'Last Christmas' Trailer: Why the Internet Thinks It's Hiding a Dark Twist
Could this romantic comedy be way darker than the trailer suggests?
by Eric FranciscoWhen Emilia Clarke last appeared onscreen, she was the tyrannical Daenerys Targaryen in Game of Thrones, a series that inspired countless theories regarding its ending. That same energy has followed Clarke into her next project, a super adorable Christmas romantic comedy called ‘Last Christmas.’ But just like it was in Westeros, fans think the film’s first trailer is hiding a dark secret.
Warning! Possible spoilers for Last Christmas ahead.
On Wednesday, the trailer for Paul Feig’s Last Christmas, out in theaters on November 8, was released online. Named after the iconic George Michael song (yes, it’s played in the trailer), the film stars Emilia Clarke as Kate, a depressed London woman employed at a year-round Christmas store who is zapped of all her holiday spirit. When Kate meets a handsome stranger, Tom (Henry Golding, Crazy Rich Asians), she’s reminded of what the season is all about.
The film also stars Michelle Yeoh (Star Trek: Discovery) and Emma Thompson, who co-wrote the script with her husband Greg Wise.
Last Christmas has a cute premise, and based on the trailer, could actually be a very cute movie. (It also low-key proves that the studio romantic comedy is back.) However, the internet is onto the trailer’s clever editing, with many on social media guessing that old Tom is as dead as a door-nail.
Whether he’s a ghost, an angel, or some figment of Kate’s imagination, the internet already seems convinced that Tom isn’t real.
Since the release of the trailer, Twitter users have tweeted speculation on the potential twist, which has resulted in actual autocomplete search terms like “Last Christmas ghost” and “Henry Golding ghost.” Reddit is also ablaze with the same speculation.
Overall, theorists point to evidence like Tom wearing the same outfit in every scene, his bizarre superpower of showing up at convenient moments, and the fact that no one else acknowledges his presence except Kate.
Both of the above screenshots depict the film at two different days. Golding's well put-together Tom, who could reasonably afford more than one outfit, is wearing the exact thing both times. Either he's conservative with his wardrobe, or he's not real.
There’s also Kate herself, which the trailer reveals is the survivor of an unknown health crisis. (It’s a mirror of Emilia Clarke in real life, who opened up in a March 2019 New Yorker essay about her aneurysms whilst filming Game of Thrones.) We know from the trailer that Kate wasn’t always a grinch and that she used to love her job, but the past year has been hard for her. So, who better than a handsome holiday ghost to help her embrace life again?
On Reddit’s r/movies, user r/maffmanjones asked), “Is Henry Golding’s character real? I don’t know why I got the impression that he’s just an emotional coping mechanism for Emilia’s character.” Another user agreed, saying, “I get the feeling that her illness was a heart problem and he’s the heart donor she got the new heart from, but maybe that’s too literal.”
But wait, there’s more. In the only scene where the two are acknowledged together (at an ice rink), an employee scolds, “You can’t be here!” which is very vague phrasing that could be directed towards any number of people.
Finally, the opening line of George Michael’s “Last Christmas” which this very movie is named after?
“Last Christmas, I gave you my heart…”
Yeah, Tom is totally Kate’s organ donor and is trying to help Kate enjoy her life because Tom cannot. Are you ready to cry this November?
Last Christmas will be released in theaters on November 8.
