After a serious accident and a bout of homelessness, a down-on-his-luck alcoholic accepts a job as a Mall Santa, which triggers a reckoning with his childhood trauma.

SYNOPSIS:

Killing Santa is an R-rated black comedy, a blend of irreverence and sentiment with a colorful ensemble anchored by a tragic, flawed protagonist, a mix of broad physical comedy, heartbreaking, poignant drama, and some crazy surrealism, a truly fucked up Christmas special that’s sure to scar the entire family and become an instant holiday classic. Think "It's a Wonderful Life" in an episode of "Tales from the Dark Side."

1988: Six-year-old Richard Fleeting is a loser from a fucked up, white-trash New Jersey family. The only thing he’s got going for him is a deep belief in the Oakland A's baseball team and Santa Claus. When Santa fails Richard and he doesn’t get the present he wished for, an Oakland A's bat, the boy is devastated.

Thirty-four years later, Richard is a drunk who loses his job and apartment in one day. He drowns his sorrows in a bar called Nick’s Dirty Martini, blaming his shitty life on Santa. Later that night, he’s arrested for public intoxication and criminal mischief after abusing a Santa decoration. He’s thrown into the drunk tank where he bumps into a bum. Released the next morning, Richard is befriended by the bum, who encourages him to drink. But a mysterious bearded driver in a ’68 Charger tries to run the bum down. The driver throws leaflets out the window that say, “Seasonal jobs! Hiring now! Call us today!” Richard picks one up and pockets it. Furious with the driver and Richard (because he’s so exhausting—the bum needs a break, not to mention a drink), he limps away. Absolutely desperate, Richard tries to jimmy a window and climb into his apartment, but falls five stories into a dumpster, severely injuring himself.

Released from the hospital later, penniless, injured and with nowhere to go, Richard stumbles upon the Wonderful Life Rescue Mission and meets the mission’s director, Abigail Summers, an angelic African-American woman. Richard forms a bond with Abigail and her son. Inspired by their affection, he swears-off drinking and uses the seasonal leaflet to get a job—as a Shopping Mall Santa. After attending a brutal Santa Boot Camp, Richard plays Santa in a shitty New Jersey mall. Earning a living, he moves back into his apartment and he and Abigail’s connection deepens. But the more Richard plays Santa, the more he is plagued by recurring nightmares of his father’s funeral.

Abigail’s jealous ex-boyfriend discovers the source of Richard’s hatred for Santa and tells Richard’s boss and Abigail: because he didn't get the Oakland A's baseball bat from Santa two Christmases in a row, eight-year-old Richard was convinced Santa lied, so to teach the jolly old elf a lesson he poisoned the milk and cookies and killed his father, who dressed up as Santa and ate them. Because of this, Richard loses his job and, believing he’s been rejected by Abigail, intends to commit suicide by jumping into the Hudson. The bum appears and encourages him to do it, telling him it’s the right thing to do because the world is better off without him in it. Richard vacillates, wishing Santa had never been born, so the bum grants Richard’s wish and he experiences an alternate reality without Santa: his parents are alive but live horrific lives, Christmas is illegal, and Abigail is going to be burned alive at Rockefeller Center for breaking the law. When Richard fails to save Abigail from the pyre, he realizes the bum is right: it’s not about Santa, it’s about him (because he fucks up everything, no matter the reality). He begs the bum to take him back, promising to kill himself if he can see Abigail one last time.

Having returned, Richard accepts responsibility for his father’s death and the bum admits he’s an angel (whose wings have been clipped). As Richard runs to Abigail’s house, he fully embraces the Spirit of Christmas. He apologizes to Abigail for not telling her about his past and Abigail confesses that she loves him, at which point Richard asks God to let him live. The bum appears and insists Richard keep his promise and kill himself, but the driver of the Charger roars onto the scene, knocking the bum away like a bat striking a baseball. The driver steps out of the car and it is Santa Claus. Later, with Abigail sleeping by his side, Richard has the nightmare of his father’s funeral, but this time he forgives himself in the dream and rests peacefully.

Summertime: Richard, Abigail, and her son play baseball, a happy, loving family. Richard pitches the ball and the boy knocks it out of the park. The ball arches high in the air and falls toward the bum. The ball hits him square in the forehead—pow!

KILLING SANTA