44 Fun Facts About Bad Santa

Who plays Willie T. Soke, the drunken thief in the title role?

Billy Bob Thornton earned a Golden Globe nomination as Willie and came back to the role thirteen years later in Bad Santa 2.

In Bad Santa, which actor plays Marcus Skidmore, the brains of the safe-cracking duo?

Tony Cox, once an Ewok in Return of the Jedi, plays Marcus as the partner who takes the job seriously and, by the final heist, is so fed up with Willie's carelessness that he means to shoot him.

Who plays Thurman Merman, the gullible boy who believes Willie is really Santa?

Brett Kelly, a Canadian child actor, played Thurman Merman and returned to the role as an adult in Bad Santa 2 (2016).

While Willie works as a department-store Santa, what costume role does Marcus take for the heists?

An elf: Marcus works the grotto beside Willie's Santa every December, so the pair can rob the very store that hired them on Christmas Eve.

In which city is the mall where Willie and Marcus take their jobs?

Phoenix: after the Milwaukee job, Marcus lines up a mall in Phoenix, Arizona, for the next Christmas and summons Willie back to work.

What is the name of the fictional shopping centre where most of Bad Santa takes place?

Saguaro Square Mall is meant to be in Arizona, but its scenes were shot in a vacant wing of a real shopping centre in Southern California.

Who plays Sue, the bartender who takes a shine to Willie?

Lauren Graham took the raunchy role in the middle of her seven-season run as the fast-talking single mother Lorelai on Gilmore Girls.

Who plays Bob Chipeska, the prudish mall manager?

John Ritter died before the film reached theatres, and it was dedicated to his memory.

Which comedian plays Gin Slagel, the mall's security chief?

Bernie Mac plays Gin as a security chief who works out the whole heist plan and, instead of reporting it, demands half the take.

Who directed Bad Santa?

Terry Zwigoff came to the foul-mouthed studio comedy from the documentary Crumb and from Ghost World, which had earned him an Oscar nomination.

Which writing duo wrote the screenplay for Bad Santa?

Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, who met as film students at Pratt Institute, went from the talking-pets family comedy Cats & Dogs to this R-rated tale of a drunken Santa.

Bad Santa's screenwriters later directed which 2011 romantic comedy starring Steve Carell and Ryan Gosling?

Crazy, Stupid, Love reversed the pair's usual roles: they directed it from a script by Dan Fogelman, having written and directed their debut, I Love You Phillip Morris.

Which filmmaking siblings developed the concept for Bad Santa and are credited as executive producers?

Joel and Ethan Coen pitched it to the writers over dinner in one line, a Santa who 'drinks beer and stuff', and left them to build the story.

Which studio released Bad Santa in North American cinemas?

Dimension Films, the Miramax label run by Bob Weinstein and home of the Scream horror series, released the Christmas comedy in North America.

Who plays Lois, Marcus's wife, in Bad Santa?

Lauren Tom, the voice of Amy Wong in Futurama, plays Lois, who waits at the wheel of the getaway van on the crew's Christmas Eve jobs.

Thurman's grandmother keeps offering to fix what for Willie?

Sandwiches: Thurman's senile grandmother takes Willie for her son Roger and greets him with the same offer whenever he walks in.

Bad Santa's star and writers reunited in 2005 for a remake that cast him as what?

A Little League coach: Bad News Bears cast him as a hard-drinking former ballplayer handed a team of misfit kids, with Bad Santa's writing pair supplying the script again.

Bad Santa opened in North American cinemas in 2003 on the day before which holiday?

Thanksgiving: Bad Santa opened on the holiday's eve, 26 November 2003, and made $16.8 million in five days; its sequel took the same slot in 2016 and earned barely half that.

Which Oscar winner plays Thurman's grandmother in Bad Santa, uncredited?

Cloris Leachman, an Oscar winner for The Last Picture Show, took the tiny part of Granny unbilled, playing a woman so confused that she greets Willie as Thurman's absent father.

What handmade present does Thurman give Willie in Bad Santa?

A wooden pickle: Thurman carved it himself and cut his hand doing it, and the gift touches the hard-bitten Willie.

Which critic gave Bad Santa 3½ stars out of four and called it 'unreasonably funny'?

Roger Ebert praised its 'comic kamikaze style', and in 2006 he hosted an on-stage Q&A with the film's director that became a Blu-ray extra.

