When it comes to alternative Christmas movies, few are better than the 1984 comedy horror flick “Gremlins.”

Joe Dante’s classic, which was written by “Home Alone” director Chris Columbus, follows a young man Billy Peltzer (Zach Galligan), who receives a cute but mysterious pet as a Christmas gift. After Billy fails to follow a series of strict instructions required to take care of the creature, it multiplies and spawns the little green eponymous monsters that proceed to wreak havoc on his hometown on Christmas Eve.

Gremlins’ memorable cast also included the likes of 1980s icons Phoebe Cates and Corey Feldman, folk singer-songwriter Hoyt Axton, and the inimitable Dick Miller.

Let’s take a look at the cast as they were in 1984, and as they were now…

Zach Galligan (Billy Peltzer)

Zach Galligan was a complete newcomer to movie acting when he starred as a 20-year-old in “Gremlins.” He played Billy Peltzer, the young man who receives the mysterious creature (a “mogwai”) that causes all the chaos in the film.

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Galligan is now 61 and, per IMDb, has many more movies to his name.

His film credits now include the likes of 1984’s sci-fi comedy “Nothing Lasts Forever,” 1988’s comedy horror “Waxwork,” 1990’s satirical sequel “Gremlins 2: The New Batch,” 1991’s erotic thriller “Zandalee,” 1992’s comedy horror sequel “Waxwork II: Lost in Time,” 1993’s supernatural horror “Warlock: The Armageddon,” 1999’s erotic crime drama “Raw Nerve,” and 2013’s slasher horror sequel “Hatchet III.”

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Phoebe Cates (Kate Beringer)

Per IMDb, “Gremlins” was only the fourth movie Phoebe Cates had been in. She played Billy’s love interest Kate Beringer, and she was a month away from turning 21 when the film hit theaters.

The three movies she’d appeared in before “Gremlins” were 1982’s romantic adventure “Paradise,” 1982’s coming-of-age comedy “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” and 1983’s sex comedy “Private School.”

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Cates in now 62 and retired from acting in the early 2000s. She’s been married to actor Kevin Kline since 1989 and her focus is now on her boutique business, located on New York’s Madison Avenue.

Her post-“Gremlins” movie roles included 1987’s fantasy rom-com “Date with an Angel,” 1988’s drama film “Bright Lights, Big City,” 1990’s satirical sequel “Gremlins 2: The New Batch,” 1991’s fantasy comedy “Drop Dead Fred,” 1993’s drama “Bodies, Rest & Motion,” and her final film, 2001’s comedy-drama “The Anniversary Party.”

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Hoyt Axton (Randall Peltzer)

Hoyt Axton was arguably better known as a folk singer-songwriter than he was an actor when he appeared in “Gremlins” as a 46-year-old. He played Billy’s father, the struggling inventor Randall Peltzer, in the film. That being said, he did have many movie credits to his name.

Per IMDb, Axton had previously appeared in the likes of 1966’s Western movie “Smoky,” 1979’s adventure film “The Black Stallion,” 1980’s aviation drama “Cloud Dancer,” 1982’s independent action comedy “The Junkman,” 1982’s sci-fi horror “Endangered Species,”and 1983’s independent drama “Deadline Auto Theft.”

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Tragically, Axton passed away on October 26, 1999, at the age of just 61. He had suffered two heart attacks in the space of two weeks.

He went on to appear in many more movies after “Gremlins,” including 1987’s horror flick “Retribution,” 1989’s heist comedy “Disorganized Crime,” 1989’s comedy “We’re No Angels,” 1992’s comedy “Harmony Cats,” 1992’s sci-fi comedy “Space Case,” and 1999’s direct-to-video sci-fi horror “King Cobra.”

There are very few images of Axton in his final years, so here’s a video of him from 1994.

Frances Lee McCain (Lynn Peltzer)

When “Gremlins” hit theaters, Frances Lee McCain was one month shy of her 40th birthday.

Still, she had only been acting for about a decade, and most of her credits were on the small screen. Per IMDb, her only five previous theatrical movie appearances came in 1973’s neo-noir thriller “The Laughing Policeman,” 1979’s comedy mockumentary “Real Life,” 1981’s comedy film “Honky Tonk Freeway,” 1982’s coming-of-age drama “Tex,” and 1984’s musical drama “Footloose.”

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McCain is now 81, and while her acting career has been far from prolific, she has appeared in some memorable movies. They include 1985’s sci-fi adventure “Back to the Future,” 1986’s coming-of-age drama “Stand by Me,” 1996’s slasher horror “Scream,” 1998’s comedy-drama “Patch Adams,” 1999’s mystery thriller “True Crime,” 2018’s comedy-drama “Ideal Home,” 2019’s period thriller “Dreamland,” 2020’s crime comedy “The Comeback Trail,” and 2022’s crime thriller “End of the Road.”

There aren’t many recent pictures of McCain available, but here’s one Zach Galligan took with her in 2019.

Polly Holliday (Ruby Deagle)

Despite playing miserly elderly lady Ruby Deagle in “Gremlins,” Polly Holliday was actually a month away from turning just 47 when the film released in theaters.

Predominantly a television actress, she only had five movies to her name at that point. They included 1975’s comedy “W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings,” 1976’s biographical political thriller “All the President’s Men,” and 1978’s comedy “The One and Only” (per IMDb).

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Holliday sadly passed away on September 9, 2025. She was 88 and, following a rapid decline in her health, died from a bout of pneumonia.

After “Gremlins,” movies she went on to appear in included 1988’s rom-com “Moon Over Parador,” 1993’s comedy-drama “Mrs. Doubtfire,” 1996’s romantic black comedy “Mr. Wrong,” 1998’s family rom-com “The Parent Trap,” 2006’s comedy-drama “Stick It,” 2007’s romantic dark comedy “The Heartbreak Kid,” and 2010’s political biographical film “Fair Game.”

Sadly, there aren’t many recent pictures of Holliday, but here’s one from not long ago posted by a friend on social media.

Dick Miller (Murray Futterman)

Character actor Dick Miller — who, rather appropriately, was born on Christmas Day — was 55 when “Gremlins” was released. In the film, he played Murray Futterman, a paranoid World War II veteran and neighbor of the Peltzer family who had believed in gremlins his whole life.

Per IMDb, Miller had dozens of movie credits to his name before “Gremlins.” They included 1960’s horror comedy “The Little Shop of Horrors,” 1963’s independent horror “The Terror,” 1967’s gangster movie “The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre,” 1975’s dystopian sci-fi action movie “Death Race 2000,” 1978’s comedy horror “Piranha,” 1982’s comedy movie “National Lampoon’s Movie Madness,” and 1983’s sci-fi fantasy horror anthology film “Twilight Zone: The Movie.”

Miller passed away on January 30, 2019, at the age of 90. He was being treated for pneumonia at the time, but the official cause of death was a heart attack.

He remained a prolific actor for most of his life and his credits after “Gremlins” were plentiful. They included 1984’s sci-fi action movie “The Terminator,” 1985’s neo-noir black comedy “After Hours,” 1986’s independent techno-horror “Chopping Mall,” 1986’s sci-fi horror comedy “Night of the Creeps,” 1987’s sci-fi comedy “Innerspace,” 1989’s black comedy “The ‘Burbs,” 1990’s satirical sequel “Gremlins 2: The New Batch,” 1998’s action comedy “Small Soldiers,” and 2009’s dark fantasy horror movie “The Hole.”

Though photographs from Miller’s later life are hard to come by, here’s one of him in his 80s that was posted on social media.

Judge Reinhold (Gerald Hopkins)

Reinhold was 27 when Gremlins was released. He played Billy’s irritating and boastful co-worker Gerald Hopkins in the movie.

Per IMDb, prior to his appearance in the movie, his film credits included the likes of 1981’s war comedy “Stripes,” 1982’s slasher parody “Pandemonium,” and 1982’s coming-of-age comedy “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” (the latter of which he starred in alongside “Gremlins” co-star Phoebe Cates).

