Montana Produced the "Coolest Santa" Ever

Santa has never had a "branding" problem.

Generations of kids anticipate his arrival, his Missoula flyover, and parents are pretty clued in to "Santa incentive." His marketing team has even managed to navigate the new media landscape, keeping Gene Autry's "Here Comes Santa Claus" viable from AM radio to Spotify, and moving his appearances from the pages of Sears catalogs to online.

But there's always been an issue with that image. It's a little hard to sell treadmills and exercise gear, or healthy food choices, when your Big Guy is mainly known for milk and cookie consumption.

I think the University of Montana helped solve that problem in 2024.

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Now THAT'S a Santa Clause

Even in the popular Tim Allen movies, audiences watched as "Tim the Tool Man" transformed into that portly, although jolly, gentleman.

Now, "Red One" has finally delivered the coolest Santa of all time, with U.M. alum J.K. Simmons showing that Santa has to burn some carbs to climb down all those chimneys. Call it a Montana mentality.

"Red One" is THE big Christmas movie of 2024

The buzz over the movie started during it's limited theatrical release in early November, and despite the negative reviews, started to roll when it began streaming as one of the biggest Amazon produced hits ever.

In the first four days of streaming this month, "Red One" generated 50-million streams, making it the most watched movie premier ever on Amazon Prime.

Why was "Red One" such a big hit?

This has been the debate in the movie world over the past couple of weeks. With a 30% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and theater revenue falling short of the $250-million budget, the film was being called a "flop."

But I think it's just about families wanting something fun this time of the year.

And face it, from the outset, J.K.'s immediate appearance as a Santa with massive reindeer, Secret Service level protection, and a jet sleigh with a fighter jet escort works (call it the "Top Gun" effect). And the first few minutes of his interaction with Dwayne Johnson spotting him while he lifts iron is AWESOME. This is how I always wanted Santa to be.

When J.K. isn't on screen, the film does struggle. Although there's enough fun between "The Rock" and Chris Evans as an anti-hero to keep it rolling. Just don't expect this to become a Christmas tradition film, especially for younger kids.

With J.K.'s magical return and Evan's Christmas transition, it answers all those "how does Santa do it" questions I've had since I was 6.

As Glenn Garner of Deadline Hollywood wrote, "Yes, it's cheesy, but this movie is best when it leans heavily into the cheese."

Just make sure you take care of your Santa cardio afterward.