The 20 Best Hallmark Christmas Movies, Ranked – SlashFilm

At this point, every TV channel and streaming network has gotten in on the Christmas movie craze, collectively realizing that by the time Thanksgiving rolls around, audiences are eager to turn off their brains and indulge in a little hot cocoa and PG-rated romance. But although Netflix is on the case now, spending the holiday season offering us time-traveling knights and an endless array of royalty looking for love in its connected holiday cinematic universe, Hallmark is still the undefeated champ when it comes to the made-for-TV Christmas movie. The network has it down to a science, overhauling its entire schedule between October and December to accommodate the dozens of cheesy romances it churns out each year. 

But not all of these Christmas flicks are created equal: There are some real stinkers amongst the bunch, as well as a few sparkling gems that somehow seem to defy the limitations of their genre. Pull out the mistletoe and find your nearest sentimental ornament that reminds you of what Christmas is all about, because here are the best holiday films that the Hallmark Channel has to offer.

The trouble in “The Christmas Waltz” starts when Avery (Hallmark Channel stalwart Lacey Chabert) gets all overly optimistic about her relationship with her fiance, signing them up for 10 dance lessons in preparation for their wedding. Since this is a made-for-TV Christmas movie and this sort of thing always tends to happen, he inevitably dumps her after getting a job offer somewhere else, leaving her on the hook for the dance lessons. 

But all hope is not lost, because as luck would have it, her dancing instructor Roman (Will Kemp) turns out to be pretty dreamy in his own right, and sparks quickly begin to fly after he convinces her to take the classes by herself rather than wasting them. “The Christmas Waltz” stands out primarily for its surprisingly impressive choreography which, combined with the chemistry between Chabert and Kemp, gives it a unique flavor all its own.

As any Christmas movie enthusiast knows, there are a limited number of career paths in the world of Hallmark. Pastry chef. Christmas tree farmer. Heir apparent to a fictional country in Europe. But if you ask us, not enough attention is paid to probably one of the most wintery jobs a person could have: Professional hockey player. 

“Frozen in Love” changes all that, when it throws together a bookstore owner whose small business is failing (Rachael Leigh Cook) and a disgraced hockey player (Niall Matter) who has been suspended for his questionable behavior on the ice. To improve both of their fortunes, they have to work together with a PR team, but the bigger issue may end up being how they’re able to avoid ruining everything with their growing attraction to one another. Although they’re complete opposites, things inevitably begin to heat up between them — even in spite of all the ice in “Frozen in Love.”

Sometimes, you don’t need a great plot to make an effective Hallmark Channel holiday movie — you might just need a picturesque European location for the backdrop of your film. Such is the case with “Christmas in Vienna,” where the natural magic of Austria in winter does a lot of the film’s heavy lifting. Sarah Drew plays Jess Waters, a concert violinist who’s lost her passion for music. 

Luckily, there are few places on Earth to rekindle your musical spark than Vienna — especially when you happen to run into a handsome new love interest, played by Brennan Elliot. As warm and soothing as a cup of mulled wine at a European Christmas market, “Christmas in Vienna” might not be the next great piece of American fiction, but it undeniably scratches a certain holiday itch for viewers. If you can’t actually go to Vienna for Christmas, we’re confident that this is the next best thing.

There’s nothing like a nice story revolving around airline mishaps to put you in the Christmas spirit — after all, who doesn’t love flying around the holidays? Everything always seems to run super smoothly. In “Christmas Connection,” flight attendant Sydney (Brooke Burns) is put in charge of an unaccompanied minor, Leah (Sophie Neudorf). But when Leah accidentally leaves a package behind, Sydney takes it upon to hand-deliver the missing item. You know, like all flight attendants do. 

One thing leads to another, and after Sydney ends up missing her flight connection home, she is invited to stay with Leah’s family — including, of course, her handsome and charming single father Jonathan (Tom Everett Scott), with whom she forges an immediate connection. (Get it? Like the title of the film?) A sweet, understated, and family-oriented holiday film, “Christmas Connection” is basically the ultimate fantasy of how you wish your travel mishaps would turn out.