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Reinhold went onto star in “Beverly Hills Cop” in the same year as “Gremlins,” meaning he appeared in two of 1984’s four highest-grossing movies.

He subsequently appeared in all three “Beverly Hills Cop” sequels, all three movies in “The Santa Clause” franchise between 1994 and 2006, 1988’s fantasy comedy “Vice Versa,” 1991’s erotic thriller “Zandalee” (in which he featured alongside “Gremlins” co-star Zach Galligan), 1997’s comedy “Family Plan,” and a pair of direct-to-video sequels to “Beethoven” in 2000 and 2001 respectively.

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Corey Feldman (Pete Fountaine)

Corey Feldman was a month away from becoming a teenager when “Gremlins” was released. He played Billy’s friend Pete Fountaine in the movie in what was his fourth film role.

Per IMDb, his previous movie credits were 1979’s sci-fi movie “Time After Time,” 1981’s animated buddy drama “The Fox and the Hound,” and 1984’s slasher horror “Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter.”

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Feldman is now 54 and the 1980s and early 1990s were hugely successful for him after “Gremlins.” He went on to appear in the likes of 1985’s slasher sequel “Friday the 13th: A New Beginning,” 1985’s adventure comedy “The Goonies,” 1986’s coming-of-age drama “Stand by Me,” 1987’s comedy horror “The Lost Boys,” 1989’s black comedy “The ‘Burbs,” and 1990’s superhero comedy movie “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.”

He’s remained active, but Feldman’s roles haven’t been quite as high-profile since then. That said, he recently featured as a contestant on season 34 of the hugely popular reality dance competition series “Dancing with the Stars.” The former child actor was paired with professional dancer Jenna Johnson, but the couple were eliminated after just two episodes, which was the earliest an elimination could possibly have occurred.

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Make sure you watch “Gremlins” this festive season. It truly should be a festive staple in everyone’s household!

May Hoyt Axton, Polly Holliday, and Dick Miller rest in peace.

The post PHOTOS: The ‘Gremlins’ Cast Then & Now appeared first on EntertainmentNow.

Actress Amy Smart and director Roger Kumble recently reminded us that it’s been 20 years since the Christmas rom-com “Just Friends” released in theaters.

The film follows a formerly overweight high school student (Ryan Reynolds) who, now an adult, visits his hometown at Christmas. While there, he attempts to escape the friend zone after reconnecting with his best friend (Smart), with whom he is actually madly in love.

In an interview with People, Smart spoke of her enjoyable but challenging experience filming the movie with co-star Reynolds, telling the publication, “What I enjoyed about this is obviously a lot of my scenes are with Ryan, and he is just innately so funny that it was a big challenge to hold the laughter in.”

Smart and Reynolds led a cast that also included the likes of Anna Faris, Christopher Marquette, Chris Klein, and Stephen Root.

It got us thinking, how are the “Just Friends” cast doing two decades later? Let’s take a look at some then and now photographs to find out.

Ryan Reynolds (Chris Brander)

Ryan Reynolds was 29 and an established Hollywood star when he played the lead role of formerly-obese character Chris Brander, a record producer and vice president of a record label, in “Just Friends.”

Per IMDb, he’d featured prominently on television and in movies for a decade-and-a-half, having got his break in TV shows like teen drama “Hillside,” fantasy adventure series “The Odyssey,” sci-fi anthology series “The Outer Limits,” and sci-fi drama series “The X-Files.”

Regarding movies, he’d already appeared in the likes of 1993’s drama “Ordinary Magic,” 1996’s made-for-TV movie “Sabrina the Teenage Witch,” 2002’s rom-com “Van Wilder,” 2004’s buddy stoner comedy “Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle,” 2004’s superhero movie “Blade: Trinity,” and 2005’s supernatural scare-fest “The Amityville Horror.”

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Now 49, Reynolds is a huge name in Hollywood and a bona fide A-lister.

Reynolds’ filmography now includes movies like 2009’s superhero offering “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” 2009’s rom-com “The Proposal,” 2011’s superhero flick “Green Lantern,” 2013’s animated adventure comedy “The Croods,” and three “Deadpool” movies in which he plays the titular fourth-wall-breaking Marvel superhero.

As co-owner of British soccer club Wrexham A.F.C., Reynolds also featured heavily in the 2022 FX documentary “Welcome to Wrexham,” which documents events at the team’s Racecourse Ground following its purchase by Reynolds and his fellow actor Rob McElhenney.

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Amy Smart (Jamie Palamino)

Like Reynolds, Amy Smart was 29 when she appeared in “Just Friends.” Smart played Jamie Palamino, the object of Chris Brander’s affections. Per IMDb, Smart had been acting for around a decade, with roles on television and in movies to her name.

On the small screen, she had appeared in the likes of drama series “Felicity,” comedy-drama series “The ’70s,” and the medical sitcom “Scrubs.”

Her movie credits included the likes of 1997’s sci-fi action flick “Starship Troopers,” 1999’s coming-of-age sports comedy-drama “Varsity Blues,” 2000’s sex comedy “Road Trip,” 2004’s sci-fi thriller “The Butterfly Effect,” and 2004’s buddy cop action comedy “Starsky & Hutch.”

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Smart is now 49, and both her television and movie careers have gone from strength to strength.

Her TV credits now include stop-motion animated sketch comedy series “Robot Chicken,” the drama series “Smith,” the comedy-drama series “Shameless,” the neo-Western crime drama “Justified,” the sitcom “Maron,” and the superhero series “Stargirl.”

Movie-wise, she’s gone on to appear in the likes of 2006’s action film “Crank” and its 2009 sequel “Crank: High Voltage,” 2011’s action flick “The Reunion,” 2014’s crime drama “Bad Country,” 2014’s comedy-drama “The Single Moms Club,” 2017’s supernatural horror “The Keeping Hours,” and 2023’s festive movie “The Christmas Classic.”

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Anna Faris (Samantha James)

Anna Faris played emerging pop singer Samantha James in “Just Friends.” She turned 29 while the film was still playing in theaters. Faris had been acting for more than a decade at the time, with roles on both television and in movies behind her.

Per IMDb, Faris’ television credits had included roles in animated sitcom “King of the Hill,” sitcom “Friends,” and sketch comedy show “Mad TV.”

Her movie credits included the likes of the 1999 slasher horror “Lovers Lane,” 2000’s slasher parody “Scary Movie,” its 2001 sequel “Scary Movie 2,” 2002’s fantasy comedy “The Hot Chick,” 2003’s romantic comedy-drama “Lost in Translation,” 2003’s parody sequel “Scary Movie 3,” and 2005’s neo-Western romantic drama “Brokeback Mountain.”

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Now 49, Faris has enjoyed a hugely successful career since her role in “Just Friends,” with further credits on television and in movies added to her filmography.

On television, her more recent credits include the likes of the comedy-drama series “Entourage,” sitcom “Mom,” animated sitcom “HouseBroken,” animated sitcom “The Simpsons,” and animated musical-comedy series “Phineas and Ferb.”

Additional movie credits include 2006’s parody sequel “Scary Movie 4,” 2006’s superhero rom-com “My Super Ex-Girlfriend,” 2009’s animated sci-fi comedy “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” and its sequel, 2009’s live-action animated musical comedy “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel” (and two further sequels in the franchise), 2010’s live-action animated comedy “Yogi Bear,” 2012’s political satire movie “The Dictator,” 2013’s anthology comedy film “Movie 43,” 2014’s buddy cop action flick “21 Jump Street,” 2016’s buddy action comedy movie “Keanu,” and 2017’s animated comedy “The Emoji Movie.” In 2026, she’ll appear in another “Scary Movie” installment, and voice a character in “Toy Story 5.”

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Christopher Marquette (Mike Brander)

“Just Friends” was only the fourth movie a then-21-year-old Christopher Marquette had ever appeared in, playing Chris Brander’s younger brother, Mike. He had, however, featured quite prominently on television.

