Lifetime Announces Its First LGBT Christmas Movie ‘The Christmas Set Up’ Coming this Year
Lifetime will produce its very first Christmas movie with a gay romance as its central story.
With August underway, many Americans are already looking forward to the coming fall and winter holidays. This year, Lifetime has given us something special to get excited about. For the very first time, the network will air a Christmas movie special about the love between a same-sex couple.
The Christmas Set Up will tell the story of two old high school friends that reconnect during Christmas. Hugo, a New York Lawyer, travels home to Milwaukee for the holidays with his best friend Madelyn. Hugo returns just in time for his matchmaking mom to send him on a date with Patrick, his old friend and secret crush. Sparks fly and Hugo must choose between his new relationship and his career.
On Monday, @LifetimeTV announced its plans to premiere ‘The Christmas Set Up’ which focuses on a love story between two men #NOH8 https://t.co/D3VqVFXrVv
— NOH8 Campaign (@NOH8Campaign) August 6, 2020
This year’s LGBT Christmas story builds on momentum from last year’s holiday movie season when Lifetime’s Twinkle All the Way featured a same-sex kiss. However, the 2019 LGBT romance was merely a sub-plot in Twinkle All the Way. In The Christmas Set Up, Hugo and Patrick’s relationship will take center stage.
Lifetime’s LGBT movie announcement calls attention to Hallmark’s 2019 shortcomings. Last year, the rival network received heavy criticism for pulling a commercial that featured a same-sex couple. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Hallmark’s former CEO Bill Abbot was pushed out of his position after the incident.
“The Christmas Set Up” is about New York corporate lawyer Hugo, who falls for his high school friend and secret crush Patrick during the holidays, after Hugo’s mom, Kate, plays matchmaker. https://t.co/8mcrJUN6Ek
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) August 4, 2020
Lifetime plans to release 30 new Christmas movies this year, and the network aims to offer greater diversity throughout the roundup. In another first, A Sugar & Spice Holiday will tell the story of a Chinese-American family.
Though the holidays may still seem far away, it’s never too early to celebrate diversity in entertainment. Mark your calendars and start the countdown, because the 2020 holiday season is sure to be unforgettable.