There’s something about people working in the wedding industry that makes them the absolute perfect fodder for rom-coms. Maybe it’s the fact that they’re so close to romance in their day-to-day lives, but only operating on the periphery of it, that makes it so endearing when they finally fall in love. “Marry Me at Christmas” stars Rachel Starsken as Madeline Krug, a woman who owns a bridal boutique and is currently in the midst of planning an opulent holiday wedding for one of her clients. 

The last thing she expects in all of this is to hit it off with the bride’s brother Johnny (Trevor Donovan), but that’s exactly what happens. A tad on the unprofessional side? Perhaps. But that doesn’t make Madeline’s exploits any less romantic — especially since Johnny is a movie star, which just adds another layer of wish fulfillment to the proceedings.

Honesty is always the best policy. Sure, everyone goes into marriage with a few small things flying under the radar — maybe you have an extensive collection of Beanie Babies that you’re convinced are going to pay for your retirement, for example. But the one thing you should always disclose is whether or not you happen to be the heir to a European throne, which is exactly what Leo (Stephen Hagan) doesn’t do — or at least, not until a suspiciously long time into his relationship with Emily (Lacey Chabert). 

Still, it’s probably easier to forgive a guy when he’s set on making you a princess. “A Royal Christmas” is not the first royalty-themed holiday film, nor will it be the last, but it earns extra points for including the indomitable and endlessly elegant Jane Seymour as Queen Isadora, who works overtime to delight audiences in her royal capacity.

Inject these fake relationship narratives directly into our veins, Hallmark. “An Unexpected Christmas” stars Bethany Joy Lenz and Tyler Hines as a pair of exes who, when thrown back together by fate, make the unconventional decision to pretend that they’re still together, so as not to ruin the family holiday. Emily (Lenz) spends Christmas with Jamie (Hines) and his family, a situation that in movies always seems to bring out the warm fuzzies among its characters (even if that may not reflect the reality of an actual experience of holidays spent with the in-laws). 

Even though they may have had good reasons for breaking up in the first place, a nice small town Christmas will surely bring back those loving feelings. The chemistry between Lenz and Hines is strong, and “An Unexpected Christmas” gets bonus points for creating an endearing family dynamic that will win over audiences with more than just boilerplate romance.

The Hallmark Channel tends to play things a little on the safe side, especially during the holiday season. Its content is strictly G-rated, and it rarely risks upsetting more socially conservative viewers by wading into what is often ominously referred to as “the culture wars.” However, in 2020, “The Christmas House” saw Hallmark feature its first LGBTQ couple, Brandon (“Mean Girls” star Jonathan Bennett) and Jake (Brad Harper). 

They’re one of three pairs of couples who return home for the holidays, each with their own storyline that reflects their attempts to navigate their changing lives around Christmas — for Brandon and Jake, this involves their journey to adopt their first child. And it’s appropriately heartwarming that “The Christmas House” shows this couple at a stage in their lives when they’ve already come out, are happily married, and fully embraced by their entire family, rather than having the script mine their sexual orientation for drama.

There are a lot of familiar faces on the Hallmark Channel — if you make a good impression with the network in one holiday movie, chances are it’ll end up putting you in half a dozen others. But every once in a while, they throw a bone at viewers who are looking for something different, and with “One Royal Holiday,” Broadway enthusiasts are eating well. 

The story doesn’t veer far from the Hallmark mold: A young woman opens her home to a stranded mother and son, only to fall in love with the son and discover that they’re actually part of a European royal family. But what makes “One Royal Holiday” unique is the theater pedigree of its lead couple, who are played by Laura Osnes and Aaron Tveit, who have three Tony nominations and one win between them. (It goes without saying that yes, they do find an opportunity to sing in the film.)

Nowadays, Hallmark Christmas movies tend to be light and fluffy, romantic escapism that you can mostly turn your brain off for. But that wasn’t always the case. Back in 2002, Hallmark released a holiday film called “Silent Night,” which takes place in the midst of World War II. A German mother (played by Linda Hamilton) and her son take refuge in a cabin, where they are quickly forced to play host to two separate groups of soldiers — one American, and one German. 

