New faces at the North Pole! Tim Allen has returned as the man in red in Disney+’s mini-series The Santa Clauses! The show serves as the fourth installment of the iconic Christmas movies that all started with the 1994 original, The Santa Clause. While many fan-favorites and original characters of the beloved franchise have returned for the 8-episode series, so have some newcomers! Meet the newest elves on the block: Devin Bright is playing Noel; Matilda Lawler is Betty and Rupali Redd is playing Grace.
Speaking exclusively with J-14, Devin, Matilda and Rupali spoke about what it was like working with Tim Allen, their favorite part filming and if they had seen The Santa Clause movies prior to the series.
Matilda, 14, said it was “amazing” seeing Tim finally transform into Santa for the first time. “I was so shocked. Seeing the Santa suit in person, it’s a really beautiful suit,” she gushed. “It felt like an honor to be in his presence.”
Devin was right there to “second” Matilda’s sentiments, saying it was “surreal” to be able to work alongside Tim. “Noel [his character] gets to be in the sleigh, so I get to be in the sleigh with Tim and it was really surreal to just learn from him and get to act beside him. It was really cool.”
Rupali, for one, expressed how “fun” it was to work with Tim, as the Home Improvement actor was “making jokes 24/7” while on set — and also spoke about her experience watching Tim play Santa.
“It was amazing. He was so funny, and the first time I saw him, we were around the trailer area. I was walking down into the set and there were a bunch of stairs and I saw Tim Allen slash Santa walking down the stairs and [speaking] to my dad, I was like, ‘It’s Santa.’”
And have the three elves seen The Santa Clause movies?
“I mean, of course,” Matilda said of watching the iconic Christmas franchise. “I started watching them a couple years ago and I’ve been watching them every year since and I don’t want that tradition to ever stop, so I was very excited when I got cast.”
Devin shared that he “loves the movies” now but was actually pretty new to watching them! “I watched them earlier this year, even before I got the role though, so it was like, wow. It was really fun for me to be a part of it.”
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