Per IMDb, his TV credits include roles in the sci-fi sitcom “Aliens in the Family,” teen drama “Beverly Hills, 90210,” animated show “The Kids from Room 402,” medical drama “Strong Medicine,” soap opera “Pasadena,” animated series “The Mummy,” animated series “Filmore!,” and family fantasy drama “Joan of Arcadia.”

The three movies he’d appeared in were 1999’s drama “The Tic Code,” 2003’s slasher horror “Freddy vs. Jason,” and 2004’s rom-com “The Girl Next Door.”

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Marquette’s filmography has grown substantially since his role in “Just Friends,” with many more roles on both the small and big screens.

He’s now appeared in TV shows like the dark comedy-drama “Weeds,” police procedural “Criminal Minds,” medical drama “House,” police procedural “Hawaii Five-0,” fantasy series “Lucifer,” action thriller series “The Fugitive,” action series “Magnum P.I.,” and sci-fi show “RZR.”

His movie credits now include 2006’s crime drama “Alpha Dog,” drama flick “The Education of Charlie Banks,” sci-fi adventure film “Race to Witch Mountain,” comedy horror “Infestation,” comedy movie “Fanboys,” zom-rom-com “Night of the Living Deb,” and drama movie “Nostalgia.”

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Chris Klein (Dusty ‘Dusty Lee’ Dinkleman)

Chris Klein played paramedic and former high school classmate of Chris and Jamie, Dusty “Dusty Lee” Dinkleman, in “Just Friends.” He was 26 at the time.

Per IMDb, Klein had a significant number of acting credits behind him at that point, but only in movies. He hadn’t appeared in any acting roles on television.

His movie credits included 1999’s satirical black comedy “Election,” 1999’s coming-of-age teen sex comedy “American Pie,” 2000’s romantic drama “Here on Earth,” 2001’s black comedy “Say It Isn’t So,” 2001’s comedy sequel “American Pie 2,” 2002’s sci-fi sports movie “Rollerball,” and 2002’s war movie “We Were Soldiers.”

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Klein, now 46, has since enjoyed a fruitful acting career that now extends to multiple roles on television, as well as many more movies.

His television credits include the animated sitcom “American Dad,” sitcom “Welcome to The Captain,” sitcom “Wilfred,” animated sci-fi series “Tron: Uprising,” superhero show “The Flash,” and romantic drama series “Sweet Magnolias.”

Movie-wise, he’s appeared in 2005’s sex comedy “The Long Weekend,” drama movie “Day Zero,” 2009’s martial arts action flick “Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li,” 2012’s comedy sequel “American Reunion,” 2018’s rom-com “The Competition,” and 2025’s slasher horror “Fear Street: Prom Queen.”

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Stephen Root (KC)

Stephen Root played record label CEO KC in “Just Friends.” The experienced actor was 54 when the movie released. Per IMDb, his extensive career had already led to many roles on both the big and small screens.

On television, Root’s credits included the sitcom “Night Court,” legal drama “L.A. Law,” sci-fi miniseries “Golden Years,” sitcom “Blossom,” sitcom “NewsRadio,” animated sitcom “King of the Hill,” sitcom “Ladies Man,” animated series “Buzz Lightyear of Star Command,” sitcom “Malcolm in the Middle,” sitcom “Grounded for Life,” animated show “Kim Possible,” and sci-fi comedy series “Tripping the Rift.”

Root’s movie credits included the likes of 1988’s action comedy “Crocodile Dundee II,” 1989’s neo-noir action thriller “Black Rain,” 1998’s horror comedy “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” 1993’s sci-fi action flick “RoboCop 3,” 1999’s satirical black comedy “Office Space,” 2003’s animated comedy “Finding Nemo,” 2004’s comedy “Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story,” and 2004’s festive rom-com “Surviving Christmas.”

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The prolific Root’s filmography is now much larger. Now 74, he’s clearly incredibly hardworking, as his roles on television and in movies continuously come thick and fast.

His television credits now include shows like political drama “The West Wing,” animated sitcom “American Dad,” fantasy horror drama “True Blood,” action drama “24,” neo-Western crime drama “Justified,” animated series “Dragons: Riders of Berk,” police procedural sitcom “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” sitcom “Idiotsitter,” and black comedy crime drama series “Barry.”

Root’s movie credits now include 2006’s sci-fi comedy “Idiocracy,” 2007’s neo-Western crime thriller “No Country for Old Men,” 2009’s satirical black comedy war movie “The Men Who Stare at Goats,” 2011’s independent horror thriller “Red State,” 2013’s Western action flick “The Lone Ranger,” 2014’s historical drama “Selma,” 2016’s animated comedy “Finding Dory,” 2017’s psychological horror “Get Out,” and 2025’s action comedy “Heads of State.”

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Julie Hagerty (Carol Brander)

Julie Hagerty was 50 when she played Carol Brander, Chris Brander’s mother, in “Just Friends.” As an experienced actress, she had around 25 years of television and movie roles to her name (per IMDb).

At that time, her television credits included the sitcom “Princesses,” sitcom “Women of the House,” medical drama “ER,” sitcom “Reunited,” sitcom “Malcolm in the Middle,” and sitcom “Girlfriends.”

Among her many movie credits were 1980’s disaster comedy “Airplane!,” 1982’s follow-up “Airplane II: The Sequel,” 1985’s comedy “Bad Medicine,” 1991’s comedy “What About Bob?,” 2001’s surreal black comedy “Freddy Got Fingered,” and 2002’s mystery thriller “The Badge.”

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Now 70, Hagerty has continued to act virtually uninterrupted, amassing a plethora of additional television and movie credits.

On television, since appearing in “Just Friends,” she’s added the period sitcom “The Winner,” police procedural “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” animated sitcom “Family Guy,” sitcom “Happy Endings,” sitcom “Wilfred,” sitcom “New Girl,” historical dark comedy series “Black Monday,” and legal drama “Matlock” to her many credits.

Additional movies she’s since appeared in include 2006’s teen sports rom-com “She’s the Man,” 2009’s rom-com “Confessions of a Shopaholic,” 2013’s drama film “A Master Builder,” 2018’s comedy-drama “Instant Family,” 2019’s drama “Marriage Story,” 2019’s Christmas fantasy film “Noelle,” and 2023’s action comedy “The Out-Laws.”

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Alanis Morissette (Herself)

Ryan Reynolds’ then-fiancée Alanis Morisette made a cameo appearance as herself in “Just Friends,” playing one of Reynolds’ character’s former clients. She was 31 at the time.

Despite predominantly being known for her work as a singer-songwriter, Morissette had already done some acting at the time of “Just Friends'” release, both on television and in movies.

Per IMDb, she’d appeared on television in the likes of the romantic comedy-drama “Sex and the City,” comedy of manners “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and drama series “American Dreams.” Movies she’d appeared in included titles like 1993’s direct-to-video teen comedy “Anything for Love,” 1999’s fantasy comedy “Dogma,” 2001’s satirical stoner buddy action comedy “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back,” and 2004’s musical biopic “De-Lovely.”

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Now 51, Morissette is still far more well known for being a singer-songwriter, but she has added to her acting credits, too.

On television, her credits now include the likes of the medical drama “Nip/Tuck,” dark comedy-drama series “Weeds,” animated show “Top Wing,” and animated sitcom “The Great North.” She’s also featured as a guest judge and mentor on “American Idol.”

Meanwhile, her movie credits now include films like 2006’s climate change documentary “The Great Warming” and 2010’s dystopian flick “Radio Free Albemuth.”

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Suffice it to say, the cast of “Just Friends” are looking great! Can you actually believe it’s been 20 years since it was released? We certainly can’t.

The post PHOTOS: The ‘Just Friends’ Cast Then & Now appeared first on EntertainmentNow.

