''Elmo's Christmas Countdown'' is a 2007 television Christmas film, featuring the characters from ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) ...

''. It was first aired on December 23, 2007, on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

and starred

Ben Stiller Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller (born November 30, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is the son of the comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Stiller was a member of a group of comedic actors colloquially known ...

Plot synopsis

In ''Elmo's Christmas Countdown'', Stiller the Elf (

) is telling Stan the snowball how Christmas was almost ruined. He recounts how he visited Sesame Street because he believed Oscar the Grouch would start the official countdown to Christmas. However, due to his hatred of the Christmas season, Oscar tosses the magical counting blocks into the air and they disappear. Stiller is worried that he destroyed Christmas, and it is up to

Elmo Elmo is a red Muppet monster character on the long-running PBS/ HBO children's television show ''Sesame Street''. A furry red monster who has a falsetto voice and illeism, he hosts the last full five-minute segment (fifteen minutes prio ...

, Alan and

Abby Cadabby Abby Cadabby, mostly referred to as just Abby, is a Muppet character on the PBS/ HBO children's television show ''Sesame Street'', performed by Leslie Carrara-Rudolph. On August 14, 2006, Abby made her debut in the first episode of ''Sesame Stre ...

to help him find the blocks and the true meaning of Christmas miracles. They find the blocks one by one: * Block No. 10 features

Jennifer Hudson Jennifer Kate Hudson (born September 12, 1981), also known by her nickname J.Hud, is an American singer, actress, and talk show host. Throughout her career, she has received various accolades for her works in recorded music, film, televisio ...

singing "

Carol of the Bells "Carol of the Bells" is a popular Christmas carol, with music by Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych in 1914 and lyrics by Peter J. Wilhousky. The song is based on the Ukrainian folk chant " Shchedryk". The music is in the public domain; Wil ...

" with the Forest Animals (including

Hoots the Owl The Muppets are a group of puppet characters created by Jim Henson, many for the purpose of appearing on the children's television program ''Sesame Street''. Some of the best known Muppets on ''Sesame Street'' include Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, ...

). It is found by Abby Cadabby. * Block No. 9 has the

reindeer Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 sub ...

News presenter Charles Blitzen (a spoof of

Charles Gibson Charles deWolf Gibson (born March 9, 1943) is an American broadcast television anchor, journalist and podcaster. Gibson was a host of ''Good Morning America'' from 1987 to 1998 and again from 1999 to 2006, and the anchor of ''World News with Char ...

) of CDN (short for Counter Downer Network) reporting on the incident caused by Stiller the Elf. It was found in Bert's Christmas oatmeal. * Block No. 8 has

Anne Hathaway Anne Jacqueline Hathaway (born November 12, 1982) is an American actress. The recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award, she was among the world's highest-paid actresses in 2 ...

singing "I Want a Snuffleupagus for Christmas" (a parody of "

I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" is a Christmas novelty song written by John Rox (1902–1957) and performed by Gayla Peevey (10 years old at the time) in 1953. The song peaked at number 24 on '' Billboard'' magazine's pop chart in December ...

") with Big Bird and Mr. Snuffleupagus. It was found in Super Grover's cape. * Block No. 7 has

Tony Sirico Gennaro Anthony Sirico Jr. (; July 29, 1942 – July 8, 2022) was an American actor. He was best known for his role as Paulie "Walnuts" Gualtieri in ''The Sopranos''. He also made numerous appearances in the films of Woody Allen. Early life S ...

and Steven Schirripa failing to star in a Christmas Special as Bert and Ernie, Christmas is finally saved. It was found by Big Bird. While Abby and Stiller hunt for Block No. 6, Block No. 5 is found by Ernie. Elmo sings "

Do You Hear What I Hear "Do You Hear What I Hear?" is a song written in October 1962, with lyrics by Noël Regney and music by Gloria Shayne Baker, Gloria Shayne. The pair, married at the time, wrote it as a plea for peace during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Regney had been ...

" with

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...

