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“Kathy is a true gift to the movie,” Dobkin states. “She brought her enthusiasm
and wealth of experience, which really enabled the character to have a certain presence
necessary for the role. Mama Claus is the force of nature who inadvertently created the
divide between Fred and Santa.”
As a mother with good intentions, Mama Claus, unfortunately, doesn’t quite
understand how her treatment of Santa could so profoundly impact Fred. “Mama Claus
unintentionally sets Fred and Santa against each other. She can’t help but favor Santa,
which adds to the rivalry. It wasn’t that she was ever mean to Fred. It’s more that she
just couldn’t help herself from being delighted by Nicholas, who is naturally more
generous and jolly,” smiles Giamatti.
A member of the Claus family who has every reason to favor Santa over Fred is
Santa’s loving but concerned wife, Annette Claus, played by two-time Academy Award
nominee Miranda Richardson. Upon hearing the news that Fred is coming to the North
Pole, Annette insists that Santa give Fred nothing but tough love.
“Annette is well aware of Fred’s tendencies and doesn’t think very highly of him,”
says Richardson. “She wants to accept Fred because she loves Nick, but she knows
that things always go wrong when Fred’s around. It’s natural for her to be very
protective of Santa, whom she sees as a big softy.” Maybe too soft. Unlike the rest of
the world, Mrs. Claus doesn’t appreciate Santa’s belly looking like “a bowlful of jelly” and
would like Santa to lose a few pounds for the sake of his health.
“Annette watches out for Santa in so many ways,” Giamatti offers. “She knows
that he is more concerned about the well-being of other people than he is his own, and
she keeps a watchful eye on what Santa eats because she knows that he’s a stress
eater. Miranda brought so much life to the character. She’s like June Cleaver with an
edge.”
“Paul and Miranda immediately clicked,” says Dobkin. “When they first met, they
were joking with each other right away, calling each other pet names and what not.
Watching them, you feel as if they’d been married for twenty years.”
Fred’s Friends and Neighbors
Santa, Annette and Mama Claus are not the only ones who have been
disappointed by Fred. Wanda, Fred’s soon-to-be ex-girlfriend, played by Academy
Award-winning actress Rachel Weisz, is on the verge of calling their relationship quits
after being stood up by Fred on her birthday—just one more example of Fred’s
irresponsibility.