It appears the current rash of British-made Christmas horror films (The Killing Tree, The Curse of Jack Frost) will continue into 2023 with some additional titles from The Haunted Cinema production team: Werewolf Santa (a.k.a. Frost Bite) and possibly The Krampus Calendar. Filmmaker Airell Anthony Hayles is credited with writing, directing, and producing both feature films. Cinematographer Vince Knight, no stranger to Christmas horror, as having recently lensed The Killing Tree (2022), also shot both The Krampus Calendar and Werewolf Santa.
As it currently stands, it appears Werewolf Santa is in post-production and will presumably be teed up for a 2023 release. Here's the film's official synopsis, which still used its original working title, Frost Bite:
Santa turns into a werewolf on Christmas Eve, and wreaks havoc in a small seaside town - Lucy has a show called 'Monster Hunter's' on Youtube, but it's not doing too great with just a few viewers following her. That is until, on Christmas Eve, her camera witnesses Santa get bit by a werewolf in the local park, before turning into a werewolf himself. Lucy and her family then set off on a Christmas Eve adventure to somehow save Christmas, armed with just a rusty ice skate and a vague understanding of how werewolves operate (knowledge gained from the horror comics she pours through) As much a quirky family drama as it is a horror fantasy, Frost Bite is the alternative Christmas movie you've been waiting for.
It's about damn time we finally see a Santa-werewolf mashup. Despite these British-made lumps of coal of late, I'm hoping this one gives us something to celebrate. Here's a few of the promotional posters for the film, again using its original title Frost Bite.
The second feature, which appears to have completed post-production and might have even poked its head out in a soft premiere in January 2022 (?) is The Krampus Calendar, originally titled Advent. Some production information suggests the film was originally shot back in October 2020 and seemingly became mired in post-production for a while. What we know about the plot is limited, but a girl comes across a cursed advent calendar, and plays a game against the devil in the run up to Christmas. I'd imagine that somewhere along the line our favorite Christmas devil Krampus makes an appearance. No further word on when this one might see the light of day, but potentially 2023 will be the year. (Note: Though similarly titled, this should not be confused with Patrick Ridremont's The Advent Calendar (2021) that ran on Shudder last year.) A promotional poster for The Krampus Calendar using its Advent title follows below.
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