The Mean One

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1:32

The Mean One

2022,

1h 33m,

Holiday/

Horror/

Comedy/

Action

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The Mean One: Trailer 1

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Watchlist

22%

27 Reviews

Tomatometer

49%

Fewer than 50 Verified Ratings

Popcornmeter

22%

Tomatometer

27 Reviews

49%

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Verified Ratings

One Christmas Eve in a sleepy mountain town, Cindy's family is killed and her Christmas is stolen by a bloodthirsty green grouch in a Santa suit. 20 years later, Cindy returns to town with one goal -- trapping and killing The Mean One.

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Critics Consensus

A killjoy entry into the debauched children's story horror canon, The Mean One delivers a seasonally macabre bag of lime green coal.

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Matthew Jackson

AV Club

Jan 9, 2023

D-

For a film with such a promising premise, it turns out to be a plodding example of how to squander potential.

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Nick Allen

RogerEbert.com

Dec 9, 2022

1/4

A parody only by legal definition, The Mean One has no teeth as a naughty comedy or gory horror.

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Richard Roeper

Chicago Sun-Times

Dec 9, 2022

2/4

The Mean One has a handful of inspired lines, e.g., “Time to roast this beast!” but the production values, editing, score and photography are average at best, and we’re left with a film that will be remembered mostly for a cleverly twisted marketing hook.

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Yasmin Kleinbart

InBetweenDrafts

Apr 14, 2026

1/10

You might want to just stick to the 1960s cartoon.

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Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

Dec 25, 2025

2.5/4.0

I found David Howard Thornton's Grinch to be a gas.- and I found myself drawn to Krystle Martin's Cindy You-Know-Who as she returns to the Newville of her traumatic past.

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Jose Solís

Common Sense Media

Feb 6, 2024

This is a parody without self-awareness, which prevents it from playing out like the cult movie it wants to be.

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Steven LaMorte

Director

David Howard Thornton

The Mean One

Krystle Martin

Cindy

Chase Mullins

Detective Burke

John Bigham

Doc

Erik Baker

Sheriff Hooper

The Mean One: Exclusive Movie Clip - Candy Cane

1:13

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The Mean One: Exclusive Movie Clip - Interrupting the Feast

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The Mean One: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

One Christmas Eve in a sleepy mountain town, Cindy's family is killed and her Christmas is stolen by a bloodthirsty green grouch in a Santa suit. 20 years later, Cindy returns to town with one goal -- trapping and killing The Mean One.

Director: Steven LaMorte
Producer: Steven LaMorte, Amy Schumacher, Martine Melloul
Screenwriter: Finn Kobler, Flip Kobler, Steven LaMorte
Distributor: Sleight of Hand Productions
Production Co: Amy Rose Productions, Scatena & Rosner Films, Sleight of Hand Productions, Kali Pictures
Genre: Holiday, Horror, Comedy, Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 8, 2022, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 3, 2023
Box Office (Gross USA): $550.3K
Runtime: 1h 33m

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