It’s amazing to me how fast 2014 is moving! This upcoming Friday is Halloween, and before you know it, we’ll talking about Thanksgiving turkeys, Black Friday deals, and pulling out the Christmas decorations. Well once you start making your to-do list for the Christmas holidays, we have one more thing you should add! This week, NBC announced their upcoming hourlong animated special Elf: Buddy’s Musical Christmas, and four-time Emmy Award winner Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) will star as Buddy the Elf.

“Elf: Buddy’s Musical Christmas” combines the humor and spirit of both the beloved 2003 holiday film, which drew glowing reviews and earned $173 million at the domestic box office, and the hit Broadway production. The special is an all-new retelling of Buddy’s delightfully absurd yet heartwarming story and blends the look and feel of the stop-motion animated Christmas specials of the past with the sharp sensibility of the modern-day classic holiday film.
Santa narrates the story of Buddy’s travels to New York City to meet the father he never knew he had. Along the way his unrelenting cheer transforms the lives of everyone he meets and opens his father’s eyes to the magic of Christmas.
The voice cast will also include Mark Hamill, Ed Asner, Fred Armisen, Jay Leno, Matt Lauer, Gilbert Gottfried, Kate Micucci, Rachael MacFarlane, Max Charles and Steve Higgins.
There are nine songs in the special, including “Happy All the Time,” “A Christmas Song” and “Nobody Cares About Santa Claus.”
I love the Christmas season and Elf is definitely one of my favorite holiday films in my rotation. I’m excited to hear that we’ll be seeing more of Buddy and his adventures! Make sure to tune in on Tuesday, Dec. 16 at 8pmET to watch the special.