At the start of this December, “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” turned 36 years old. The festive slapstick comedy classic was released on December 1, 1989, is now far more appreciated than it was initially, and has become a festive viewing staple for millions.

In the movie, the inimitable Clark Griswold — played so iconically by Chevy Chase — attempts to give his family a perfect, traditional, old-fashioned Christmas. However, unsurprisingly, things don’t go according to plan and hilarity and calamity ensue.

“Christmas Vacation’s” memorable cast also includes the likes of Beverly D’Angelo, Randy Quaid, Juliette Lewis, and Johnny Galecki. Let’s take a look at what the core cast looked like then, compared to what they all look like now…

Chevy Chase (Clark Griswold)

Chevy Chase was already a huge star when “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” released. At 46, he had already featured heavily on television and in movies, getting his big break as the breakout cast member in the first season of “Saturday Night Live” in the mid-1970s.

He had also hosted his own show, “The Chevy Chase Show,” and co-hosted the 59th and 60th Academy Awards.

Regarding movies, his credits at that point included 1974’s independent comedy “The Groove Tube,” 1980’s sports comedy “Caddyshack,” 1985’s comedy-thriller “Fletch,” 1986’s Western comedy “¡Three Amigos!,” and, of course, two previous “National Lampoon” installments (per IMDb).

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Chase is now 82 and has enjoyed an enviable career on the big and small screens by anyone’s standards.

His subsequent television credits included a revamped version of “The Chevy Chase Show,” further appearances on “Saturday Night Live,” and roles in shows as varied as sitcom “The Nanny,” police procedural “Law & Order,” animated sitcom “Family Guy,” family drama “Brothers & Sisters,” Swedish sitcom “Hjälp!,” action comedy “Chuck,” and sitcom “Community.”

Movie credits for Chase since “Christmas Vacation” include 1992’s comedy-drama “Memoirs of an Invisible Man,” 1997’s road comedy “National Lampoon’s Vegas Vacation,” 2009’s fantasy adventure comedy “Jack and the Beanstalk,” 2010’s sci-fi comedy “Hot Tub Time Machine,” and 2015’s road comedy “National Lampoon’s Vacation.”

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Beverly D’Angelo (Ellen Griswold)

Beverly D’Angelo played Clark Griswold’s wife, Ellen, in “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.” She was 38 at the time of the movie’s release.

D’Angelo had only appeared in a couple of minor television roles prior to her appearance in “Christmas Vacation,” but had amassed a fairly substantial back catalogue of movie roles.

Per IMDb, her previous movie credits included 1977’s satirical romantic comedy-drama “Annie Hall,” 1977’s supernatural horror “The Sentinel,” 1978’s action comedy “Every Which Way but Loose,” 1980’s biographical musical “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” 1981’s comedy “Honky Tonk Freeway,” 1981’s comedy “Fraternity,” 1988’s fantasy comedy “High Spirits,” and, of course, two previous “National Lampoon” installments alongside Chase.

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After “Christmas Vacation,” D’Angelo continued to appear prolifically on television and in movies.

Her subsequent television credits include a wide variety of shows, including the horror anthology series “Tales from the Crypt,” animated sitcom “The Simpsons,” sitcom Frasier, sitcom “Rude Awakening,” police procedural “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” comedy-drama series “Entourage,” animated sitcom “Family Guy,” sitcom “Cougar Town,” drama series “Shooter,” and black comedy-drama series “Insatiable.”

D’Angelo’s movie credits now include the likes of 1997’s road comedy “National Lampoon’s Vegas Vacation,” 1998’s crime drama American History X,” 2008’s buddy stoner comedy “Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay,” 2015’s road comedy “National Lampoon’s Vacation,” and 2022’s Christmas action comedy “Violent Night.”

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Randy Quaid (Eddie Johnson)

Randy Quaid was 39 when he appeared as Eddie Johnson in “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.” Redneck Eddie is Ellen and Clark’s cousin-in-law, by virtue of the fact he’s married to Ellen’s cousin, Catherine.

Quaid had almost two decades of acting behind him when he appeared in “Christmas Vaction,” with prominent roles on television and in films (per IMDb).

His television credits included the likes of “Saturday Night Live” and a number of made-for-TV movies. His movie career had been more successful, with appearances in films like 1971’s coming-of-age-drama “The Last Picture Show,” 1973’s comedy-drama “The Last Detail” (for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor), 1976’s biographical drama “Bound for Glory,” 1983’s road comedy “National Lampoon’s Vacation,” and 1988’s sports comedy “Caddyshack II.”

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Quaid is now 75 and, although he is still acting, is rarely seen in public. He’s experienced some legal problems, but appears to have kept out of trouble in the last decade.

Following his appearance in “Christmas Vaction,” he continued to prolifically appear on television and in movies.

His television credits include more made-for-TV films, as well as shows like the sitcom “Davis Rules,” animated comedy series “The Ren & Stimpy Show,” drama series “The Brotherhood of Poland, New Hampshire.”

Quaid’s movie credits now include the likes of 1993’s black comedy “Freaked,” 1996’s sports comedy “Kingpin,” 1996’s sci-fi action flick “Independence Day,” 1997’s road comedy “National Lampoon’s Vegas Vacation,” 1998’s action thriller “Hard Rain,” and 2001’s parody movie “Not Another Teen Movie.”

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Johnny Galecki (Russell ‘Rusty’ Griswold)

Johnny Galecki was 14 when he played Clark and Ellen’s son, Russell “Rusty” Griswold, in “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.” Galecki replaced Anthony Michael Hall and Jason Lively, who played the character in two previous “Vacation” movies.

It was Galecki’s fifth acting job. He’d previously appeared in only four movies, one of which was another Christmas movie, in the form of 1988’s fantasy drama “Prancer” (per IMDb).

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“Christmas Vaction” provided Galecki with the platform for his acting career to take off, and he subsequently began appearing regularly both on television and in more movies.

Now 50, his television credits include significant roles in the sitcom “American Dreamer,” sitcom “Blossom,” “Head of the Class” spin-off “Billy,” sitcom “Roseanne,” and his most iconic role in sitcom “The Big Bang Theory.”

Galecki’s back catalogue of movies now includes 1991’s comedy film “Backfield in Motion,” 1997’s British comedy “Bean,” 1997’s crime thriller “Suicide Kings,” 1997’s slasher horror “I Know What You Did Last Summer,” 1998’s romantic dark comedy “The Opposite of Sex,” 2000’s romantic drama “Bounce,” 2001’s psychological sci-fi thriller “Vanilla Sky,” 2008’s superhero movie “Hancock,” and 2019’s adventure comedy-drama “A Dog’s Journey.”

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Juliette Lewis (Audrey Griswold)

Juliette Lewis was 16 when she played Clark and Ellen’s daughter, Audrey Griswold, in “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.” Lewis replaced Dana Barron and Dana Hill, who played the character in two previous “Vacation” movies.

She had only appeared in one movie before “Christmas Vacation” and that was 1988’s sci-fi comedy “My Stepmother Is an Alien.” She had, however, appeared in a handful of television series, including the sitcom “I Married Dora,” sitcom “The Facts of Life,” and the coming-of-age comedy series “The Wonder Years” (per IMDb).

Now 52, Lewis has appeared in dozens of movies and television shows following her role in “Christmas Vacation.”

Notable movie credits include 1991’s psychological thriller “Cape Fear,” 1993’s coming-of-age drama “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape,” 1993’s neo-noir crime thriller “Romeo Is Bleeding,” 1994’s romantic crime flick “Natural Born Killers,” 1995’s biographical crime drama “The Basketball Diaries,” 1996’s horror movie “From Dusk till Dawn,” 2004’s buddy cop action comedy “Starsky & Hutch,” and 2015’s musical drama “Jem and the Holograms.”