. * Block No. 6 has Charles Blitzen reporting that mass-hysteria is happening after news of the incident caused by Stiller the Elf was happening. It was found by Alicia Keys. * Block No. 5 has

Jamie Foxx Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. He became widely known for his portrayal of Ray Charles in the 2004 biographical film ''Ray'', for which he won the A ...

singing the "Nutcracker Suite" with a Nutcracker version of Elmo. It was found by Ernie. * Block No. 4 has Charles Blitzen sticking out his tongue to Stiller the Elf. It was found by Papa Bear. * Block No. 3 has Count von Count singing "

I Saw Three Ships "I Saw Three Ships (Come Sailing In)" is an English Christmas carol, listed as number 700 in the Roud Folk Song Index. The earliest printed version of "I Saw Three Ships" is from the 17th century, possibly Derbyshire, and was also published by ...

" with

Ty Pennington Tygert Burton "Ty" Pennington (born Gary Tygert Burton) is an American television host, artist, carpenter, author, and former model and actor. His rise to prominence began with his role as carpenter on the TLC home improvement reality show ' ...

during an "Extreme Makeover: Christmas Edition" where more ships are being made for the song. It was found by Mama Bear. * Block No. 2 has

Brad Paisley Bradley Douglas Paisley (born October 28, 1972) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Starting with his 1999 debut album ''Who Needs Pictures'', he has released eleven studio albums and a Christmas compilation on the Arista Nashvil ...

singing "

Jingle Bells "Jingle Bells" is one of the best-known and most commonly sung American songs in the world. It was written by James Lord Pierpont (1822–1893) and published under the title "The One Horse Open Sleigh" in September 1857. It has been claimed t ...

" with Grover and the Penguins. It was found by Baby Bear. * Block No. 1 was found by Stiller the Elf. Unfortunately, it had a cookie in it and the Christmas Counter Downer is devoured by

Cookie Monster Cookie Monster is a blue Muppet character on the long-running PBS/ HBO children's television show ''Sesame Street.'' In a song in 2004, and later in an interview in 2017, Cookie Monster revealed his real name as "Sid". He is best known for hi ...

. Stiller the Elf states that Christmas will never come as Oscar celebrates. Elmo states that he and Abby can believe in Christmas miracles as Stiller joins them. Their believing attracts the appearance of Santa Claus (

Kevin James Kevin George Knipfing (born April 26, 1965), better known by his stage name Kevin James, is an American comedian and actor. In television, James played Doug Heffernan on ''The King of Queens'' from 1998 to 2007, and receieved a Primetime Emmy ...

). Handel's Messiah appears as they find every box of the Christmas Counterdowner. Santa Claus then sings "You Gotta Believe" with Elmo, Abby, Stiller, Big Bird, Snuffleupagus, Ernie and Bert, Count von Count, Grover, Prairie Dawn, Baby Bear, Telly Monster, Rosita, Zoe, and Cookie Monster. Santa Claus then takes his leave as he quotes "Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Night." After the story is over, Stiller the Elf and Stan the Snowball wish everybody a Merry Christmas.

Sesame Street's broadcast history

''Elmo's Christmas Countdown'' marks the ninth time the ''Sesame Street'' characters have crossed over into commercial television. All other ''Sesame Street'' material had aired on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

, a

public television Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...

network. 25th and 30th anniversary specials, as well as ''

Elmopalooza ''Elmopalooza!'' is a ''Sesame Street'' special that aired on ABC on February 20, 1998. It was taped in the middle of the 29th season of ''Sesame Street'' and featured songs by celebrity guests. About the show The special begins with an announce ...

'', have also aired on ABC, while

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

aired an introductory show to ''Sesame Street'' called ''This Way To Sesame Street'', ''

Big Bird in China ''Big Bird in China'' is a 1983 television special based on the children's television series ''Sesame Street'' produced by Children's Television Workshop and China Central Television. It was originally broadcast on May 29, 1983, on NBC. Big Bird, ...

'', and a 20th anniversary special.

