Finding Mr. Christmas

Last updated

Finding Mr. Christmas
Genre Reality competition
Presented by Jonathan Bennett
Judges
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes8
Production
Executive producers
  • Adam Cohen
  • Ben Roy
  • Cara Tapper
  • Joanna Vernetti
  • Jonathan Bennett
Producers
  • Kelley Coorloff
  • Taylor Cochoran
  • David Lutz
Running time41–55 minutes
Production company Hallmark Media
Original release
Network Hallmark+
ReleaseOctober 31, 2024 (2024-10-31) 
present

Finding Mr. Christmas is an American reality competition television series that premiered on October 31, 2024, on Hallmark+. The series follows a group of men competing in various Christmas-themed challenges in order to win the title of Mr. Christmas, as well as a leading role in a 2024 Hallmark Christmas movie titled Happy Howlidays.

Contents

Described as a "tinsel-draped cross between The Bachelor and RuPaul's Drag Race ," the series was created by Ben Roy, who pitched the idea to Jonathan Bennett, a Hallmark star known for his roles in several movies, including The Holiday Sitter . [1] Bennett both hosts and judges the competition, with Melissa Peterman joining him as a lead judge.

The series has been renewed for a second season.

Format

The contestants in the series are men from various backgrounds who aspire to become actors. In each episode, they face two rounds of challenges. The first round is titled "Festive Face Off," where contestants showcase their holiday spirit. The winner of the face off earns an advantage in the Star Quality challenge. The second, main challenge, titled "Star Quality," is an acting challenge where contestant have to learn a script and act out a scene from a Hallmark Christmas movie.

After the challenge, the judges deliberate to pick the strongest and the weakest competitors. The contestant that did not impress the judges is eliminated from the competition.

Judges

Bennett both hosts and judges the competition, with Melissa Peterman joining him as the main judge. [2] [3] The series features various guest judges each episode.

Contestants

Ten contestants were revealed in October 2024. [4]

Ages, names, and cities stated are at time of filming.

Contestants of Finding Mr. Christmas and their backgrounds
Contestant [4] Age [4] Hometown [4] Occupation [4] Outcome
Blake Kelley36 Beaumont, Texas Sales managerTBA
David Habashy29Vancouver, British Columbia Aerospace engineerTBA
Daxton Bloomquist36Los Angeles, CaliforniaActorTBA
Elijah Malcomb31Lodi, N.J.ActorTBA
Ezra Moreland31San Diego, CaliforniaModel and former Navy rescue diverTBA
Gage Robinson29Los Angeles, CaliforniaMarketing consultantTBA
Hayden Maher30Los Angeles, CaliforniaChildren's entertainerTBA
Jonathan Wells27 Chicago, Illinois EntrepreneurTBA
Parker Gregory39 League City, TexasModelTBA
Isaac Ramirez28Santa Clarita, CaliforniaFirefighter10th place

Contestant progress

Legend:

  FFO WIN indicates that the contestant won the Festive Face Off Challenge.
  WIN indicates that the contestant won the Star Quality Challenge.
  SAFE indicates that the contestant neither won, nor was eliminated.
  BTM (Bottom) indicates that the contestant was up for elimination.
  ELIM (Eliminated) indicates that the contestant was eliminated.
Progress of contestants including placements in each episode
ContestantEpisode
1 [5] 2<ref name="episode2">{{cite episode|title=Mr. December|series=Finding Mr. Christmas|series-link=Finding Mr. Christmas|air-date=October 31,


Blake KelleySAFETBA
David HabashySAFETBA
Daxton BloomquistSAFETBA
Elijah MalcombSAFETBA
Gage RobinsonSAFETBA
Hayden MaherWINTBA
Jonathan WellsSAFETBA
Parker GregoryBTMTBA
Isaac RamirezFFO
ELIM

Place Contestants Episodes 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Elijah IN LOW WIN HIGH WIN HIGH HIGH Ezra IN HIGH LOW WIN IN HIGH WIN Hayden WIN HIGH HIGH LOW HIGH WIN LOW 4 Blake HIGH HIGH IN HIGH HIGH LOW OUT 5 Jonathan HIGH IN LOW IN LOW OUT 6 Parker LOW WIN HIGH OUT OUT 7 Gage IN LOW OUT 8 Daxton HIGH HIGH WD 9 David LOW OUT 10 Isaac OUT

Episodes

No.TitleOriginal release date
1"The Hunt For Mr. Christmas"October 31, 2024 (2024-10-31)

The ten contestants enter the house and get to know each other. Jonathan Bennett greets them and introduces them to the competition rules. For their first Festive Face Off, the contestants have to design an ugly Christmas sweater and wear it on the runway in front of Bennett and Melissa Peterman. Isaac was declared the winner of the first Festive Face Off.

For their main Star Quality challenge, the contestants had to star in a short movies scene in pairs. In the scene, the contestants had to fight for the attention of the female lead, who was portrayed by Erin Cahill, who also served as the guest judge for this challenge. As the winner of the Festive Face Off, Isaac got to pair up the contestants.

The judges declared Hayden as "tonight's shining star," i.e. the winner of the first Star Quality challenge. Isaac and Parker were selected as the two weakest performing contestants, with Issac getting eliminated from the competition.

  • Festive Face Off Challenge: Decorate an ugly Christmas sweater
  • Festive Face Off Challenge winner: Isaac
  • Star Quality Challenge: Fight for the female lead's attention in a scripted scene
  • Star Quality Challenge winner: Hayden
  • Bottom Two: Isaac and Parker
  • Eliminated: Isaac
2"Mr. December"October 31, 2024 (2024-10-31)
3"Falling for you"November 7, 2024 (2024-11-07)
4"The Talented Mr. Christmas"November 14, 2024 (2024-11-14)
5"Laughing All the Way"November 21, 2024 (2024-11-21)
6"The Festive Five"November 28, 2024 (2024-11-28)
7"A Christmas Waltz"December 5, 2024 (2024-12-05)
8"Our Christmas Star"December 12, 2024 (2024-12-12)

References

  1. Blake, Meredith (October 31, 2024). "'Finding Mr. Christmas' challenges men to 'lead with kindness' for a role as a Hallmark hunk". latimes.com. Los Angeles Times . Retrieved December 1, 2024.
  2. "Melissa Peterman - Lead Judge". hallmarkchannel.com. Hallmark Channel . Retrieved December 1, 2024.
  3. Alexander, Bryan (October 30, 2024). "Hallmark's search for hunky 'Mr. Christmas' is on with Jonathan Bennett's reality show". USA Today . Retrieved December 1, 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Baldwin, Kristen (October 3, 2024). "Meet the cast of Hallmark+ reality show Finding Mr. Christmas (exclusive)". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on November 22, 2024. Retrieved December 1, 2024.
  5. "The Hunt For Mr. Christmas". Finding Mr. Christmas. Season 1. Episode 1. October 31, 2024. Hallmark+.