Her extensive television credits include the likes of the sitcom “A Family for Joe,” animated sitcom “Free for All,” legal thriller “The Firm,” mystery sci-fi series “Wayward Pines,” mystery anthology series “Secrets and Lies,” sitcom “The Conners,” drama series “Queer as Folk,” and biographical drama miniseries “Welcome to Chippendales.”

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Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Margo Chester)

Actress, comedian, and producer Julia Louis-Dreyfus was 28 when she played the Griswold’s yuppie neighbor Margo Chester in “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.”

Before her role in the movie, Louis-Dreyfus had made her name on television, regularly appearing on “Saturday Night Live.” Her other most significant TV role before the movie was in the sitcom “Day by Day” (per IMDb).

However, she had also appeared in three movies, all in 1986. They were the dark fantasy comedy “Troll,” the comedy-drama “Hanna and Her Sisters,” and the comedy film “Soul Man.”

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Louis-Dreyfus is now 64 and her television career has been hugely successful since “Christmas Vacation.” Subsequent notable small screen credits include the sitcom “Seinfeld,” the comedy of manners “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” animated sitcom “The Simpsons,” sitcom “Watching Ellie,” sitcom “Arrested Development,” sitcom “The New Adventures of Old Christine,” political satire “Veep,” and superhero series “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.”

Her movie back catalogue now includes 1993’s comedy-drama “Jack the Bear,” 1997’s comedy movie “Father’s Day,” 1998’s animated comedy “A Bug’s Life,” 2013’s animated sports comedy “Planes,” 2020’s black comedy-drama “Downhill”, and the superhero movies “Black Widow,” “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” and “Thunderbolts,” in 2021, 2022, and 2025, respectively.

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Diane Ladd (Nora Griswold)

Diane Ladd was 54 when “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” hit theaters with a substantial acting career behind her. She played Clark’s mother, Nora Griswold, in the festive classic.

Per IMDb, Ladd had appeared prolifically on television, and in several notable movies, before playing Nora.

Some of her many television credits included the police procedural “Naked City,” the Western drama “Gunsmoke,” the sitcom “Alice,” and romantic comedy-drama series “The Love Boat.”

Her previous movie credits included 1966’s outlaw biker movie “The Wild Angels,” 1971’s comedy movie “The Steagle,” 1974’s neo-noir mystery film “Chinatown,” 1974’s romantic comedy-drama “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” 1983’s dark fantasy horror movie “Something Wicked This Way Comes,” and 1988’s comedy movie “Plain Clothes.”

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Sadly, Ladd passed away earlier this year, on November 3. She was 89.

The star, who was the mother of actress Laura Dern, enjoyed a long career after “Christmas Vacation” that saw her acting well into her 80s.

Her subsequent television credits included the sitcom “Grace Under Fire,” the horror mystery miniseries “Kingdom Hospital,” the comedy-drama series “Enlightened,” and the romance series “Chesapeake Shores.”

Her movie back catalogue went on to include the likes of 1990’s neo-noir black comedy crime movie “Wild at Heart,” 1991’s romantic thriller “A Kiss Before Dying,” 1996’s biographical courtroom drama “Ghosts of Mississippi,” 2000’s comedy-drama “28 Days,” and 2014’s black comedy “Just Before I Go.”

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Other Dearly-Departed ‘Christmas Vacation’ Cast Members

There were, of course, other cast members who had smaller roles in “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” several of whom passed away some time ago.

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Doris Roberts (1925-2016), E.G. Marshall (1914-1998), and and John Randolph (1915-2004) — all pictured in the featured image playing Clark and Ellen’s parents — sadly haven’t been with us for a while, for example.

As the festive season is upon us, make sure “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” is part of your viewing schedule. May all its dearly-departed cast members rest in peace.

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Among the many Christmas films that everyone watches around the holiday season, “It’s a Wonderful Life” is perhaps the most timeless. Frequently cited as one of the best classic Christmas films, it has become a tradition to watch it in December as the cold dark nights come around and families gather around television screens to spend time together.

First released in 1943, it tells the story of George Bailey (James Stewart). Contemplating taking his own life on Christmas Eve, a mysterious guardian angel (Henry Travers) shows Bailey his impact on the world. 

“Annie Oakley” and “Leave It to Beaver” star Jimmy Hawkins also had a role in the film, playing one of George’s children Tommy. At 5 years old at the time of filming, he has become something of a spokesperson for the film in modern times as one of the few surviving members of the cast. Here, he reveals some behind-the-scenes secrets about the making of “It’s A Wonderful Life.”

The Impact of ‘It’s A Wonderful Life’

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Speaking to Parade to discuss the film, Hawkins recalls the impact that the film has had on audiences and what it means to those who have watched it. “This movie showed that we’re all important,” Hawkins says. “You don’t have to be the best looking guy in town or the wealthiest. You can make a difference.”

However, he also revealed that director Frank Capra couldn’t understand why the film performed so poorly at the box office when it was initially released, and only became more highly regarded years later. 

“When it bombed, [Capra] couldn’t understand it,” Hawkins shares. “He said, ‘This is the greatest film I’ve ever made … in fact, I think it’s the greatest film anybody made … Why didn’t it go?’ It just came and went so fast.”

Shooting With Kids Posed a Problem for Frank Capra

Hawkins went on to recall a conversation with Capra about what the most difficult scene was to shoot from the movie. According to the director, the scene where George angrily shouts at his family after losing the $8,000 was the most challenging because it involved filming with all of the children. 

The actor continued, “I said, ‘Well, why? Did we give you a problem?’ ‘Oh, no, no, you kids were great. It’s just that there was so much going on in that scene.’”

Knowing that the scene would be intense for viewers to see, Capra decided to add a moment of levity to try and keep things light. He settled on having Tommy saying “excuse me, excuse me, I burped” — something that was not in the original script. According to Hawkins, the inspiration for this came from Capra’s own son.

“That’s something that his real son, Tom Capra, who was about that age, did at home,” Hawkins says. “Whenever anything was going on dramatically, [Capra] tried to put some humor into it to make it more palatable to the people watching the movie.”

Speaking of that particular scene, Hawkins also revealed that it wasn’t Capra who directed the shot of Tommy tearing up after George snaps at him. It was actually Slavko Vorkapich who was entrusted to capture all of the tight shots of the children reacting to what their father was saying to them. 

James Stewart Refused to Re-shoot One Scene

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Anyone who has seen “It’s A Wonderful Life” will no doubt remember the moment when George is at a bar and becomes emotional. In despair, he breaks down and begins praying, asking for some sort of divine intervention. The emotion on Stewart’s face is clear to see, as tears run down his cheeks.

The script didn’t call for George to actually cry in the scene but, according to Hawkins, the actor simply became overwhelmed and could not help but show his sadness. Hawkins explains that Capra then wanted to try another take upon seeing Stewart’s reaction but the star refused as he didn’t want to put himself through the trauma again.

Stewart also put off filming a scene that involved him kissing his wife Mary (Donna Reed) as he didn’t feel comfortable sharing on-screen intimacy. “[He] didn’t want to film that scene,” Hawkins says. ”He had been putting it off for a while. He hadn’t shared a kiss on-screen in a long time. Finally, Capra said enough is enough. ‘Jimmy, it’s just two lips coming together. Let’s do this.’”

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Hallmark’s newest Christmas movie, “She’s Making a List,” premieres on Saturday, December 6 at 7 p.m. Central/8 p.m. Eastern, with encores airing throughout the month. The movie stars Lacey Chabert and Andrew Walker. Read on to get the inside scoop on where the movie was filmed and see behind-the-scenes stories from the cast.

‘She’s Making a List’ Was Filmed in Canada in the Summer

“She’s Making a List” was filmed in the British Columbia region of Canada, Moviedelic reported. The film’s working title was “The Christmas Audit” when it was filmed in British Columbia and included under the Creative BC productions list.

According to UBCP/ACTRA, the movie was filmed in July, which meant heat waves and re-created snow to create a Christmas vision in the middle of the summer.

Back in late July, Walker shared a video from filming with Chabert.

