Every year around this holiday season, it becomes more apparent that American films lack sufficient non-Christian religious representation. There are many classic Christmas holiday movies, but almost none for other holidays. What’s wrong with this picture? In a country known for its diversity and cultural differences, shouldn’t there be more representation of other religions and their celebrations? The obvious answer is yes.

   American media has limited itself to mostly portraying the Christian experience. According to the New York Times, there are hundreds of American Christmas movies, with new ones coming out every year (nytimes.com). In comparison to Judaism, movies about Hanukkah don’t even number past ten, with some having “Christmas” in the title. “Despite eight nights of Hanukkah, there are basically only eight Hanukkah movies for adults out there (and again, ‘Hanukkah movie’ is a serious stretch in some of these cases),” according to Cosmopolitan Magazine (cosmopolitan.com). Other religious holidays like Diwali and Kwanzaa don’t have much representation at all (which is why there are no examples of any movies about holidays that aren’t Christmas and Hanukkah).

   Theatre Teacher Nia Hilton said, “From my personal experience, I think American holiday movies tend to focus on Christmas. I know of holiday specials from TV shows, but I can’t think of any [non-Christian holiday movies] or much diversity in American holiday movies.” While there is some representation of other holidays in TV show specials, there are little to no classic movies that have similar influence as movies like How the Grinch Stole Christmas or Home Alone. Hilton added, “It’s certainly a problem because the media should reflect the general population, which is diverse. So just like we’re seeing more representation of LGBTQ actors and actors of different ethnicities and races, we hopefully should see the same thing in movies (that are generally feel-good and are about family and coming together) which can extend to any or most holidays, not just Christmas.” Junior Julian Reinstein said, “Filmmakers could do more to represent and include more minority religious and cultural groups in holiday movies.” Right now, (holiday) media representing the diversity in America is lacking.

   Of the measly existing films featuring diverse holidays, most feel disingenuous and unrelatable. In most films listed under diverse holidays, the plot is heavily Christmas-influenced, with some small feature of the other holiday or a couple characters that celebrate it. If included at all, these characters are most often kept on the sidelines and are notably overlooked. No one wants to look forward to representation they identify with and end up seeing the same cringe worthy and unimaginative Christmas romance plot. In some holiday movies, Hanukkah is portrayed as the “Jewish Christmas,” which is wildly inaccurate.

   Reinstein was hesitant to wish for a Hanukkah movie because of factors like Jewish stereotypes in the media. He added, “A Hanukkah movie modeled after a Christmas film may forget the true meaning of Hanukkah, which is the miracle of a small army defeating a large one, enabling Jews to freely practice their religion.” Junior Lia Sowers said, “Anytime there are other religious groups represented in movies, they are only there to be itemized or tokenized. It’s like they have an inclusivity checklist and they just need to check every box. However, I do feel appreciated when I see people wearing yamaka and celebrating some of the high holidays.” Flawed representations can further contribute to ignorance or can cause misconceptions about the religion and the holiday.

   With American media programs promoting their inclusivity, shouldn’t there be more multicultural holiday movies? Currently, the representation of these holidays is insufficient in reflecting the population. There are hardly any movies centered around holidays other than Christmas, and if there are, the portrayal is poor. This change may be dependent on filmmakers, but the community can certainly advocate for change.