Hey there to my trans family (and all allies). We’ve lately experienced a surge in excellent LGBTQ+ holiday movies—at this point, Happiest Season is second to none for me.
But you’re still only likely to find at most one trans movie on any list of things to watch. That’s why we’ve remixed and expanded this list to include TEN must-see trans movies set during the holidays.
Note: a condensed version of this list was previously published at Prism & Pen
1. Santa Camp (2022) | Rotten Tomatoes: 100%
Every summer, a horde of professional Santas, Mrs. Clauses, and elves descend on a campsite in the New Hampshire woods to learn the tricks of their trade. But this year is different. The organizers, members of the one-hundred strong New England Santa Society, have decided to tackle a complicated and historic problem – the lack of diversity in the Santa industry. They enlist a Black Santa, a Santa with a disability, and a transgender Santa, each with their own surprising Santa origin story. - Rotten Tomatoes
In Santa Camp, the reason for the season is diversity. There are inspiring moments from a Santa who is Black and another with spina bifado, as well as Trans Santa Levi having a powerful encounter in which a protest from the Proud Boys is drowned out by pro-trans carolers. Trans Santa Levi shared with ScreenRant what a joyous experience they had at Santa Camp, saying:
Trans Santa Levi: For me, it was mostly highs. Security did a really great job of sheltering us from a lot of the heat, because what I was really concerned about was the kids having to experience that. Being able to have that warm, welcoming environment with the kids was paramount.
There were kids that were asking for things that you would never ask Santa for, like gender-affirming things, and most of it was just so lovely. It's just so heartwarming, and you feel like you have faith in the future when you see kids like that. For me, the best part was seeing the kids feel like they were in a safe space to ask for those things. That is what makes me want to keep doing it…
My takeaway is that, really, I'm just being visible. Despite the hate about how we are ruining kids, I think that if I had a Trans Santa or even visibility about what being trans was when I was younger, it would have made a huge difference in my life. I'm not altering a child's destiny; they're going to be who they're going to be. But I just hope they can be their whole self sooner in life, and that's what I want people to see in Trans Santa.
Santa Camp Cast Share Their Experiences During The HBO Max Documentary | ScreenRant
Santa Camp Director & Producer On The Big Issues Facing Today's Santas | ScreenRant
Even Black Santa Can't Catch A Break From Racists In New HBO Doc | Essence
Why should Santa be white or cis? The camp where anyone can learn to be Father Christmas | The Guardian
Black and Trans Santas Get Candid About Being Bullied at Christmastime: 'You Can't Back Down' | PEOPLE
Where to Watch: MAX - the one to watch for HBO (subscription)
2. El Sabor de la Navidad/The Taste of Christmas (2023) | IMDb: 6.8/10
Superstar actor and producer Salma Hayek is making the holidays merrier this year by producing a new Spanish-language film that intertwines three different Christmas stories, including one about a Mexican mother learning to embrace her trans daughter.
Hayek said it was important for her to produce a project that sends a strong message about what she believes. “We believe in projects that represent the community in the right way, but also makes them think, makes them feel proud of who we are…”
“Sometimes when it’s a family member, you have to accept first, and then understand,” she added about the trans plot. “But it’s important to go towards that second step so you’re not tolerating a loved one, but totally loving someone.” - Out
Salma Hayek Talks Trans Acceptance in Her New Holiday Film 'El Sabor de la Navidad' | Out
Salma Hayek Pinault’s Christmas film centres trans storyline: ‘Accept first, and then understand’ | PinkNews
Where to Watch: Vix (with subscription)
3. Tokyo Godfathers (2003) | Rotten Tomatoes: 92%
What happens when a chosen family of three homeless folks — including Hana, a transgender woman who dreams of being a mother — discover an abandoned baby on Christmas Eve?
