Movie Talk‘A Christmas Story 2′ goes straight to DVD
In case you're reeling from disbelief, the 1983 holiday classic "A Christmas Story" has, in fact, been made into a sequel.
"A Christmas Story 2" is going straight to DVD and Blu-ray October 30th. And it's available just days before the debut of the Broadway musical based on the original story of little '40s-era Ralphie and his Christmastime woes.
The film sequel follows Ralphie as a teenager. He no longer yearns for a Red Ryder BB gun, but now wants a 1938 Hupmobile Skyline Convertible. There are a few things that haven't changed: Triple dog dares, and the fact that the old man -- Ralphie's dad -- is still obsessed with that fishnet-stocking-adorned leg lamp.
"A Christmas Story 2" stars Daniel Stern ("Home Alone," "City Slickers") as the crotchety, lighting fixture-fixated dad, and Ralphie is played by accomplished child actor Braeden Lemasters ("Men of a Certain Age," "Easy A").
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Like the original, the sequel is based on the writing of the late Jean Shepherd. Shepherd's stories about the Parker family have actually been used several times in much lesser-known movies: "A Christmas Story" was made into a sequel in 1994's "My Summer Story" (also known as "It Runs in the Family"), starring Kieran Culkin, Charles Grodin and Mary Steenburgen. PBS also aired a series of three television movies based on Shepherd's stories including "Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss."
Fun fact: Shepherd provided the narration as the adult Ralphie in "A Christmas Story." Stern, who plays the dad in the upcoming sequel, is also a famous narrator of a young boy's tale: He was the voice of the adult Kevin Arnold in late '80s, early '90s hit television show "The Wonder Years."
Incidentally, it appears "A Christmas Story 2" will be among a final slate of direct-to-DVD offerings from Warner Bros. The powerhouse movie studio -- responsible for theatrical hits including "The Dark Knight Rises," which has earned nearly $835 million worldwide -- is shutting down its business responsible for direct-to-DVD productions, according to the Wrap. The company is citing "a decline in the direct-to-video film market."
