The first teaser trailer has been released for A Christmas Story Christmas, a new legacy sequel to A Christmas Story. In the movie, Peter Billingsley returns to reprise his role as Ralphie, now all grown up but wearing the same familiar style of eyeglasses. The new teaser, which you can watch below, provides our first look at the adult Ralphie's return along with some references and callbacks to the original movie.
Word of the sequel was first announced in January. It was reported at the time that the movie was written by Nick Schenk (The Mule) with Clay Kaytis (Christmas Chronicles) directing. In addition to reprising his role as Ralphie, Billingsley is also on board as an executive producer alongside Schenk and his partner Vince Vaughn via Wild West Picture Show Productions. The film is a collaboration between Warner Bros. and Legendary.
According to Deadline, a description for A Christmas Story Christmas reads:
"An adult Ralphie (Peter Billingsley) in the 1970s, who returns to the house on Cleveland street to deliver his kids a magical Christmas like the one he had growing up. With the same attention to real-life tone of the first, Ralphie reconnects with childhood friends, reconciles the passing of his Old Man and sews the seeds for the origins of the beloved Holiday classic."
Peter Billingsley Returns as Ralphie
There have been sequels to A Christmas Story in the past. A direct sequel called My Summer Story was released in 1994, though it featured Kieran Culkin in the role of Ralphie alongside an all-new cast. However, the film did have Jean Shepherd returning as the adult Ralphie, serving as the narrator.
In 2012, there was another sequel released actually dubbed A Christmas Story 2. The movie follows a 15-year-old Ralphie played by Braeden Lemasters, now obsessed with getting a convertible for Christmas much in the way he really wanted a Red Ryder BB gun in the original movie. The film was widely panned and came nowhere close to reaching the same levels of success as the original.
What none of the previous sequels have in common is that Billingsley did not return as Ralphie, or even for a special cameo as another character. He did, however, appear in another famous holiday film with his role as an elf in 2003's Elf with Will Farrell. Billingsley also appeared in the 2009 Christmas movie Four Christmases. More recently, the actor appeared in the superhero movie Spider-Man: Far From Home.
A Christmas Story Christmas will start streaming on HBO Max on Nov. 17, 2022.