Inspired by Peter B. Kyne’s 1913 novel The Three Godfathers, the same source material as the iconic 1980s comedy Three Men and a Baby, this moving, critically beloved animated dramedy had a U.S. theatrical run to qualify for the Oscars. Despite some dated bits of homo- and transphobia, it will give you the burst of Christmas spirit you’ve been waiting for. - LogoTV
The Crazy Adventures of a Trans Anime Hero Way Ahead of Her Time | The Daily Beast
THE HARROWING ZANINESS OF TOKYO GODFATHERS | Nerdist
Roger Ebert Review of Tokyo Godfathers | RogerEbert.com
Where to Watch: YouTube (free with ads)
4. With Love (2021) | Rotten Tomatoes: 100%
After her critically-acclaimed run as the showrunner of the queer-inclusive reboot of One Day at a Time, Gloria Calderón Kellett [teamed] up with Amazon Studios to bring us With Love, Prime Video’s first holiday miniseries featuring an inclusive LGBTQ+ cast and storylines! Telling the story of the Diaz family, the series features a gay couple, as well as one of the first transgender love stories to ever be featured in a holiday rom-com! - Out
‘With Love’ is the rare feel-good holiday show that actually feels good | Washington Post
Amazon’s ‘With Love’: TV Review | Hollywood Reporter
‘With Love’ Review: Gloria Calderón Kellett’s Latest Joyous, Delightful Family Album | IndieWire
Amazon Prime's With Love Normalizes Latinx Romance With Holiday Cheer | PopSugar
Where to Watch: Amazon Prime (subscription)
5. Mixed Nuts (1994) | Rotten Tomatoes: 13% (uh-oh…but look at that cast!)
Nora Ephron followed her hit rom-com Sleepless in Seattle with Mixed Nuts, a critically panned holiday ensemble flick led by Steve Martin as the head of a suicide-prevention hotline service. The film is notable for being the first movie appearance of Liev Schreiber, who portrays a transgender woman named Chris. The comedy does not hold up well in present day, but the character is memorable for a sweet romance she develops with a ukelele player named Louie (Adam Sandler). - The Advocate
This ’90s classic stars Juliette Lewis, Steve Martin, and Adam Sandler at the prime of their careers, with cameos from a young Parker Posey and Jon Stewart. But our favorite character is Chris (Liev Schreiber), a trans woman who seeks a safe space for the holidays at the headquarters of a suicide hotline operated by Martin’s character. As a chaotic series of events ensues during Christmas Eve, Chris finds love with the young Sandler’s ukulele-playing character. - Into More
A lot about Mixed Nuts doesn’t hold up so well today, from the frequently glib depiction of mental illness to some cringey jokes that undercut the inclusion of a trans character (played by Liev Schreiber) to the sight of Jon Stewart attempting to rollerblade. But still, in an age when half-assed pseudo-movies starring members of the Cameron family seem to rule the holiday season, one has to admire how Mixed Nuts eschews traditional gooey Christmas sentimentality for pitch black comic anarchy. - Cracked
“Director/co-scripter Nora Ephron pitches the humor at a cacophonous level” | Variety
“The beginning of Steve Martin's non-funny comedies” | Empire
Why Mixed Nuts Is the Best Holiday Movie You've Never Seen | Esquire
Where to Watch: Peacock
6. Life of Brian | Rotten Tomatoes: 96%
Born on the original Christmas in the stable next door to Jesus Christ, Brian of Nazareth spends his life being mistaken for a messiah. - IMDB
What’s better than the birth of Jesus? A trans woman being present for the event! Whereas Tokyo Godfathers gives us a modern rendition of the classic Bible story, check out Life of Brian for a retelling of the Gospels that may make this your favorite tale to tell by the fire.
The trans inclusion becomes explicit later in the movie, with a description from Wikipedia saying:
Loretta tells her comrades Reg, Judith, and Francis that she wants to be a woman, wants to have babies, and that it is “every man’s right to have babies if he wants them.” Although Reg is skeptical, Judith accedes to Loretta’s request that she “can have the right to have babies” which Francis agrees to as symbolic of the struggle against the Romans, while Reg says it is part of Loretta’s “struggle against reality.” - Wikipedia
“A relentless onslaught of consummate comedy” | Times (UK)
Monty Python's Life of Brian review – an unholy work of satirical genius | Guardian
‘Monty Python’s Life of Brian’: THR’s 1979 Review | The Hollywood Reporter
Where to Watch: Netflix
7. Tangerine | Rotten Tomatoes: 96%
This is not a lesbian Christmas movie, but it is a Christmas-adjacent movie about two trans women sex workers of color…
Sin-Dee (Kitana Kiki Rodriguez) and Alexandra (Mya Taylor) get out of jail and right back into their chaotic Los Angeles existence on Christmas Eve. Alexandra’s prepping for an upcoming performance and Sin-Dee is prepping to cause a bit of drama regarding her boyfriend, Chester, cheating on her.
