Rating the Movie Santas, From Best to Worst

Sure, Santa Claus is super busy on Christmas Eve, but what does he do the rest of the year? Apparently, he makes movies. IMDb lists him as a character in more than 800 movies and TV shows. How, then, to rate all the cinematic St. Nicks from best to worst? We narrowed the list down to 21 Santas who had a prominent role in big-screen features. Some are the real Father Christmas, some are shopping mall impostors. Some are the stars of their movie, some are subordinate Clauses. Some are naughty, some are nice. And some are stellar in movies that are otherwise lumps of cinematic coal, while others offer moments of tough sledding in otherwise fine films. Read on to see if you agree with our list. Check it twice. Best (and Worst) Movie Santas (THE BEST) 1. Edmund Gwenn in 'Miracle on 34th Street' (1947)2. Edward Asner in 'Elf' (2003)3. Billy Bob Thornton in 'Bad Santa' (2003)4. Paul Giamatti in 'Fred Claus' (2007)5. Jim Broadbent in 'Arthur Christmas' (2011)6. James Cosmo in 'The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe' (2005)7. Bill Raymond in 'The Ref' (1994)8. Al 'Red Dog' Weber in 'Scrooged' (1988)9. Jan Rubes in 'One Magic Christmas' (1985)10. David Huddleston in 'Santa Claus: The Movie' (1985)11. Richard Attenborough in 'Miracle on 34th Street' (1994)12. Edward Ivory in 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' (1993)13. Tom Hanks in 'The Polar Express' (2004)14. Richard Riehle in 'A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas' (2011)15. Tim Allen in 'The Santa Clause' trilogy (1994-2006)16. Jim Belushi in 'Jingle All the Way' (1996)17. Jeff Gillen in 'A Christmas Story' (1983)18. Dean Cameron in 'Hi-Life' (1998)19. Rickey Smiley in 'Friday After Next' (2002)20. John Call in 'Santa Claus Conquers the Martians' (1964)(THE WORST) 21. 'Silent Night, Deadly Night' (1984) See All Moviefone Galleries » Follow Moviefone on Twitter Like Moviefone on Facebook