In Dear Santa (2024), magic returns to Christmas through the eyes of 10-year-old Lily Thompson, a spirited girl growing up in a quiet snowy town where belief in Santa Claus is fading. After her mother loses her job just before the holidays and her father is deployed overseas, Lily writes a heartfelt letter—not asking for toys, but simply for her family to be together again. She places the letter in a red mailbox marked “North Pole” hidden deep in the forest, a relic of a time when magic still lingered. What she doesn’t expect is that someone answers.
The next morning, an old man with a twinkle in his eye and a beard as white as frost shows up at her doorstep, calling himself “Nicholas.” He’s not dressed in red, and he doesn’t fly in on a sleigh—instead, he arrives with a battered suitcase full of mysterious tools, maps, and letters from children long forgotten. Claiming to be retired, he says Lily’s letter “called him back.” Together, they embark on a heartwarming quest to restore the town’s Christmas spirit, unlocking magical pockets hidden in ordinary places: a bookstore that whispers stories after midnight, a train that only runs on December dreams, and a frozen lake that glows when people laugh.
As Nicholas begins repairing the old sleigh in Lily’s barn and gathering reindeer who had gone their separate ways over the years, Lily discovers that belief is more powerful than she ever imagined. Along the way, they’re joined by neighbors with their own wishes—an elderly woman missing her lost love, a boy who hasn't spoken since losing his parents, and a baker whose treats haven’t tasted sweet in years. Each becomes part of the growing magic as the town is slowly transformed. But not everyone is convinced: a skeptical mayor plans to shut down the town’s holiday festival, believing it’s a waste of resources and dreams.
The climax arrives on Christmas Eve, when a powerful snowstorm traps families indoors, and hope begins to dim. But Lily, standing atop the hill where the red mailbox once stood, delivers one last message to the sky. A spectacular aurora lights up the heavens as Nicholas takes to the skies one final time—this time, not just delivering gifts, but delivering warmth, reunions, and joy. Her father returns safely. Her mother finds a new purpose. And Lily, once just a little girl with a big wish, becomes the keeper of the red mailbox for generations to come. Dear Santa (2024) is a modern holiday classic about kindness, community, and the kind of magic that lives in the hearts of those who choose to believe—even when the world forgets how.
