''Black Christmas'' is a Canadian-American horror film series that comprises three standalone slasher films, as well as a novelization. The original film has gained a large cult following and is credited as being one of the first slasher films, inspiring many others, including the critically acclaimed hit '' Halloween'' (1978). The series centers around a serial killer that stalks and murders a group of sorority sisters. The

1974 film The year 1974 in film involved some significant events. Highest-grossing films (U.S.) The top ten 1974 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows: Events *February 7 – '' Blazing Saddles'' is released in the United ...

follows the character of Jess Bradford as she and her sorority sisters begin receiving threatening phone calls from an unknown stalker. The 2006 film explores the background and motivation for the killer and his family. The 2019 film completely abandons the first two films' killer storyline, instead focusing on a new set of characters and killers. Billy, Jess, and Mrs. MacHenry are the only characters to appear in more than one film.

Films

Overview

''Black Christmas'' (1974)

The first in the series was the 1974 Canadian

slasher film A slasher film is a genre of horror films involving a killer stalking and murdering a group of people, usually by use of bladed or sharp tools like knife, chainsaw, scalpel, etc. Although the term "slasher" may occasionally be used informally as ...

, '' Black Christmas'' (1974), which was directed by Bob Clark, and based on a screenplay by A. Roy Moore. Upon its release, the film received a mixed critical response and was a moderate financial success, and has since gained

cult status A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...

. The plot follows Jess Bradford, a college student who begins receiving threatening phone calls, as the women in her sorority house begin to disappear.

''Black X-Mas'' (2006)

The critically panned 2006 remake was written and directed by

Glen Morgan Glen Morgan (born July 12, 1961) is an American television producer, writer and director. He is best known for co-writing episodes of the Fox science fiction supernatural drama series ''The X-Files'' with his partner, James Wong. He served a ...

. The story delved heavily into the mythology of Billy, whose identity and motives were only vaguely hinted at in the original film. Both Morgan and producer James Wong revealed that the film suffered studio interference with Dimension executives

Bob Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: Places * Mount Bob, New York, United States *Bob Island, Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters *Bob (surname ...

and

Harvey Weinstein Harvey Weinstein (; born March 19, 1952) is an American former film producer and convicted sex offender. He and his brother, Bob Weinstein, co-founded the entertainment company Miramax, which produced several successful independent films includ ...

pushing for numerous re-writes and re-shoots to invoke more violence, which contrasted with Morgan's original vision for the film, and caused an inconsistency in tone. Despite negative reviews and the Christmas release date causing controversy, the film was a commercial success.

''Black Christmas'' (2019)

Shortly after the release of the 2006 remake, a direct sequel to the 1974 film was in development, which would have focused solely on

Olivia Hussey Olivia Hussey (born Olivia Osuna; 17 April 1951) is an English film, stage, and television actress. Her awards include a Golden Globe Award and a David di Donatello Award. The daughter of Argentine opera singer Andrés Osuna, Hussey was born i ...

's character. However, the film was scrapped following the death of Clark, who was killed by a drunk driver, on April 4, 2007. In June 2019,

Sophia Takal Sophia Takal is an American actress, writer and director, perhaps best known for her work in independent features such as '' All the Light in the Sky'', '' Supporting Characters'' and ''Gabi on the Roof in July''. '' Filmmaker'' magazine named Tak ...

signed on to direct another remake, having previously worked with Jason Blum on his '' Into the Dark'' series for Hulu, while

Imogen Poots Imogen Gay Poots (born 3 June 1989) is an English actress and model. She played Tammy in the post-apocalyptic horror film ''28 Weeks Later'' (2007), Linda Keith in the Jimi Hendrix biopic '' Jimi: All Is by My Side'' (2013), Debbie Raymond in ...

, Aleyse Shannon, Brittany O’Grady, Lily Donoghue, and Caleb Eberhardt signed on in starring roles.

Cary Elwes Ivan Simon Cary Elwes (; born 26 October 1962) is an English actor and writer. He is known for his leading film roles as Westley in ''The Princess Bride'' (1987), Robin Hood in '' Robin Hood: Men in Tights'' (1993), and Dr. Lawrence Gordon in ...

also joined the cast.

Principal cast and characters

Additional crew and production details

Reception

Box office and financial performance

Critical and public response

Literature

A novelization of the 1974 film written by Lee Hays was published in 1976 by

Popular Library Popular Library was a New York paperback book company established in 1942 by Leo Margulies and Ned Pines, who at the time were major pulp magazine and newspaper publishers. The company's logo of a pine tree was a tribute to Pines, and another ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Black Christmas (film series) American film series Film series introduced in 1974 Slasher film series