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

aired the independently produced ''

A Special Sesame Street Christmas ''A Special Sesame Street Christmas'' is a 1978 CBS Christmas special, made the same year as the better-known '' Christmas Eve on Sesame Street''. The special was first broadcast on Friday, December 8, 1978, at 8 PM ET on CBS, pre-empting ''Wonde ...

'', and

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

aired the special '' CinderElmo''.

Cast

as Stiller the Elf (voice) *

Alan Muraoka Alan Muraoka (born August 10, 1962) is a Japanese American actor and director who plays Alan, the current owner of Hooper's Store, on the television show ''Sesame Street'' since 1998. He currently serves on the board of directors at thBayard Rusti ...

as Alan *

as Herself *

as Himself *

as Herself * Sheryl Crow as Herself *

as Charles Blitzen (voice) *

Steve Schirripa Steven Ralph Schirripa ( ; born September 3, 1957) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Bobby Baccalieri on ''The Sopranos'', Leo Boykewich on ''The Secret Life of the American Teenager'', and Detective Anthony Abetemarco on ' ...

as Famous Ernie *

as Famous Bert *

as Herself *

as Himself *

as Santa Claus

Muppet performers

Kevin Clash Kevin Jeffrey Clash (born September 17, 1960) is an American puppeteer, director and producer known for puppeteering Elmo on ''Sesame Street'' from 1984 to 2012. He also performed puppets for ''Labyrinth'', ''Dinosaurs'', '' Oobi'', and various ...

, Mouse King *

Jennifer Barnhart Jennifer Barnhart (born March 11, 1972) is an American actress and puppeteer, with a portfolio of television and theatre performances.Fran Brill Fran Brill (born September 30, 1946) is an American retired actress and puppeteer, best known for her roles on ''Sesame Street'', as well as playing Sally Hayes in the Hal Ashby film '' Being There'' (1979), Dana Mardukas in the Martin Brest fi ...

Prairie Dawn The Muppets are a group of puppet characters created by Jim Henson, many for the purpose of appearing on the children's television program ''Sesame Street''. Some of the best known Muppets on ''Sesame Street'' include Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, ...

Leslie Carrara-Rudolph Leslie Carrara, sometimes credited as Leslie Carrara-Rudolph or the misspelling Leslie Carrera-Rudolph, is an American actress, performer, puppeteer, speaker, singer and artist. She is probably best known as a Muppet performer on ''Sesame Street' ...

as Abby Cadabby *

Eric Jacobson Eric Jacobson is an American puppeteer. He is best known for performing Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, and Sam Eagle for The Muppets Studio, as well as ''Sesame Street'' characters Bert, Grover, Oscar the Grouch, and Guy Smiley—all role ...

Bert Bert or BERT may refer to: Persons, characters, or animals known as Bert *Bert (name), commonly an abbreviated forename and sometimes a surname *Bert, a character in the poem "Bert the Wombat" by The Wiggles; from their 1992 album Here Comes a Son ...

, Grover *

Joey Mazzarino Joseph Mazzarino (; born June 4, 1968) is an American actor, puppeteer, writer and director. He is best known for his roles on ''Sesame Street'' as Murray Monster, Stinky the Stinkweed and other Muppets, and being Head Writer and Director on ' ...

as Papa Bear, Stan the Snowball *

Jerry Nelson Jerry L. Nelson (July 10, 1934 – August 23, 2012) was an American puppeteer, best known for his work with The Muppets. Renowned for his wide range of characters and singing abilities, he performed Muppet characters on ''Sesame Street'', ' ...

Count von Count Count von Count (known simply as the Count) is a Muppet character on the PBS/ HBO children's television show ''Sesame Street.'' He is meant to parody Bela Lugosi's portrayal of Count Dracula. He first appeared on the show in the Season 4 premie ...

* Martin P. Robinson as Mr. Snuffleupagus *

David Rudman David Rudman (born June 1, 1963) is an American puppeteer, puppet builder, writer, director, and producer known for his involvement with the Muppets and ''Sesame Street''. Career David Rudman has been a ''Sesame Street'' Muppet performer since ...

