2 cast members announced for Dallas Jenkins’ ‘The Best Christmas Pageant Ever’
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
The cast of “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” is starting to come together.
Elizabeth Tabish and Vanessa Benavente were already announced as cast members by the movie’s director Dallas Jenkins. Both Tabish and Benavente worked with Jenkins on the hit series “The Chosen.”
As production is underway in Canada, Deadline reported that more cast members have joined the cast: Judy Greer, Pete Holmes and Molly Belle Wright.
Greer is known for her roles in “13 Going on 30” and “27 Dresses.” Holmes starred in “Crashing” and Wright has credits in “Christmas on the Farm” and “Mistletoe Ranch.”
Adapted from the book of the same name by Barbara Robinson, “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” follows the Herdman kids. These kids are mischief makers who end up taking over the Christmas pageant — to the fear and disappointment of the town. As the Herdmans take on the leading roles, they don’t seem to get the story and the pageant’s director (Greer) and her husband (Holmes) grow exasperated by the kids’ antics. But as the pageant comes together, the town might learn a thing or two from the Herdmans.
Related
It’s unclear what role Wright will be playing in the film.
“I have been pursuing this project for 15 years, so to actually be on the set is a special moment. I’m especially grateful to be working with Judy and Peter, who are extraordinary talents and are already showing their mastery of the drama and comedy,” Jenkins told Deadline. “And the actors playing all the kids, including the Herdmans? I’ve been blown away.”
Other actors have not yet been announced.
The movie is expected to be Lionsgate Productions’ holiday offering next year with an anticipated release date during the holiday season 2024.
Before Jenkins starts tackling Season 5 of “The Chosen” (which is expected to begin filming in April 2024), he’s in Canada filming the project that he has described as “a dream come true” and “the movie I’ve most wanted to make my whole career.”
“It’s similar to what ‘The Chosen’ is trying to do actually,” Jenkins said. “It’s trying to take the story of Christmas and story of Jesus and taking down from stained glass windows and pretty paintings ... and revealing what it actually is. And through the eyes of these kids, they actually do that.”
Holmes expressed his enthusiasm around the project to Deadline. “I love this story, and Dallas’ enthusiasm for it is infectious. It’s hugely gratifying to be a part of a movie that I hope will become part of holiday celebrations for years to come,” he said.
Greer added to Deadline that she feels “right at home among the Herdmans.”
One of the producers, Kevin Downes, who is known for his work on “Jesus Revolution” spoke about the project on Facebook. “I can’t wait for you to see this one, it’s so good. It’s so warm and so funny,” Downes said on Facebook. “It’s a bit chilly out here in Canada with the snow falling, but next Christmas season we got a good one coming your way.”
Related
Update on ‘The Chosen’
“The Chosen” Season 4 will premiere in theaters on Feb. 1. Episodes 1 through 3 will be released on Feb. 1, 4 through 6 will follow starting on Feb. 15, and 7 and 8 will come out on Feb. 29.
“Christmas with The Chosen: Holy Night” is playing in theaters from Dec. 12 to 17.
Reviews for the Christmas special are in. Here’s a look at what a couple of reviewers had to say about the show:
Plugged In: “More than once watching this story, I felt tears welling up. Tears of my own tiredness, my own longing for hope, my own recognition of how easy — oh, how perilously, ridiculously easy — it is to lose track of what matters most.”
Newsweek: “The narrative portion of the film, therefore, is replete with flashbacks and flash-forwards as Mary, mother of Jesus, shares her son’s garment with follower Mary Magdalene after the Crucifixion, with scenes of Christ’s birth in a manger intermingled. Jonathan Roumie, who plays Jesus in the series, does not appear in the upcoming Christmas movie.”
