One ofKal Penn’s next roles will take him to the North Pole.According to Deadline, Penn has been cast in Disney+’s upcomingThe Santa Clauselimited series.
In the series, Penn will play Simon Choksi. The character is described as a single father, who is also a game inventor and product developer. His attempts at becoming a tech-mogul have not been as successful as he had hoped. Penn’s previous work includes 2018’sThe Ashram(directed byBen Rekhi), 2017’sThe Layover(directed byWilliam H. Macy), andOnce Upon a Time in Venice(directed byMark Cullen). Also starring in the series will beTim Allenas Santa Claus/Scott Calvin, reprising his role from the film trilogy which ran from 1994-2006. Allen will also be an executive producer for the series. Also returning from the film series will beElizabeth Mitchellas Mrs. Claus/Carol Newman, who played the character in the second and third films.
The original 1994 film (directed byJohn Pasquin) followed Scott Calvin as a divorced father who spends the night of Christmas Eve with his son Charlie (played byEric Lloyd). After the previous Santa falls off his roof, Scott puts on the suit and delivers the rest of the Christmas gifts. Over the following year, Scott slowly transitions into the next Santa Claus. The 2002 sequel (directed byMichael Lembeck) followed Scott falling in love and marrying Charlie’s principal Carol Newman. The third film from 2006 (also directed by Lembeck) had Scott see what his life was like if he had never become Santa Claus. The upcoming limited series will follow a 65-year-old Scott, who is starting to lose his magic and realizes that he can’t continue to be Santa Claus. He decides that it is time for him to move his family away from the North Pole, including his two children who have never lived in the normal world. Scott then makes it his mission to find the right successor to take over as Santa Claus.
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The series is being developed byJack Burditt. Burditt previously created the seriesLast Man Standing, which ran from 2011-2021, and starred Allen as Mike Baxter. Burditt’s other previous work includesUnbreakable Kimmy Schmidt(which ran from 2015-2019 on Netflix) andThe Mindy Project(which ran from 2012-2017). Burditt will be the series' showrunner and executive producer.Jason Winerwill direct the series. Winer’s previous directing work includes 2011’sArthur, ABC’sModern Family, and Fox’sNew Girl.Kevin Hench,Richard Baker, andRick Messinawill be executive producers. The series will be produced by 20th Television.
No official release date has been announced forThe Santa Clauselimited series. In the meantime, fan can currently watch the original film trilogy, which is available to stream on Disney+.