And Veronic Brown shared a photo from the set on August 5, writing “You ain’t seen nothing yet.”

“What a fun three weeks,” Chabert wrote in reply.

Walker told EntertainmentNOW that this “was a very emotional and visceral movie for both” him and Chabert. In the film, his character’s daughter is acting out because she lost her mom just a couple years earlier.

“This is the message in the movie — that no kids belong on a ‘naughty’ list,” Walker explained. “For most kids, it’s just circumstances that they go through that make them do things that are uncharacteristic for them, right? … I feel things so much more deeply now being a dad.”

In an interview with TV Insider, Walker said the movie was fun to make, thanks to working with Chabert and the director, Stacey Harding.

“We worked days before we showed up on set, we’d work every single morning, running lines in the trailer and finding little bits and pieces that we could make it our own,” he said. “At the end of the shoot, we said to each other, ‘This was just so pleasant and so fun and easy.’ It just felt like we would show up to work and we were supported by each other.”

Meet the Cast

Hallmark’s synopsis reads: “Falling on Santa’s Naughty or Nice list used to be a call made by Santa and his elves. But with the number of kids worldwide skyrocketing, Santa has outsourced the job to the Naughty or Nice Group, a consulting firm that has cornered the market on determining a child’s niceness thanks to an airtight formula. As a top inspector with the group, it’s Isabel’s (Chabert) job to make the tough calls, by assessing the children on her list and assigning a verdict. When she is tasked with evaluating a mischievous 11-year-old Charlie Duncan, she expects a routine case. But things get complicated when Isabel unexpectedly falls for Charlie’s widowed father, Jason (Walker), and begins to question the rigid rules of her job. As Christmas approaches, Isabel must choose between following the holiday algorithm or following her heart.”

Lacey Chabert stars as Isabel. Chabert is one of Hallmark fans’ favorite stars, sometimes fondly known as the network’s Queen of Christmas. Of course, she has a wide range of credits outside of Hallmark. But fans know her and love her for her many Hallmark productions, such as “Matchmaker Santa,” “A Royal Christmas,” “Moonlight in Vermont,” “Winter in Vail,” “Christmas Waltz,” “Sweet Carolina,” the “All of My Heart” series, the “Haul Out the Holly” series (including a new Halloween special installment this year), “The Color of Rain,” the “Crossword Mysteries” franchise, and more.

Andrew Walker stars as Jason. He’s known fondly among fans as one of the Hallmark Hunks. He starred earlier this holiday season in the last installment of the “Three Wise Men” franchise with Tyler Hynes and Paul Campbell. His many other works include Hallmark productions like “My Christmas Family Tree,” “A Safari Romance,” “Maple Valley Christmas,” “A Dream of Christmas,” “The Perfect Catch,” “Bottled with Love,” and more.

Also starring in the film, according to IMDb, are:

• Alessandro Miro (Giuseppe)
• Steve Bacic (Rudolph)
• Dax Belanger (Santa)
• Georgia Blake (Taylor Brooks)
• Taylor Blake (Alyssa Brooks)
• Felix Burke (Eddie)
• Charlie Cherriere (Friend)
• Cadence Compton (Charlie)
• Flora Karas (Donner)
• Yobdee Marazzi (Sarah)
• Brenda Matthews (Woman at bus stop)
• Francisco Trujillo Avalos-Davidson (Jimbo)

Stacey N. Harding directed this movie.

The post Where Was ‘She’s Making a List’ Filmed? See Cast Stories & Locations appeared first on EntertainmentNow.

For many festive folks, watching 2003’s “Elf” is an annual tradition that brings both laughter and nostalgia to the special season. That’s why people were so charmed when the sons of the Christmas movie‘s star, Will Ferrell, decided to recreate one adorable scene from the beloved holiday flick.

If you’ve seen the movie, then you may remember the moment when Buddy the Elf (Will Ferrell) enters a department store’s washroom because he hears Jovie (Zooey Deschanel) singing “Baby It’s Cold Outside.” However, she happens to be in the shower, which causes a silly scene.

And, yes, this is the part of the movie that Will’s sons, Magnus and Mattias Ferrell, chose to recreate. Fortunately for fans, they also decided to post it on Instagram.

In the caption of the reel, Magnus wrote, “tis the season am I right? @mattias_ferrell #ELF #BabyItsColdOutside #ChristmasMusic”

Fans Were Thrilled by the Reel

Magnus obviously thought people would enjoy the reel that he made with his brother, and he was definitely right. Plenty of Instagram users took to the comments of the post to share how much they loved what they were seeing.

One person wrote, “Y’all are so silly yet amazing. This made my day.”

“I hope people realize how iconic this is,” another fan added.

A third person wrote, “[D]id buddy the elf himself film this??!”

“Gotta love the Ferrell boyz ❤️💚,” came from another social media user.

Someone else left a comment, saying, “Will Ferrell DNA will save the planet.”

Will Has Opened Up About ‘Elf’

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“Elf” means a lot to plenty of people, and this is something that Will is well aware of.

“It’s really quite special,” Ferrell told People in December 2024. “I mean, it continues to grow by leaps and bounds, and it continues to kind of entrench itself as kind of a holiday classic for people. I’m so lucky to have a movie like that in my catalog.”

Pointing out that the film “really means so much to so many people,” Will added, “And not only during the holidays, but year-round. I have people come to me saying, ‘We watch Elf on July 4th. We just love it.'”

“So that’s what’s so great about what I get to do,” he said. “You never really have an idea of what’s going to land with people, and I love the fact that this movie continues to resonate in a way that’s pretty incredible.”

The post SEE: Will Ferrell’s Sons Recreate Adorable ‘Elf’ Scene appeared first on EntertainmentNow.

The iconic independent sports drama movie “Rocky” turned 49 years old on December 3 (which, combined with the fact that it’s set over the festive period, does make it a Christmas movie, incidentally!).

Sylvester Stallone penned the brilliant underdog story about a working class, struggling, small-time club fighter and loan shark debt collector from Philadelphia, who gets handed an unlikely once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fight for the world heavyweight boxing championship.

Per The Numbers, the film grossed a whopping $225,000,000 at the worldwide box office, having been made on a modest budget of just $1.1 million.

It won three Academy Awards, for Best Picture, Best Director for John G. Avildsen, and Best Film Editing. It was also nominated for seven others, including acting nominations for Stallone (Best Actor), Talia Shire (Best Actress), Burgess Meredith, and Burt Young (both Best Supporting Actor). Carl Weathers also gave a memorable performance as heavyweight champion Apollo Creed.

It spawned a franchise that now comprises nine installments, with several more planned for the future.

But what has happened to the original movie’s memorable cast members? Almost half a century later, are they still with us, what do they look like, and are they still working?

Sylvester Stallone (Rocky Balboa)

A then-30-year-old Sylvester Stallone played the eponymous Rocky Balboa in “Rocky” — and it was a role that shot him to superstardom.

Per IMDb, Stallone had acted on both the big and small screens prior to starring in “Rocky,” but none of his roles had ever been anywhere near as big.

Having wrote the script after watching the heavyweight championship fight between Muhammad Ali and Chuck Wepner, he held out for the right producers and directors, insisting nobody changed his script — and his insistence paid off. “Rocky” was a monumental success and the rest, as they say, is history.

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Stallone is now 79 years old and in the kind of fantastic shape a man half his age would be proud to be in.

He has around 90 movie credits to his name, including iconic roles like John Rambo in the “Rambo” series of movies, Judge Dredd in the 1995 comic book movie of the same name, and Barney Ross in the “Expendables” action franchise.

He’s still acting, with his most recent movie role being Agent Chester in 2025’s action crime thriller “Alarum.” On television, he plays the main role of Dwight “The General” Manfredi in the hugely popular Paramount+ crime drama series “Tulsa King.”

