Skip to main content

Jack Black was on the red carpet for his latest movie, Jumanji: The Next Level. Black returns as Professor Sheldon Oberon the avatar of a map reader who helps the characters in the game get from level to level. In Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Bethany (Madison Iseman) played as Oberon. The Next Level is a little different. Since Jumanji opens in just before Christmas, a reporter from Variety asked Black what his favorite holiday movie was. 

Jack Black
Jack Black at the premiere of Jumanji: The Next Level | Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images

Jack Black was in a Christmas movie, but don’t tell him that. He honestly didn’t remember. Perhaps we should cut Black a break. He has been in so many movies, plus his musical endeavors with Tenacious D, he can’t possibly remember every one. But Black handled his snafu in pure Jack Black style. 

Jack Black said this is his favorite Christmas movie

It all started when the Variety reporter asked Jack Black what his favorite holiday movie was. Black thought about it for a moment. When he came up with an answer, few would argue with his Christmas movie pick.

“My favorite holiday film, it’s gotta be Elf,” Black told Variety. Because once agin, Jon Favreau, and Will Ferrell just knocking it out of the park.”

Elf is a perfectly good choice for favorite Christmas movie. Ferrell stars as Buddy, a human raised by Christmas elves who has the purest, most enthusiastic Christmas spirit ever. He goes to New York to look for his human parents where Buddy encounters a city that doesn’t quite measure up to his Christmas standards. He is undeterred though and pretty much forces New York to get festive, Will Ferrell style.

It was only Favreau’s second movie as a director, after his indie film Made. Favreau handled the comedy and the magical Christmas elements deftly. It’s easy to see how he went further and further with Iron Man and The Jungle Book. 

Jack Black was in this Christmas movie

It’s okay if you don’t remember every Christmas movie there was. There are new ones added to the list every year. Black costarred in the 2006 movie The Holiday, written and directed by Nancy Meyers.

The Holiday
Cameron Diaz, Jude Law and Kate Winslet (l. to r.) | Richard Corkery/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images

Cameron Diaz plays Amanda, an American woman who trades houses with Iris (Kate Winslet) for Christmas. They each learn the holiday spirit from experiencing each other’s worlds, Amanda in England and Iris in Los Angeles. Jack Black plays Miles, a songwriter Iris meets in L.A. so it takes advantage of his musical skills too.

When reminded of ‘The Holiday,’ he recovered beautifully

The Variety reporter was impressed that Jack Black chose someone else’s Christmas movie as his favorite. When she said he could have picked his own Christmas movie, Black was stumped for a moment.

“Do I have a Christmas movie?” Black asked. “Which one is mine?”

He didn’t need to be prompted to remember the movie though. And when Jack Black remembered, he became very enthusiastic. So Nancy Meyers, please hire Jack Black again.

“Oh, The Holiday!” Black said. “Obviously The Holiday. Nancy Meyers, genius! Let’s do this.”

This Christmas, Jack Black stars in Jumanji: The Next Level in theaters December 13.

Best in Entertainment