Following the announcement of Die Hard returning to select AMC theatres, another Christmas classic will be making its exciting holiday comeback. The 2003 Jon Favreau-directed comedy Elf sets its theatrical return on IMAX on December 8, 2023. Available for a limited time only, moviegoers can purchase their tickets through IMAX’s official website.
What is Elf about?
Elf, a Christmas movie positively received by both audiences and critics during its initial release, follows a man named Buddy Hobbs (Will Ferrell), who grew up in the North Pole surrounded by elves. After discovering that he is a human, he travels back to New York — where he truly belongs — and finds his biological father, Walter Hobbs (James Caan), who doesn’t believe in Santa Claus.
The synopsis for Elf reads: “This hilarious Christmas film tells the tale of a young orphan child who mistakenly crawls into Santa’s bag of gifts on Christmas Eve and is transported back to the North Pole and raised as an elf. Years later Buddy learns he is not really an elf and goes on a journey to New York City to find his true identity.”
Written by David Berenbaum, Elf debuted to critical acclaim back in 2003 and has — at the time — garnered a significant box office success, solidifying itself as one of the Holiday cult classics. The film has also inspired the 2010 Broadway Elf: The Musical and the 2014 stop-motion animated special Elf: Buddy’s Musical Christmas.
Besides Ferrell and Caan, Elf stars Zooey Deschanel as Jovie, Mary Steenburgen as Emily Hobbs, Daniel Tay as Michael Hobbs, Peter Dinklage as Miles Finch, Ed Asner as Santa Claus, Faizon Love as Wanda, Bob Newhart as Papa Elf, and the film’s director Favreau as Dr. Ben Leonardo.
