Hallmark's search for hunky 'Mr. Christmas' is on with Jonathan Bennett's reality show
Lead judge Melissa Peterman's show-ending catchphrase, 'You just got Kringled!' was ignored
T'was the weeks before filming "Finding Mr. Christmas" and all through Hallmark headquarters, a pesky question persisted: What would be the elimination catchphrase for the feel-good programmer's first reality competition?
Something like "You're fired!" was way too harsh for the TV contest pitting ten hunky, Hallmark-movie-ready men vying for the title of Mr. Christmas.
"That line was such a huge deal," says co-creator, executive producer and host Jonathan Bennett, who bounced around holiday-themed phrases with lead judge Melissa Peterman. "I wanted it to be so cheeky that people laughed. There was, 'That's a wrap' and 'You're on thin ice.' Melissa kept suggesting this stupid idea..."
"Oh, I had a great one," Peterman says, interrupting excitedly, "'Mine was, 'You just got Kringled!' Boom!"
There is powerful Kris Kringle magic behind "Mr. Christmas," premiering on Hallmark+ on Thursday, which anoints a champion who automatically earns the gift-wrapped lead role in a 2024 Hallmark Christmas movie.
The movie has already been filmed. The mysterious reality champion will star alongside Jessica Lowndes on Hallmark Channel's "Happy Howlidays," which airs Dec. 21 (8 EST/PST).
How do they say, 'You're Fired!' on 'Finding Mr. Christmas'?
The reality show is the holiday-steeped inspiration of "Mean Girls" star Bennett, 43, a Hallmark Channel staple (including the first LGBTQ+-led Hallmark Christmas movie, 2022's "The Holiday Sitter") who has also starred on reality shows like "Dancing with the Stars" and "Big Brother."
"I was watching 'RuPaul's Drag Race' at the time," Bennett says of when the "Mr Christmas" vision danced in his head. "And it was like, 'Oh my gosh, this is like 'Drag Race' meets 'The Bachelor' meets Hallmark Christmas!'"
"Happy's Place" star Peterman (star of 2022's "Haul Out the Holly"), 53, immediately jumped aboard the sleigh that could shape Hallmark Christmases to come with the perfect, reality-tested leading man. After all, the network has produced 46 holiday films for this season alone.
"What a great way for a viewer to get invested at the very start. They can see that star chosen and then in his first Christmas movie and second, and third," says Peterman. "Fans can say, 'I've loved him since 'Finding Mr. Christmas!'"
"It's the Kelly Clarkson syndrome," adds Bennett of the first winner of "American Idol" turned singer and talk-show host.
The premise is sweeter than sugarplums. The contestants live together in a tinsel, tree and stocking-filled Utah ranch house and cheerily compete in festive Yuletide activities. Bennett, Peterman and a weekly guest judge gently remove one contestant – and one stocking – each week based on the contests.
In the premiere, a Star Quality Challenge involves a Hallmark movie staple. The Christmas crew learns lines and performs a "Meet Cute" scene opposite Hallmark veteran Erin Cahill. The guys are judged on how adorably the faux first encounter goes. In the same episode, a weekly Festive Face-Off involves an emotionally revealing ugly Christmas sweater showdown.
"They have 30 minutes to make a Christmas sweater that tells their life story and helps us learn about them," says Bennett. "So you have 10 hot guys glue gunning and crafting ugly Christmas sweaters before modeling it down a runway."
Future competitions include a Christmas tree obstacle course in which contestants break into a block of ice to retrieve a saw and bring down the tree lumberjack-style. "It's your brawny man fantasy come to life," says Bennett.
At the end of each episode, one contestant removes his monogrammed stocking from the living room fireplace.
"Whoever gets eliminated takes his stocking down and walks out the door," says Bennett.
The stakes could lead to icy competition, but Bennett insists the Hallmark spirit shines through. "Ten men walked into the house as strangers; they left as a family," he says.
"We're not showcasing the worst side of people. We don't need to tear people apart, especially around Christmas," says Peterman. "We wanted 'Great British Baking Show' more than a trainwreck."
Bennett was impressed with the abs, but also the heart of the "Mr. Christmas" crew, which includes actors, a firefighter (Isaac Ramirez, 28), and a former Navy rescue diver (Ezra Moreland, 31).
"Everyone loves a good, gorgeous guy at Christmas," says Bennett. "What I wasn't expecting is the vulnerability. That's the show's secret sauce. Fans will tune in for the fun, the Christmas and the hotness. But they're going to stay because they fall in love with these guys."
And in a Christmas miracle, he even found the perfect elimination phrase to cap off each episode.
"We came up with, 'I'm sorry, that's a wrap' Because it's like wrapping paper," Bennett explains. "And then I say, 'It's time to take your stocking. You're going home... for the holidays.' Boom! Come on! I hope that becomes a meme."
"I'm still holding out for 'You just got Kringled!'" says Peterman. "I'm going to make that happen next season."