, Baby Bear *

Caroll Spinney Caroll Edwin Spinney (December 26, 1933 – December 8, 2019) was an American puppeteer, cartoonist, author, artist and speaker, most famous for playing Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch on ''Sesame Street'' from its inception in 1969 until 2018. ...

Big Bird Big Bird is a Muppet character designed by Jim Henson and built by Kermit Love for the long-running children's television show ''Sesame Street''. An eight-foot two-inch (249 cm) tall bright yellow anthropomorphic bird, he can roller skat ...

, Oscar the Grouch * Matt Vogel as Stiller the Elf,

(puppeteer) *

Steve Whitmire Steven Lawrence Whitmire (born September 24, 1959) is an American puppeteer, known primarily for his work on ''The Muppets'' and ''Sesame Street''. Beginning his involvement with the Muppets in 1978, Whitmire inherited the roles of Ernie and Kerm ...

Ernie Ernie is a masculine given name, frequently a short form (hypocorism) of Ernest, Ernald, Ernesto, or Verner. It may refer to: People * Ernie Accorsi (born 1941), American football executive * Ernie Adams (disambiguation) * Ernie Afaganis (born c ...

Bryant Young Bryant Colby Young (born January 27, 1972) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). A first-round draft pick out of University of Notre Dam ...

as the rear end of Mr. Snuffleupagus Additional Muppets performed by Pam Arciero,

Heather Asch Heather C. Asch (born May 28, 1966) is an American puppeteer. Biography Heather Asch, who hails from Minneapolis, graduated from the University of Connecticut's Puppet Arts Program in 1991. Her first puppet project is ''Bosum Buddies'' which deal ...

Tyler Bunch Tyler Bunch, also known as H.D. Quinn, is an American puppeteer, puppet designer, director, and actor. Career In addition to his work for the Jim Henson Company, Bunch has created and performed puppets for PBS, Nickelodeon and Disney's Th ...

Stephanie D'Abruzzo Stephanie Ann D'Abruzzo (; born December 7, 1971) is an American actress, puppeteer and singer. She has performed various Muppets in the TV program ''Sesame Street''. She held starring roles on '' Oobi'' and ''The Book of Pooh''. She was one of ...

Ryan Dillon Ryan Dillon (born May 25, 1988) is an American puppeteer who has worked as an ensemble muppeteer for the Jim Henson Company since 2005. He also played Cooper and Paul Ball for the interactive series Sesame Street TV for Xbox Kinect, and appear ...

, Artie Esposito, James Godwin, BJ Guyer, Andy Hayward,

Carmen Osbahr Carmen Osbahr-Vertiz (born April 21, 1962) is a Mexican-born American puppeteer, singer and voice actress who has performed Rosita in the popular hit children's series ''Sesame Street'', since 1991. Osbahr has also performed Kiki Flores in '' T ...

, Patrick Holmes, John Kennedy,

Peter Linz Peter Linz (born June 28, 1967) is an American puppeteer. His most prominent role is being the performer for the character Walter who was introduced in the 2011 feature film ''The Muppets''. Since 1991, Linz has performed on ''Sesame Street'', ...

, Michael Lisa,

Noel MacNeal Noel MacNeal (born September 15, 1961), sometimes credited as Noel McNeal or Edward Noel MacNeal, is an American puppeteer, actor, director and writer of children's television who has performed since the early 1980s. He was the voice and puppetee ...

, Amanda Maddock, Ed May,

Paul McGinnis Paul McGinnis (born 1973) is an American puppeteer for ''Sesame Street'' and The Muppets. He has also performed in various non-Muppet television productions such as ''The Book of Pooh'', ''Julie's Greenroom'', ''The Wiz Live!'', '' Crash & Bernste ...

, Tracie Mick, Marc Petrosino, Andy Stone, Ian Sweetman, David Stephens,

John Tartaglia John Nicholas Tartaglia (; born February 16, 1978) is an American actor, singer, and puppeteer. Early life Tartaglia was born in Maple Shade Township, New Jersey, and graduated from Upper Dublin High School in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, in 19 ...

, and Gabriel Velez.

References

External links

''Elmo's Christmas Countdown''
at

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...