Tim Allen’s Disney+ ‘Santa Clauses’ Taps ‘NCIS’ Star

Tim Allen is coming back to the Santa Clause franchise with a new Disney+ series, and the show has now tapped an NCIS star to join the cast. Deadline reports that Laura San Giacomo will appear alongside Allen in The Santa Clauses, playing La Befana – a Christmas Witch residing from the Woobly Woods of the North Pole, known from Italian folklore, helping deliver treats to good children on the morning of the epiphany.

San Giacomo stars as Dr. Grace Confalone, a recurring role, on NCIS. She debuted in the role back in 2016 and appears to still be considered an active cast member of the crime investigation procedural series. Notably, Santa Clauses reunites San Giacoma with Jack Burditt, who is the showrunner and executive producer of the Disney+ comedy. The pair previously worked together on Just Shoot Me, which ran on NBC from 1997 until 2003. In addition to her role on NCIS, San Giacomo has also recently appeared on shows such as Grey’s Anatomy and HBO’s dark-comedy Barry.

According to Deadline, in The Santa Clauses, Allen will reprise his role as Scott Calvin, a toy company exec-turned-Father Christmas. San Giacomo isn’t the only one reuniting with Burditt on the series, as it also re-teams him with Allen. Burditt was previously the creator of Last Man Standing, Allen’s hot sitcom which aired on ABC and then moved to Fox. 

Per Deadline, the series will follow Calvin “on the brink of his 65th birthday and realizing that he can’t be Santa forever. He’s starting to lose a step in his Santa duties, and more importantly, he’s got a family who could benefit from a life in the normal world, especially his two kids who have grown up at the Pole. With a lot of elves, children, and family to please, Scott sets out to find a suitable replacement Santa while preparing his family for a new adventure in a life south of the pole.” The series is set to begin filming in March. At this time, no premiere date has been announced.

In addition to Allen and San Giacomo, The Santa Clauses will also star Kal Penn as Simon Choksi, “a game inventor, product developer, and single father” who “has aspirations to become the next Jeff Bezos. But ‘all that changes’ after he visits the North Pole.” Additional cast members include Elizabeth Mitchell, Eric Lloyd, and David Krumholtz, all reprising their roles from the film series. The Santa Clauses is expected to premiere in the Fall of 2022.