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Talia Shire (Adrian Balboa)

Talia Shire played Rocky’s shy love interest, Adrianna “Adrian” Pennino, in “Rocky.” Her character would soon marry the boxer and become Adrian Balboa. She reprised the role multiple times.

Like Stallone, Shire was 30 years old when “Rocky” Released. Per IMDb, she already had some hugely significant movie credits to her name at the time. For example, in 1972 and 1974, respectively, she played Connie Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola’s epic gangster movies “The Godfather” and “The Godfather Part II.”

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Shire is now 79, still in good health, and still acting.

Her most recent movie credit was in 2025’s biographical comedy-drama “Nonnas,” in which she played chef and former nun Teresa. In 2024, she joined forces with Coppola again to play Constance Crassus Catilina in his epic sci-fi drama movie “Megalopolis.”

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Carl Weathers (Apollo Creed)

It undoubtedly raised a few eyebrows when 28-year-old former NFL linebacker Carl Weathers was cast as Rocky Balboa’s opponent, Apollo Creed, in “Rocky.” However, he gave a hugely entertaining and charismatic performance that enormously contributed to the movie’s success.

Per IMDb, Weathers had only acted a handful of times before, but “Rocky” ensured he went on to have a hugely successful career in Hollywood. He reprised his role as Creed in several further installments in the “Rocky” franchise, and appeared in the likes of 1987’s sci-fi action horror “Predator” as Colonel Al Dillon, in 1988’s action comedy “Action Jackson” as the eponymous character, and both 1996’s “Happy Gilmore” and 2000’s “Little Nicky” as the one-handed former golfer Derick “Chubbs” Peterson.

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Sadly, Weathers passed away on February 1, 2024 (per Deadline). He was 76 years old. According to a disputed death certificate, the cause of his passing was atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

His final movie role was as the voice of Combat Carl in Pixar’s 2019 animated comedy “Toy Story 4.” Weathers had also played Greef Karga in the Disney+ space Western series “The Mandalorian” — the first live-action series in the “Star Wars” franchise — from 2019 until 2023.

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Burt Young (Paulie Pennino)

Burt Young played played Paulie Pennino, Rocky Balboa’s brother-in-law and best friend, in “Rocky” and several of its sequels.

Young was 36-years-old when the first movie released. Per IMDb, he was already an established actor at the time, having already appeared in films like 1974’s neo-noir mystery flick “Chinatown” and television shows like “M*A*S*H” and “Little House on the Prairie.”

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Sadly, Young died on October 8, 2023 (per Reuters). He was 83 years old, and the cause of death was cardiac arrest with the contributing factors being myocardial infarction, atrial fibrillation, and atherosclerosis.

His final movie roles included 2021’s drama “The Final Code,” in which he played a detective, and the comedy “Medium Rare Cold Case,” which didn’t release until 2025, in which he played Harry.

Young’s last television role came in 2019, when he played Joe in two episodes of the Netflix sci-fi comedy-drama series “Russian Doll.”

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Burgess Meredith (Michael “Mickey” Goldmill)

The legendary Burgess Meredith was the biggest name cast in “Rocky.” He played Rocky Balboa’s veteran boxing coach, Michael “Mickey” Goldmill in several installments in the franchise. At the time of the first movie’s release, Meredith was 69 with an entire career behind him.

Per IMDb, he had appeared in movies like 1936’s crime film “Winterset,” 1939’s adaptation of “Of Mice and Men,” 1945’s war flick “The Story of G.I. Joe,” and, just a year earlier in 1975, had been nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his performance as Harry Greener in the satirical historical drama film “The Day of the Locust.”

Meredith had also appeared prominently on television, perhaps most famously in various roles in the fantasy sci-fi horror anthology show “The Twilight Zone,” and as the villainous “Penguin” in the Adam West-led “Batman” series.

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Meredith passed away on September 9, 1997 (per the Los Angeles Times), at the age of 89. His causes of death were complications of Alzheimer’s disease and melanoma.

His final roles included playing Grandpa Gustafson in 1993’s rom-com “Grumpy Old Men” and its 1995 sequel, “Grumpier Old Men.” He also played Judge Cully in three episodes of the police procedural crime drama television series “In the Heat of the Night” in 1993.

Other movie credits after “Rocky” included 1978’s psychological horror drama “Magic,” 1981’s epic fantasy adventure flick “Clash of the Titans,” and 1985’s Christmas film “Santa Claus: The Movie.”

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May Carl Weathers, Burt Young, and Burgess Meredith all rest in peace.

The post PHOTOS: The ‘Rocky’ Cast Then & Now appeared first on EntertainmentNow.

It was 25 years old that the world was introduced to Taylor Momsen as the adorable Cindy Lou Who in 2000’s “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” film starring Jim Carrey. Now, Momsen is all grown up and the lead singer of a band, The Pretty Reckless. That’s why she decided to release a new version of the song that might make you cry.

The first part of the video for the song features a new sped-up rock verion of the beloved tune that you’ll definitely want to check out. However, it’s the second part of the video that might make you nostaligic and more than a little emotional.

If you’re just interested in checking out the second part of the video, then you’ll be happy to know that Momsen shared a glimpse of it on Instagram.

In the comments of the video on YouTube, one person left a comment, saying, “[T]hat ending with the piano, soft singing and Taylor Momsen singing duet with herself as a child made me teary-eyed.”

“The fact she owns her past so proudly makes me so happy[.] She was a part of my favourite Christmas movie of all time after all,” another person wrote.

Someone else added, “Layering adult Taylor vocals on top of child Taylor’s vocals is such an incredible choice that mollywhops you right in the nostalgia.”

Performing the Song for the Film Had ‘a Huge Impact’ on Taylor

In November, The Hollywood Reporter asked the star, “What do you remember about performing ‘Where Are You Christmas?’ in the film?”

“As a kid, when I found out Cindy was going to sing in the movie, I don’t think I’d ever been so excited,” she said with a laugh. “I loved singing, and I had just started writing songs around that time. I didn’t realize what a huge impact getting to go into the studio would have on my life.”

“It was my first studio training, where a producer was giving me tricks of the trade,” she added. “It’s where I fell in love with the recording studio, and to this day, the recording studio is my favorite place in the world to be.”

Taylor Used to Say a New Version of the Song Was ‘Never Going to Happen’

The Hollywood Reporter also asked Momsen, “How did it feel to have your band doing a rock version of ‘Where Are You Christmas?’ for your new album?”

“It’s so fun,” she replied. “It’s something that fans have been asking for since the incarnation of the Pretty Reckless and that for years I said is never going to happen.”

“It was actually during COVID at Christmastime, when everything was very hard,” she explained. “We went into the rehearsal space, and the jaded side of me melted a little bit, and I went, ‘Should we just try this?'”

“We put together an arrangement, we played through it once, and — I kid you not — by the end of the song, we were blissfully happy,” she went on to say. “We went, ‘I think that was just great, and we have to do this now.’ It really started with the fans, and then we brought it to life.”

She continued, “It then turned into a whole Christmas album [Taylor Momsen’s Pretty Reckless Christmas] because I’m a completist, and everything has to have depth and mean something. So I wrote a whole record around it, touching on all the emotions that you feel during the holidays and while growing up.”

The post Taylor Momsen Will Make You Emotional with Her New Version of ‘Where Are You Christmas?’ appeared first on EntertainmentNow.

The festive period is officially upon us. It’s a time for making memories with family, eating, drinking, and being merry. It’s also a time for busting out those classic Christmas movies, which, of course, include 1990’s comedy classic “Home Alone.” However, on the 35th anniversary of everybody’s holiday favorite, one of its stars won’t be celebrating the movie — and with good reason.

The star in question is Daniel Stern. Stern, 68, famously played Marv Murchins in the film. Along with Joe Pesci’s Harry Lyme, Marv was one of the legendary flick’s two notorious but hilariously dimwitted burglars. Together, Harry and Marv were known as the “Wet Bandits” for their tendency to flood the homes of the people they’d just robbed.

