3. Bad Santa
Release Year: 2003
Written by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa
Directed by Terry Zwigoff
Starring Billy Bob Thornton, Tony Cox, Brett Kelly, Lauren Graham, Lauren Tom, Bernie Mac, John Ritter
In Bad Santa, Willie Stokes (Billy Bob Thornton), a mall Santa, and his assistant, Marcus (Tony Cox), use their Santa and Elf costumes and job opportunity to plot and execute a mall robbery. A couple of wrenches get thrown in their plan when the mall’s security officer, Gin (Bernie Mac) discovers their plan AND Willie starts to turn his life around with help of a young kid.
Bad Santa is an underrated Christmas movie; that’s for sure! You definitely don’t hear people talking about it, and it’s rarely on TV around the holidays. However, the plot, jokes, and acting are all solid. On top of that, the film has a feel-good message, which is what almost everyone wants to see in a holiday movie.
Bad Santa 2, which premiered in theaters in 2016, is also streaming on Netflix. The film will also be added to the list of best Christmas movies on Netflix.