Christmas Karma unveils all-star cast for Christmas Carol adaptation about "Tory who hates refugees"
The cast includes everyone from Eva Longoria to Danny Dyer.
Nothing will quite prepare you for the list of names attached to brand new festive film Christmas Karma.
The new movie has been written, directed and produced by BAFTA-winning Bend It Like Beckham director Gurinder Chadha and is a modern Bollywood musical inspired by Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol.
Christmas Karma is set in London and stars The Big Bang Theory's Kunal Nayyar as Scrooge, with the full cast now having been announced. Like we said, it's quite the list of names!
The new film boasts Eva Longoria, Hugh Bonneville, Danny Dyer, Billy Porter, Boy George, Tracy-Ann Oberman and Eve among its stars.
But that's not all – we've also got the likes of Bridgerton's Charithra Chandran, Vikings: Valhalla's Leo Suter, singer Pixie Lott, Dead Hot's Bilal Hasna and EastEnders' Nitin Ganatra, plus Allan Corduner and Rufus Jones.
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Of course, it wouldn't be a musical film without an impressive soundtrack, and songwriting duties for Christmas Karma are in the hands of none other than Take That star Gary Barlow. Barlow will also work with All Saints singer Shaznay Lewis and musician Nitin Sawhney.
While plot details have yet to be fully revealed, director Chadha has previously revealed that her modern-day Scrooge is "an Indian Tory who hates refugees".
Speaking to MPs on the Digital Media and Sport Committee earlier this year about the film, Chadha revealed that because of the fact that "the lead character is Indian", the film was previously proving a struggle to finance.
Speaking about the film's story at the time, Chadha said: "It's very close to Dickens's original themes with the cost of living crisis in Britain."
Chadha also claimed that she'd spoken to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak about the film and he'd asked her not to "make him look bad".
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On today's announcement of the cast, Chadha said: "Just as I have enjoyed Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life for many years, my aim with Christmas Karma is to create a festive classic for our times and for generations to come.
"By adapting one of history's greatest novels – Charles Dickens's Christmas Carol – I am making a British film from my unique, original point of view but one that resonates with Dickens's masterful statement on the human condition."
She continued: "I am blessed with such a great diverse cast and eclectic music team – the soundtrack will be banging, influenced by gospel, bhangra, carols and classic pop songs. You will not be able to sit still!"
Speaking about his leading role in Christmas Karma, actor Kunal Nayyar said: "To explore a beloved holiday tale through the eyes of an immigrant story (much like my own) is exactly the kind of movie that I believe will resonate with so many of us who are searching for the meaning of home.
"It takes a visionary like Gurinder to take a chance on a story like this, and I am humbled to be a part of it."
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The film will be distributed in UK cinemas by newly launched True Brit Entertainment, set-up by Zygi Kamasa, who has given a hint as to what we can expect from Christmas Karma, saying that it has "heart, comedy, drama and an incredibly feel-good ending".
The new film will start shooting on Monday 22nd April, with Christmas Karma set to be released in time for the festive season in 2025.
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