaw, Frances Fisher, Jake Manley, Kristin Chenoweth & More Join Emma Roberts In 'Holidate' Film At Netflix". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 14, 2019. Retrieved May 14, 2019.
3. ^ N'Duka, Amanda (June 3, 2019). "'Saturday Night Live's Alex Moffat Boards Netflix's 'Holidate' Movie". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on June 3, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
4. ^ "Casting Extras in Atlanta for New Emma Robers Movie "Holidate"". Auditions Free. May 8, 2019. Archived from the original on May 14, 2019. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
5. ^ Turner, Mike (September 30, 2020). "Trailer release: "Holidate" enters the Netflix Holiday romcom smorgasbord". Mike Turner Media. Archived from the original on November 29, 2020. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
6. ^ Spellberg, Claire (September 23, 2020). "New On Netflix October 2020". Decider. Archived from the original on September 25, 2020. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
7. ^ Brueggemann, Tom (November 2, 2020). "Netflix's 'Holidate' and VOD 'After We Collided' Thrive as Romance Beats Horror Over Halloween". IndieWire. Archived from the original on February 24, 2021. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
8. ^ Bridge, Gavin (November 4, 2020). "DATA: 'BORAT 2' SECOND ONLY TO 'HAMILTON' IN MOST-WATCHED U.S. SVOD MOVIES OF 2020". Variety. Archived from the original on November 4, 2020. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
9. ^ "Every Viewing Statistic Netflix Has Released So Far". What's on Netflix. Archived from the original on April 6, 2021. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
10. ^ "Holidate (2020)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on 2020-11-01. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
11. ^ "Holidate Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on September 30, 2020. Retrieved November 2, 2020.

## External links

[edit]

* Holidate on Netflix
* Holidate at IMDb

* v
* t
* e

Films directed by John Whitesell

* Calendar Girl (1993)
* See Spot Run (2001)
* Malibu's Most Wanted (2003)
* Big Momma's House 2 (2006)
* Deck the Halls (2006)
* Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son (2011)
* Thunderstruck (2012)
* Holidate (2020)

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