There is a scene in “The Christmas Chronicles 2” in which Santa Claus runs around an airport, cheering people up with his merry Christmas magic. Much to Russell’s relief, he was allowed to take off his heavy Santa coat for the scene and move around more freely. Darlene Love, who plays one of the airport workers, recalled picking up Russell’s coat during the filming of the sequence… and not being able to lift it. She said:
“That Christmas coat he had must have weighed about 50 pounds! […] When I found out how heavy it was, I thought, “How do you walk with this?!” Every time we took a break, we had these little personal fans. They made us [Russell] a special one that they held up to his face. It looked like he was on a torch and it actually released air. He needed it with all that hair and that coat!”
One can easily imagine Russell, clad in a large coat with thick fur on his face, holding such a device close to his face, happy to wipe away the sweat.
And yes, Russell had to grow an extra beard to play Santa Claus. According to the EW report, only about 80 percent of the beard we see in “The Christmas Chronicles 2” was his. The rest was achieved through additional devices, which Columbus noted often broke during the film’s more active musical sequences. “Chronicles 2” isn’t a full-blown musical, but Columbus wouldn’t mind if a potential “Chronicles 3” was.
Anyone who has ever smeared gum on their upper lip to make a mustache for a stage performance can probably imagine Russell’s discomfort. Judging by his appearance, though, Russell had a blast playing Santa Claus.
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