Although they obviously have considerable differences between them, being on opposite sides of a world war, they also find a surprising amount of common ground as they shelter together on Christmas Eve. It’s thoughtful fare, certainly heavier than most Hallmark Channel films, and worth a watch — if only to see how it navigates a morally complicated narrative on a network that is committed to hope and optimism.

Some people have relationships that blow up spectacularly, but Layla (Jessica Lowndes) in “A December Bride” takes the cake. Not only was she abandoned by her ex-fiance, but he quickly started up a new romance with none other than her very own cousin. So it’s with a special kind of dread that Layla prepares to attend their wedding, one that she absolutely, positively cannot turn up to alone. Desperate, she agrees to attend with Seth (Daniel Lissing), even though he’s the one who introduced the evil ex and her cousin in the first place. 

But Seth throws a curveball — he decides to announce their engagement at the wedding, forcing Layla to take on the role of blushing bride-to-be. Will their mutual animosity turn to affection? Well, this is Hallmark, isn’t it? Sweet yet ever so slightly acerbic, “A December Bride” is a perfect fit for everyone who wants a little bit of enemies-to-lovers in their Christmas romances.

If you liked the classic ’00s rom-com “Maid in Manhattan” with Jennifer Lopez and Ralph Fiennes, “Crown for Christmas” is sure to scratch the same itch. It stars Danica McKellar (another stalwart figure of the Christmas made-for-TV movie genre) as Allie, a former maid who takes on the role of governess to a troublesome young princess but ends up getting in over her head with the princess’ father (i.e., the king, played by Rupert Penry-Jones, who romance fans will likely recognize from “Persuasion”) when they start to catch feelings for one another. 

McKellar brings a refreshingly down-to-earth attitude to the royal household, and we always love romance stories where one of the leads has to choose between their duties (and this case, King Maximilian marrying a much more appropriate candidate from a royalty perspective) and the chance of finding true love. “Crown for Christmas” sets the mold for the rash of royal Christmas movies that would follow in its wake.

Who doesn’t love a good pretend romance? In “The Mistletoe Promise,” based on a novel by Richard Paul Evans, Jaime King and Luke Macfarlane play a pair of Christmas misanthropes who begrudgingly agree to pretend to be dating in the lead-up to the holidays. After all, it’s a little easier to get through the holiday season if you have someone on your arm, helping you fend off the endless questions about your romantic life and keeping you company through work parties and family dinners alike. 

Inevitably, these two Grinches begin to fall for each other along the way, and maybe just discover the — gag — true meaning of Christmas after all. King and Macfarlane are a charismatic duo with a ton of natural chemistry together, and they breathe fresh life into a holiday tale, elevating material that could otherwise come off as cheesy and trite.

We see Christmas movies set in all kinds of places: Small towns, European castles. (Okay, to be fair, most of them fall into those two categories.) But “The Christmas Train” steps into uncharted territory by setting its romantic tale in — you guessed it — a train car. The basic premise is an outlandish one for all those familiar with American geography: A journalist (Dermot Mulroney) needs to get from Washington, D.C., to Los Angeles, California, in time for Christmas. And naturally, the fastest option available to him is … a cross-country train that will take about 75 hours. 

Still, that’s plenty of time for him to strike up a romantic connection with one of his fellow passengers. The best thing that “The Christmas Train” has going for it is its delightful ensemble cast — not only do you have Mulroney in the lead role, but the supporting players include Danny Glover and Joan Cusack.

Airlines — always messing things up around the holidays. In “A Very Merry Mix-Up,” Alice Chapman (Alicia Witt) is traveling to meet her fiance Will’s (Scott Gibson) family for the first time, a journey that is made more complicated by the fact that she first loses her luggage and then breaks her phone, leaving her stranded at the airport. Luckily, Will’s brother Matt (Mark Wiebe) swoops in to save the day when she serendipitously meets him at baggage claim. 

The only problem? We’ve got a situation reminiscent of “While You Were Sleeping” — one of the best rom-coms of the ’90s. While Will is scheduled to arrive later, Alice finds herself attracted to Matt. And honestly, what’s not to like? He’s sweet and charming, they have immediate chemistry, and his entire extended family welcomes her with open arms. Still, someone’s going to have to tell Will, and hope that this Christmas gathering doesn’t turn into a WWE match.