What happens to Marcus after the Christmas Eve heist?

He is arrested and jailed: Marcus is about to shoot Willie when the police burst in, and the epilogue reports that he and Lois are both in prison.

Under what title was the unrated version released on DVD and Blu-ray?

Bad(der) Santa: both discs came out under Disney, of all studios, because the family-entertainment giant owned Miramax at the time.

Which cut of Bad Santa runs shorter than the cinema version?

The director's cut runs several minutes shorter than the cinema version and well short of the unrated one, the reverse of what the label usually promises.

Bad Santa's lead actor was nominated for a Golden Globe for the role but lost to whom?

Bill Murray won the Globe for Lost in Translation, but the same role fell short at the Oscars weeks later, where Sean Penn took Best Actor for Mystic River.

What present does Willie grab for Thurman during the Christmas Eve heist?

A pink stuffed elephant is what Thurman wants; Willie leads police on a chase to the boy's house just to deliver it, and is shot on the porch.

Thurman says his father is off exploring the mountains, but where is he really?

In jail for embezzlement: with Roger Merman locked up and only a confused grandmother at home, Willie moves in and helps himself to the family safe and car.

Which actress plays Opal in both Bad Santa and its sequel?

Octavia Spencer plays Opal in a bit part, years before her Oscar for The Help (2011), and reprises the role in Bad Santa 2.

In the epilogue, Willie says the police have hired him in what role?

Sensitivity counselor: shooting an unarmed Santa so embarrassed the police that they cleared Willie of the robbery and gave him a job counselling their officers.

Thurman is constantly bullied by a teenage gang of what?

Skateboarders torment him until the final scene, when Thurman finally stands up to their leader.

Which Mean Girls director took over the franchise for Bad Santa 2?

Mark Waters, who also made Freaky Friday, replaced the first film's director thirteen years on, working from a script by a new team of writers.

In Bad Santa 2, what is the name of Willie's estranged mother, who turns out to be in on the heist?

Sunny Soke: Willie has already signed up to rob a charity with Marcus before he discovers that the mother he has avoided for years is his other partner.

Bad Santa 2's heist targets a charity in which city?

Chicago is where Marcus lures Willie with the promise of a score worth millions, though the film itself was shot in Canada.

What does Willie notice about Thurman that makes him abandon his suicide attempt?

His black eye: Willie drops the plan, tracks down the bullies who gave it to Thurman and beats up their leader so that they leave the boy alone.

Principal photography on Bad Santa 2 took place in which Canadian city?

Montreal doubled for an American city: shooting began there in January 2016, with Saint Catherine Street among the locations.

Bad Santa 2 opened the same weekend as which Disney animated film?

Moana: both opened on 23 November 2016, and against Disney's family hit Bad Santa 2 made about $9 million in five days, roughly half the first film's opening.

In Bad Santa, which character does Marcus kill?

Gin: after the security chief demands half the take, Lois pins him between two vehicles and Marcus finishes him off with jumper cables.

Bad Santa's lead actor has admitted to doing what on set?

Getting drunk: the star has said he was 'blind drunk' for one mall scene, having started the day with red wine at breakfast before moving on to vodka and beer.

How do the police learn about the Christmas Eve heist?

From a letter Willie wrote: his suicide note to Thurman confessed the planned robbery, and it found its way to the police.

Which Oscar-winning actress joined Bad Santa 2 (2016) as Willie's foul-mouthed mother?

Kathy Bates, an Oscar winner for Misery, plays the estranged mother who is in on the charity heist that puts Willie back in the Santa suit, a partner he only discovers after agreeing to the job.

Which Mad Men star plays Diane, the head of the charity in Bad Santa 2?

Christina Hendricks plays Diane, who bails Willie out of jail after he attacks a rival Santa, then makes him attend AA meetings with her.

Which festival screened Bad Santa out of competition in 2004?

Cannes: the Christmas comedy played out of competition on the French Riviera in May 2004, six months after it opened in North America.

Which Hollywood veteran, then in his eighties, auditioned to play Marcus in Bad Santa?

Mickey Rooney read for the part of Marcus, and the film's writers say the director still has the audition on videotape.

Why is Sue the bartender attracted to Willie?

She has a Santa fetish: Sue tells Willie she has had a thing for Santa Claus since early childhood, and their affair begins with him still in the suit.