Marv was side-splittingly funny, and his bungling failed attempts to outwit Macaulay Culkin’s Kevin McCallister — often resulting in excruciating pain for him — are nothing short of legendary. But Stern isn’t about that acting life any more. Therefore, he won’t be attending any events commemorating “Home Alone,” as he explained to People in a recent interview.

Daniel Stern is More of a ‘Homebody’ These Days

Although Daniel Stern does still appear on television in Apple TV’s sci-fi drama “For All Mankind,” he left Hollywood behind a few years ago (his last movie appearance was in 2019’s sci-fi comedy “James vs. His Future Self,” in which he played the eponymous character).

These days, he likes to spend time at home. When asked about the possibility of being involved with “Home Alone’s” 35th anniversary festivities (which other stars, including Macaulay Culkin, have attended recently), Stern told People, “I don’t leave my farm. It’s no offense to the movie. I’m just… a phone call, Zoom call, I’m in. but… I’m a bit of a homebody.”

Stern’s farm is in Ventura County, California. There, he and his wife, Laure Mattos, spend their time tending to cattle and growing and nurturing citrus trees. Also, Stern spends some time working as a sculptor.

He Still Appreciates ‘Home Alone’ Fans

The actor appreciates the love “Home Alone” gets, but admits it sometimes gets a bit much when people repeatedly tell him so. He said, “I love knowing that everybody loves it but, like, actual people come at me and say, ‘We love it.’ It’s a little overwhelming sometimes.”

Stern added that he knew “Home Alone” was a great movie and had the potential to be successful, but he could never have imagine the scale of its success. He said, “I did know that it was a gem of a movie. John Hughes wrote the funniest script I’ve ever read. I mean, I was rolling on the floor, laughing reading it. It was so funny, but it was also full of heart and you know — the kid and the neighbor saves him and he and the mother reunite… I mean it was so emotional. It was so funny, it was so true and so I did know that. I was hopeful that we were making a great movie. I had no idea obviously — no one could — of the longevity of its life.”

“Home Alone” now stands with the likes of 1946’s fantasy drama “It’s a Wonderful Life,” 1989’s slapstick comedy “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” and 2003’s comedy “Elf” as a Christmas staple that pretty much everyone has to watch annually.

Who Is Stern’s Wife, Laure Mattos?

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Daniel Stern’s wife, Laure Mattos, is also an actress. Per IMDb, her most famous role came in the 1984 sci-fi horror movie “C.H.U.D.,” which starred her husband and another “Home Alone” actor in the form of the late John Heard.

Mattos has been married to Stern since 1980 and the couple have three children together — one of whom, Henry Stern, 43, is a politician and member of the California Senate from the 27th district.

Little else is known about Mattos, as she hasn’t featured prominently in any movies or television shows in recent years, and she and her husband keep their personal lives very private.

One thing’s for sure, though: She’s probably fed up of hearing about “Home Alone!”

The post Understandable Reason Why Daniel Stern, aka Marv From ‘Home Alone,’ Will Not Celebrate the Film appeared first on EntertainmentNow.

Hallmark’s newest film, “Christmas at the Catnip Cafe,” premieres Sunday, November 30 at 8 p.m. Eastern, with encores airing throughout the season. The movie stars Paul Campbell and Erin Cahill. Read on to learn all about where the movie was filmed and see behind-the-scenes cast stories.

(Trivia note: According to Cahill, the movie features a new song called “Timeless Christmas” by Wes Brown and Ginna Claire Mason.)

‘Christmas at the Catnip Cafe’ Was Filmed in Canada

“Christmas at the Catnip Cafe” was filmed in Canada, especially in the Vancouver region, with some additional scenes filmed in Maple Ridge, according to IMDb. The movie was filmed in September in about 13 days.

Ian Collins, who also stars in the film, told TV Fanatic that there was only one cafe set and they flimed there for five days.

He added that production found the cats by working with a company that trains cats especially for movies.

“The cat that I hold often, a sphynx cat, is a pretty famous cat,” he said. “She apparently just got off a movie with an A-list actor, and she’s also on a show called Wild Cards—a recurring cat. The Josie cat was amazing… The eyes on that sphynx cat. I could not stop taking photos of it. There was a lot of really cute cats — a really orange baby cat that was really playful and fun. The cats were honestly amazing every day. I don’t know how they put up with us constantly going, ‘Aww… look at this kitty!'”

In an interview with Southern Living, Campbell joked about what an adventure it is to film with cats.

“I didn’t realize is there’s different cats that do different things,” he said. “They all have sort of different skill sets. And that grumpy one, he won’t want to do a damn thing. He’s like, ‘”‘Here’s what I do. I sit here and I look grumpy.’ There was so many things scripted that that cat was supposed to do that it did not do, which was also really funny. And and then there was a couple kittens that were just like, ‘get me out of here. What are we doing?’ These cats do not want to be in your arms. They just want to go play with their buddies. It is really funny to sort of try and work around them and probably what you see in the movie is us doing a pretty good job, but those were singular takes where maybe that cat was maybe just about to fall asleep.”

Cahill told Southern Living that she had a special bond with a cat named Jonesy, and they would sometimes hang out in the bathroom together when they both needed a break.

“He was one of my favorites,” she said. “… I had a whole photo shoot with Jonesy.”

Collins told TV Fanatic that he loves cats and was excited about the opportunity to be in the film.

“The cats were trained very, very well, but anybody who loves cats knows that cats don’t like to be held for a very long time, so it was a learning experience for my co-stars to be cats, for sure,” he said.

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Meet the Cast

Hallmark’s synopsis reads: “Olivia Pierce (Cahill) is a marketing executive from Oakland, California who is this close to realizing her dream of purchasing a condo, but she’s a bit short on the down payment. When she learns that her late great aunt left her half of a cat café in upstate New York she thinks it’s the Christmas miracle she needed – as long as she can sell and close the deal before the holidays. Olivia’s plan hits a bump in the road when she meets Dr. Ben Kane (Campbell), the veterinarian who owns the other half. The café serves an important role in the town – helping homeless cats find forever homes – and he has no intention of closing up shop. Christmas is the most important time of the year as they plan many activities to help raise funds and get them into the black. Olivia and Ben strike a deal – she agrees to help him plan the fundraising events at the café over the next three weeks in exchange for Ben promising not to drag his heels on selling at the end of that time. Unless, Ben notes, she ends up changing her mind – a lot can happen in three weeks, after all. As they work together and a spark between them grows, Olivia becomes part of the neighborhood, gains an appreciation for the café’s adorable feline inhabitants and what it means to Ben, as well as to the entire community. And when she learns the surprising reason her great aunt opened the café in the first place, that just might be the cat-alyst for change that will give them all a Merry Christmas.”

Erin Cahill is Olivia. Her career launched with her role as Jen, the Pink Ranger, on “Power Rangers: Time Force.” But Hallmark fans know her best for Hallmark movies like “Christmas Bedtime Stories,” “Every Time a Bell Rings,” “Hearts in the Game,” “Journey to You,” “Autum at Apple Hill,” “Holidazed,” and more.

Paul Campbell is Ben. Known as one of Hallmark fans’ favorite leading men, Campbell just appeared in the third and final installment of the “Three Wise Men” series of movies. His career began with “Battlestar Galactica,” but now fans know him for numerous Hallmark productions like “The Cases of Mystery Lane,” “Wedding Every Weekend,” “Holiday Hearts,” and more. He’s also a writer for Hallmark, known for his comedic touch.

Also starring, according to IMDb, are:

• Jess Brown (Victoria)
• Meganne Young (Meredith)
• Ian Collins (Frank)
• Darren Dolynski (Walter)
• Mila Morgan (Young Olivia)
• Sarah Peguero (Molly)
• Mackenzie Murdock (Bearded man)
• William Carson (Joshie)
• Jo-Ann Fernandes (Widow Adams)
• Tyler McConachie (Dan)

Lucie Guest directed this film.

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