Naming it the #2 best Christmas movie of all time, Vulture writes that in a list primarily occupied by “prosperous white families,” Tangerine serves as “a corrective to that tradition: “It’s a film as vital, alive, and in touch with the holiday as more traditional entries — an invitation to other filmmakers to redefine what a Christmas movie can be, and as much a story about the importance of human kindness as the one that tops the list.” - Autostraddle
“Unostentatiously celebrates fluidity” | Filmmaker Magazine
“Tangerine” is Hilarious, Beautiful, Authentic, Casts Trans Women to Play Trans Women Leads | Autostraddle
“Sean Baker’s 2015 film Tangerine was a revelation” | The Daily Beast
Where to Watch: Hulu
8. The Bitch Who Stole Christmas | Rotten Tomatoes: 81%
If you’re a Drag Race fan, you’ll love this. The Bitch Who Stole Christmas is a queer, Christmas extravaganza featuring RuPaul and 20 ex-Drag Race contestants, including the first trans man on the show. - We Are Her
“The Bitch Who Stole Christmas” Works as Parody, Fails as a Drag Showcase | Autostraddle
“A tough sell to those who don't speak Drag Race, but it's a gorge gift for those of us who do” | Decider
“Worth the watch if you like irreverent comedies” | Rotten Tomatoes audience review
Where to Watch: Amazon
9. Dash & Lily | Rotten Tomatoes: 100%
Dash & Lily is a queer-inclusive Netflix show that takes place around Christmas. We love the storyline of the series. And although the main storyline isn’t a queer one, there is a trans woman [Roberta], a gay guy, and a lesbian woman included in Dash & Lily. - Once Upon A JRNY
‘Dash & Lily’ Season 1, Episode 1: “Dash” — RECAP | Black Girl Nerds
One Good Thing: Netflix’s Dash & Lily is a sweet TV rom-com with a Christmas twist | VOX
The Charming 'Dash & Lily' Is Sweet Holiday Goodness | NPR
Netflix's syrupy "opposites attract" romantic comedy 'Dash & Lily' explores a Christmas courtship between two disheartened teens | The Hollywood Reporter
Where to Watch: Netflix
10. Pose: S1E3 “Giving and Receiving” | Rotten Tomatoes: 96%
The House of Evangelista celebrates the holidays and prepares for the Snow Ball in spite of Angel’s lack of holiday spirit. Elektra contemplates undergoing an affirming medical procedure. -Pose FX Fandom
On July 13, 2021, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez became the first trans lead ever nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series. - Wikipedia
Where to Watch: FX/Hulu
Bonus: Holiday Heart | Rotten Tomatoes: 92%
Holiday Heart, stars Ving Rhames as the gay drag queen Holiday Heart, who after a break-up with his boyfriend takes in drug-addicted Wanda (Alfre Woodward) and her daughter Nicki (Jesika Reynolds) during the holidays. Showtime was pushing boundaries during this period at the new millennium, with the goal of capturing the LGBTQ+ audience. Holiday Heart, according to my unscientific research, was the first holiday film featuring a drag queen, and one of the first films ever whose lead character was an effeminate, gay Black man. - Advocate
The Black Gay Holiday Movie That Never Got Its Due (Advocate)
Where to Watch: free on Tubi
The End
Thanks for stopping by. I hope at least one of these movies brings you some holiday cheer.
For more Xmas goodness, check out: Now THAT’S Trans Xmas Music! Volume 1
Trans Santa Saves Xmas From Proud Boys (Plus Nine Other Trans Holiday Movies & TV)