As the temperature drops and department stores begin their annual transformation into winter wonderlands, the streaming wars are once again shifting their battleground to the snowy, sugar-cookie-scented landscape of holiday romantic comedies. While the genre is often dismissed as formulaic comfort food, Netflix is deploying heavy artillery this season with My Secret Santa, a film that bets big on a high-concept twist and the undeniable star power of two of network television’s most beloved dramatic leads.
Directed by Mike Rohl—a filmmaker who has practically earned tenure in the genre after steering the massive success of The Princess Switch trilogy—the film offers a gender-bending premise that feels like a festive descendant of Mrs. Doubtfire or She’s the Man. But beneath the high-grade prosthetic beard and the padded red suit lies a vehicle designed to capitalize on the massive, dedicated fanbases of its leads: Virgin River’s Alexandra Breckenridge and New Amsterdam’s Ryan Eggold.
The Premise: A Holiday Hustle
The narrative centers on Taylor Jacobson (Breckenridge), a vivacious single mother struggling to make ends meet in a tough economy. When her daughter, Zoey (played by newcomer Madison MacIsaac), earns a spot at a prestigious snowboarding camp, Taylor faces a financial wall that no amount of budget-balancing can scale. The solution appears in the form of a seasonal job opening at a luxury ski resort. The catch? The resort is hiring a Santa Claus, and the management is strictly looking for a “traditional” candidate—which, in their outdated handbook, means a man.
Desperation breeds invention, and Taylor dons the full Santa regalia—beard, belly, and baritone—to secure the paycheck. The comedic tension tightens immediately when she crosses paths with Matthew Layne (Eggold), the resort’s charming but uptight general manager who is obsessed with delivering the “perfect” Christmas experience for his guests. As Taylor (in disguise) becomes the resort’s most popular Santa in years, winning over guests with an empathy the previous Santas lacked, she also begins to fall for Matthew as her true self. The result is a chaotic love triangle involving only two people.
From Mel Monroe to Saint Nick
For Alexandra Breckenridge, My Secret Santa represents a significant departure from the emotional heaviness of Virgin River, the hit drama that has occupied her schedule for the last several years. Known for playing Mel Monroe, a nurse practitioner navigating profound grief, PTSD, and complex romance in the California redwoods, Breckenridge embraces physical comedy here in a way audiences haven’t seen before.
“It’s really about shedding the vanity,” Breckenridge noted in a recent promotional interview released by the studio. “Usually, in these holiday movies, the lead actress is worried about looking perfect in every snowy frame—the perfect coat, the perfect hair. Here, I’m buried under three hours of prosthetics for half the movie. It’s liberating, and it allowed me to play with a physicality and a vocal range that is usually reserved for male character actors.”
Industry insiders who have viewed early cuts of the film suggest that Breckenridge carries the film’s absurdity with a grounded charm. The transition from dramatic anchor to slapstick heroine is a calculated risk, but one that seems designed to expand her range beyond the melodrama of her current hit series. It requires a specific kind of acting muscle to convey romantic longing while wearing a synthetic beard, yet Breckenridge reportedly pulls it off with surprising nuance.
The ‘New Amsterdam’ Charm Offensive
Opposite her is Ryan Eggold, trading the scrubs of Dr. Max Goodwin for the tailored wool coats of a high-end hotelier. Eggold, who spent five seasons asking “How can I help?” on NBC’s medical drama New Amsterdam, brings a familiar, comforting warmth to the role of Matthew.
The chemistry between Breckenridge and Eggold is the film’s primary currency. In the saturated market of Holiday Rom-Coms, the plot is often secondary to the “vibe,” and casting two actors who are veterans of “slow-burn” TV romances is a strategic masterstroke by Netflix.
“Ryan has this incredible ability to be earnest without being cheesy,” said director Mike Rohl. “We needed someone who could believably connect with ‘Santa’ on a human level, without making the audience roll their eyes. He treats the character of Santa with such respect that it makes the absurdity of the situation funny, rather than ridiculous. He plays the straight man perfectly, which allows Alexandra to really go for the comedy.”
A Nod to 90s Nostalgia
The film also taps into a deep vein of 90s nostalgia with the casting of Tia Mowry (Sister, Sister) as Natasha, a fellow resort employee and Taylor’s confidante. Mowry, a staple of the holiday genre in her own right—having starred in numerous productions for Lifetime and Hallmark—serves as the audience surrogate. Her character voices the incredulity of Taylor’s scheme while helping to keep the secret afloat, providing the necessary grounding for the plot’s more farcical elements.
The Evolution of the “Streamer Christmas”
My Secret Santa arrives at a pivotal moment for Netflix. The platform has spent the last decade trying to corner the global market on Christmas content, moving from acquiring Hallmark-style B-movies to producing high-gloss originals with A-list talent and significant budgets.
This film represents the “Prestige Rom-Com” tier of their strategy. It competes directly with major theatrical releases and the aggressive slate of holiday content from competitors like Hallmark+ and Disney+. However, My Secret Santa differentiates itself with its slightly higher production value and its meta-humor. The script, penned by Ron Oliver and Carley Smale, reportedly leans into the ridiculousness of the trope. It acknowledges the impossibility of the disguise, asking the audience to suspend disbelief not just for the sake of Christmas magic, but for the sake of comedy.
Will It Sleigh?
Social media reaction to the trailer has been overwhelmingly positive, particularly among the intersecting fandoms of the lead actors. The movie seems poised to capitalize on the “cozy viewing” trend, where audiences seek low-stakes, high-warmth content to counter the stress of the holiday season.
Whether the film becomes a perennial classic like The Holiday or Love Actually, or simply serves as a delightful, snowy distraction, remains to be seen. But on paper, My Secret Santa checks every box required for a seasonal hit: beloved TV stars, a luxury setting, a secret identity, and the promise that, by the time the credits roll, everything will be wrapped up with a perfect, red bow.
My Secret Santa premieres globally on Netflix on December 3.
