Jim Parsons to star in animated Elf TV special

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

While it’s not the sequel many of you have been wishing for, it’s likely to bring some joy to some this holiday season. There is an animated version of the 2003 hit ELF on the way courtesy of NBC called Elf: Buddy’s Musical Christmas which will be based on both the original movie and the hit Broadway show it inspired. The Big Bang Theory’s Jim Parsons will voice Buddy originally played by Will Ferrell, the syrup loving Elf, alongside the voices of Mark Hamill, Ed Asner, Fred Armisen, Jay Leno, Matt Lauer, Gilbert Gottfried, Kate Micucci, Rachael MacFarlane, Max Charles and Steve Higgins.  

Elf: Buddy's Musical Christmas is a retelling of Buddy's delightfully absurd yet heartwarming story and blends the look and feel of the stop-motion animated Christmas specials of the past with the sharp sensibility of the modern-day film. In the story, Santa narrates the story of Buddy's travels to New York City to meet the father he never knew he had. Along the way his unrelenting cheer transforms the lives of everyone he meets and opens his father's eyes to the magic of Christmas.

I don't know why it's just a retelling of the feature film, but I guess it saved them a lot of time not having to come up with original ideas. I can find comfort in the fact that it will combine the look and feel of "the stop-motion animated Christmas specials of the past with the sharp sensibility of the modern-day film." That and it will feature songs including “Happy All the Time,” “A Christmas Song” and “Nobody Cares About Santa Claus,” from the Broadway rendition of the movie that ran from 2011 to 2013. There will be singing in my house let me tell you. 

So Buddy is back, looking and sounding different; will you be tuning in?

Elf: Buddy’s Musical Christmas airs on Tuesday, December 16th, 2014 on NBC.