Personally, this is my all-time favorite holiday special. It’s such a brilliantly layered story with a classic soundtrack. “Christmas Time is Here” gets me every time.

With Loretta Devine, Idris Elba, Delroy Lindo, Regina King, Sharon Leal, Lauren London and Chris Brown, you’d be hard-pressed to find a more star-studded, quintessentially Black movie. Do yourself a favor and stream it, so you don’t have to sit through a needlessly long, commercial-filled airing.

This movie is chock full of memorable moments that I can’t celebrate the season without. Hugh Grant dancing around Downing Street; Andrew Lincoln awkwardly telling his best friend’s wife that he loves her; and Emma Thompson breaking down to Joni Mitchell when she realizes her husband is cheating. That last one destroys me every single time and I’ve seen Love Actually more than 100 times.

Queen Latifah gives one of her best performances in this movie that sells itself as a holiday rom-com, but is actually a beautiful lesson on living life to the fullest. In our new post-COVID world, this film is even more poignant and emotional.

Yes, things get uncomfortably messy, but Gabrielle Union and Kimberly Elise are amazing, so it’s worth it.

Though it was just released in 2020, Jingle Jangle has already become a modern classic that we can’t get through the season without watching a few times.

In case your family is too nice and respectful, put this one on so you can start the age-old debate about which is better: The Best Man or The Best Man Holiday? Then spice things up with the new Peacock series, The Best Man: The Final Chapter.

If you aren’t praising when Whitney starts singing “Joy to the World,” you officially have no Christmas spirit. The soundtrack is an essential part of any holiday playlist.