A lot of Christmas movies celebrate the unique charms of the American small town. If a high-powered, big city lawyer returns to her hometown for the holidays, it kind of goes without saying that she’s going to fall in love with a local diner owner or firefighter, proving the superiority of their more intimate community once and for all. In that regard, “Christmas at the Plaza” stands out, highlighting how magical Christmas in New York can be. 

Set against the backdrop of the iconic Plaza Hotel in Manhattan, “Christmas at the Plaza” stars Elizabeth Henstridge as Jessica Cooper, a historian designing an exhibit on Christmas throughout the centuries, and Ryan Paevey as Nick Perrelli, the Christmas decorator who will give it some much needed splendor. While the hotel itself does a lot of the heavy lifting in giving the film a sense of atmosphere, the romance between Jessica and Nick is nothing to sneeze at either.

One of the newest films to enter the Hallmark Channel catalog of Christmas movies, released in October 2024, “The Christmas Charade” brings a little bit of action to the normally calm and cozy proceedings. Rachel Skarsten stars as Whitney, a librarian who has never done anything more risky than jaywalking in her entire life (and honestly, probably not even that). But her life is turned upside down when she accidentally gets involved with an undercover F.B.I. operation via a blind date gone wrong. 

Suddenly, she’s expected to pose as the girlfriend of an F.B.I. agent (Corey Sevier) as he works to catch an art thief at a glamorous Christmas Eve gala. With shades of “Chuck,” “The Christmas Charade” is a fun, energetic new entry to the genre, bringing spice and action into a made-for-TV world that has been dominated by sleepy small towns for way too long.

Do you remember “Three Men and a Baby,” the film that plays on the natural comedy from watching a bunch of bachelors struggle to take care of an infant (and has been circling a Zac Efron-led remake for years)? “Three Wise Men and a Baby” is a Christmas take on the same concept, as a trio of brothers (played by Paul Campbell, Tyler Hynes, and Andrew Walker) who are forced to take care of a baby who is left on their doorstep. 

Although we obviously love a good Christmas rom-com, it’s a nice change of pace that “Three Wise Men and a Baby” allows the romance to take a backseat, developing instead the sweet relationship between these brothers and their new charge. With strong performances from the three leads and comedy that’s actually funny (no small feat for the Hallmark Channel, we’re sorry to say), it’s easy to imagine “Three Wise Men and a Baby” becoming a holiday fixture for the network.

If you thought that Netflix had cornered the market on time-traveling Christmas romances when it released “The Knight Before Christmas,” think again. Hallmark got in on the action with “A Timeless Christmas,” a charming production about a wealthy businessman, Charles Whitley (Ryan Paevey), from the early 1900s who is transported to the present day. 

His mansion is now a historical museum, and the only person who knows his predicament is one of the museum’s docents, Megan (Erin Cahill), who skillfully — if bemusedly — helps him navigate the modern world. (Part of the fantasy, of course, is that this guy has 1903 charm with early-21st-century attitudes about, you know, women and labor unions.) Although they come from (literally) different worlds, there’s a natural attraction between the two that’s impossible to ignore. With great chemistry and a comparatively nuanced screenplay, “A Timeless Christmas” stands out as one of the best holiday films on the Hallmark roster.

Don’t get us wrong — there’s nothing wrong with the Hallmark stable of Christmas movie actors that get hauled out year after year. But sometimes, the stars align, and for whatever reason, actual Hollywood stars find themselves in the right place at the right time to remind us what one of these things can look like with some real power behind it. “A Princess for Christmas” stars Katie McGrath as a Buffalonian aunt who takes her orphaned niece and nephew to Europe to connect with their estranged extended paternal family, only to discover that they’re (surprise) royalty. 

And if that’s not enough, their uncle (and her adorable love interest) is played by none other than Sam Heughan, the future “Outlander” star and onetime James Bond hopeful. And speaking of 007, Roger Moore also appeared as the family’s stern patriarch. Add that star power and some truly delightful romance, and you’ve got a recipe for Christmas charm. As Jules (McGrath) embarks on her quest to bring Christmas joy to this emotionally repressed and grief-stricken family, we can’t help but fall in love.