Netflix reveal the secret connections between eight of their Christmas films

Netflix reveal the secret connections between eight of their Christmas films as part of their Holiday Movie Universe.

In a lengthy Twitter thread on Friday evening, the streaming service introduced Netflix's Holiday Movie Universe, "an interconnected world of eight films (and counting) where anyone could become a princess and your soulmate may be hiding in plain sight — or the past." The movies involved are A Christmas Prince; A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding; A Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby; The Knight Before Christmas; The Holiday Calendar; The Princess Switch; Christmas Inheritance; and Holiday In The Wild.  According to the thread, the connections between the films started as the producers were keen to show a movie within 2018's The Holiday Calendar.  “It felt like a natural fit to show one of our other films available on Netflix,” said Amanda Phillips Atkins, EVP at MPCA. MPCA was also behind the film that was chosen: 2017’s Christmas Inheritance. 

Welcome to Netflix’s Holiday Movie Universe, an interconnected world of eight films (and counting) where anyone could become a princess and your soulmate may be hiding in plain sight — or the past! Here’s actually how these holiday faves became so entwined... pic.twitter.com/5uNjEknHac

— Netflix US (@netflix) December 6, 2019

MPCA also produced all three of the Christmas Prince movies, as well as 2018's The Princess Switch and 2019's The Knight Before Christmas and Holiday In The Wild.  “That one seed of an idea soon turned into fun opportunity to tie the various worlds together with small easter eggs from movie to movie,” Atkins explained, recalling how she - as well as Netflix - asked everyone involved in the movies to keep an eye out for the chance to have more connections. There were three films in particular that had the chance do something a little more than a brief Easter egg or nod to another festive film: The Knight Before Christmas, The Princess Switch and The Christmas Prince. 

First, In The Knight Before Christmas, Emmanuelle Chriqui’s character mentions their family once visited Aldovia while holding *the* iconic acorn.

Then, A Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby reveals that Aldovia and Belgravia are actually near one another on a map! pic.twitter.com/WpPCcCvHE7 — Netflix US (@netflix) December 6, 2019

“We planned to branch out from just having our characters watch each other on TV,” Atkins explained, discussing how they created the world that intertwined the three films. “We thought it would be a great opportunity to build out a whole universe, not just for Aldovia but for the whole world of our Christmas movies!” And with the festive films set to arrive in 2020 - Switched Again, the sequel to Vanessa Hudgens' 2017 film Princess Switch, and Operation Christmas Drop - it looks like Netflix's Holiday Movie Universe is only going to get more intertwined. “It's been so fun to watch the reactions as fans discover the tie-ins with each release,” Atkins said.