Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell are reimagining a traditional Christmas story.
The first teaser trailer for Apple TV’s new musical comedy Spirited, which stars the two actors and Octavia Spencer in an updated, upside-down version of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, was published on Wednesday.
According to the official summary of the movie, “every Christmas Eve, the Ghost of Christmas Present (Ferrell) chooses one bad soul to be transformed by a visit from three ghosts.” But this year, he chose the incorrect Scrooge.
The summary continues, “Clint Briggs (Reynolds) turns the tables on his ghostly host until Present finds himself reevaluating his past, present, and destiny. In this humorous musical retelling of the classic Dickens story, A Christmas Carol is recounted for the first time from the perspective of the ghosts.
The Ghost of Christmas Present played by Will Ferrell and Clint played by Ryan Reynolds are shown tap-dancing over a dark background as snow falls around them in the movie’s official teaser. In the first few seconds of the teaser, title cards say, “It’s beginning to sound a lot like Christmas.”
As the teaser transitions to a whole scene and the two take in their dance prowess, Clint informs Present, “Tap is new for me.” The medium is incredibly expressive.
In a nod to the original characters of A Christmas Carol, Present informs Clint in an elevator, “My first rescue, there was this tiny ill kid.” What did they refer to him as?
Clint responds, “Tiny Tim,” “No. sweet child one cane, “Says the present. As the Spirited teaser approaches an end, the character keeps guessing the wrong alliterative nicknames, like “Little Larry,” “Micro Mike,” and “Super Small Steve.”
Sean Anders, who previously collaborated with Will Ferrell on the Daddy’s Home movies, and John Morris wrote the script for Spirited. Sunita Mani, Patrick Page, Joe Tippett, Marlow Barkley, and Jen Tullock are also featured in the movie.
Beginning on November 11 in cinemas, Spirited will then stream on Apple TV+ on November 18.