OK, we know that news of a Christmas film is probably the last thing you want to hear about in August — but this is one worth getting the candy canes out early for. It might even be better than the so-bad-that-it’s-actually-brilliant festive hit, A Christmas Prince. A bold claim indeed. 

But with Emma Thompson co-writing the script for this year’s Last Christmas, our interest is well and truly piqued. The icon will also star in the film alongside lead actors Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones) and Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians). Oh, and Golding’s former co-star Michelle Yeoh is also part of the cast. 

Already obsessed? Yes, us too. So here is everything we know so far. 

The film is led by Bridesmaids director Paul Feig, so it’s pretty much guaranteed to deliver a poignant message along with the perfect balance of laugh-out-loud moments.

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly about the film, Feig called it a “love letter to London.” 

“We refer to it as a dramatic romantic comedy,” he explained. “It’s got the idea of romance, but also of somebody trying to repair their life — of familial tensions and how a family is falling apart and what it takes to put a family back together and dealing with the aftermath of difficult situations.”

The film will also feature unheard songs by George Michael, who’s song Last Christmas inspired the title. 

Watch the trailer for Last Christmas 

The trailer opens with an obviously down-on-her-luck Kate, knocking back bottles of wine and missing doctor’s appointments. She is also constantly being pressured by those around her to “get her act together” because she clearly hates her job working as an elf in a Christmas shop. She soon meets Tom who seems to bring out a lighter side to Kate as they bounce around London and get to know each other. Kate then reveals that she once very nearly died and is scared all the time as a result. After some encouragement from Tom to start living her life to the full again, Kate soon finds herself singing Christmas carols in the street, volunteering at a homeless shelter and (you guessed it) falling for Tom. 

It sounds like a Christmas classic in the making, right? 

Clarke perhaps strongly relates to the story line as she recently revealed that she had to have two life saving brain surgery procedures following a brain aneurysm.  

Speaking to Stylist earlier this year, Clarke said there were days when she couldn’t even bring herself to look at her own reflection. “I was so full of drugs from being in the hospital that I had a lot of water retention, and one half of my face was quite swollen,” she recalled. “I felt so deeply unattractive. What I can see now is that I could see the pain behind my eyes. And no amount of anything can cover that.”

But Clarke has since gone on to launch her own brain injury and stroke rehabilitation charity, SameYou, which continues to raise money for people who have had surgery.

Last Christmas will be released in cinemas in the UK on 15 November 2019.

Images: Getty