| Santa with Muscles | |
|---|---|
VHS cover |
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| Directed by | John Murlowski |
| Produced by | Brian Shuster |
| Written by | Jonathan Bond Fred Mata Dorrie Krum Raymond |
| Starring | Hulk Hogan Don Stark Mila Kunis Ed Begley, Jr. Robin Curtis |
| Music by | Melody Clark-Curzon James Covell |
| Cinematography | Michael Gfelner |
| Editing by | William Marrinson Stephen R. Myers |
| Distributed by | Legacy Releasing Corporation |
| Release date(s) | November 8, 1996 |
| Running time | 97 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $220,599 |
Santa with Muscles is a 1996 comedy film starring professional wrestler Hulk Hogan. Only released for two weeks in cinemas, it was panned by critics and has since appeared on a number of worst film lists, including the bottom 100 films on Internet Movie Database. It features an early appearance by actress Mila Kunis.
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Blake (Hulk Hogan), is a self-made millionaire from selling body-building supplements, and is mean to his workers. One day, whilst on the way to a paintball game, he is driving recklessly in his car. Chased by the police, he drives to a shopping mall and hides out inside, changing into a Santa Claus costume. He slides down a garbage chute to escape the police and bangs his head, getting amnesia.
Mistaken by Lenny (Don Stark) as the mall Santa, Blake begins to think he is Santa Claus. Meanwhile, Ebner Frost (Ed Begley, Jr.), an evil scientist, is trying to take over an orphanage in order to gain access to the magical crystals underneath it. Frost dispatches his henchmen to destroy the orphanage, and only Blake can save the orphan children.
Released on 8 November 1996, the film garnered $120,932 in box-office receipts during its opening weekend and grossed a total of $220,198 during its two-week run.[1]
Film critic Emanuel Levy gave the film a score of 2 out of 5.[2] Joe Leydon in Variety described Santa with Muscles as a "weakling of a comedy" and thought that Hogan's performance was lacking the charisma of his previous work such as Suburban Commando. Leydon panned the direction in particular, stating: "Working from an irredeemably bland screenplay, John Murlowski directs with all the enthusiasm of someone going through the motions to pay off a debt."[3] Chris Hicks, writing for the Deseret News, stated that films such as Santa with Muscles make films like Jingle All The Way look better, and said that Hulk Hogan "makes Arnold Schwarzenegger seem like Laurence Olivier".[4]
Reception for Santa with Muscles has continued to be negative, and it is currently listed on IMDB's bottom 100 movies.[5] It was listed as number 43 out of 50 worst children's films by Total Film,[6] and was included in Virgin Media's list of worst Christmas movies.[7] Santa with Muscles was also included on Atlantic City Weekly's list of worst holiday films, ranking third behind Santa Claus Conquers the Martians and the Star Wars Christmas Special.[8] Due to Hulk Hogan's starring role, the film has been featured on the website Wrestlecrap, which acts as a "Hall of Shame" for the worst gimmicks and storylines in pro wrestling history.[9]
Golden Globe nominee Mila Kunis appeared in Santa with Muscles early in her film career. When later asked about the film in 2011 by GQ magazine, she said, "I was too young to fully understand the importance of working with Hulk Hogan. I just thought he was this huge man", while comparing the film to American Psycho 2 in which she co-starred with William Shatner.[10] Mila Kunis and Don Stark would go on to appear on screen together again in the Fox network's That '70s Show.[11]