Arnold Schwarzenegger and Alan Ritchson have a new partner for their upcoming holiday comedy, as a star of Shang-Chi joins the cast of The Man With the Bag. 1996 saw the release of Jingle All the Way, a madcap Christmas comedy starring the world’s biggest action hero as a flustered dad going all-out to snag the season’s most popular toy for his son. Almost 30 years later, Schwarzenegger has the holiday spirit again in The Man With the Bag, and this time he’s paired with an action hero of more recent vintage in Ritchson, who is also set to return in Prime Video’s Reacher season 3.

The cast of Schwarzenegger and Ritchson’s holiday movie is indeed beginning to fill out, as Shang-Chi star Awkwafina joins those two action heavyweights for some Christmas laughs. Details on Awkwafina’s Man With the Bag role are being kept gift-wrapped until a later date (via ᴅᴇᴀᴅline).

What This Means For The Man With The Bag

Awkwafina May Play A Misfit Thief In The Holiday Action-Comedy

Christmas is in need of saving in Schwarzenegger’s first holiday comedy since Jingle All the Way, as Santa (Schwarzenegger) has his magic bag stolen, and calls upon a naughty thief (Ritchson) to help him get it back. The film’s synopsis says the thief’s daughter and a band of misfits join him and Santa in executing a bag-retrieving heist, and it’s likely Awkwafina has been cast to play one of those misfits.

Schwarzenegger was all smiles when last December he posted to Instagram a BTS pH๏τo of himself and Ritchson on the Man With the Bag set. The image showed the Terminator star with his somewhat less-than-lush Santa Claus beard, alongside the Reacher actor in his inconspicuous master-thief attire. Schwarzenegger captioned the image with an enthusiastic update:

It is fantastic to be shooting The Man with the Bag with @alanritchson. Our director @adamshankman is one of the funniest directors I’ve worked with, New York City is an amazing host, working with @amazonmgmstudios is a joy, and I can’t wait to share all of this Christmas cheer with each and every one of you.

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Our Take On Awkwafina Joining Schwarzenegger And Ritchson

She’s Done Her Share Of Both Action And Comedy

Awkwafina scored the lead in last year’s Jackpot!, playing a lottery winner in a future California, who must fend off scores of desperate people trying to kill her for her loot. That film saw the multi-talented actor/rapper/comedian paired with action star John Cena, and now she’ll co-star with the most legendary of all action heroes in Schwarzenegger, with Amazon’s Jack Reacher also along for the ride. Given Amazon’s deep pockets, it’s likely more recognizable names will be added to the cast as the weeks stretch on.

Schwarzenegger’s Jingle All the Way does not rank as one of the most beloved Christmas comedies of all-time, but the former bodybuilding champ will try for a do-over with his newest holiday offering, and this time he’s playing Santa himself. Ritchson’s casting makes for a fun action hero team-up, while the two stars’ newly-revealed co-star brings her own particular awkward-but-tough dynamic to the mix.

Having appeared in Shang-Chi, Jumanji 2 and Ocean’s 8, Awkwafina knows all about reinforcing the “comedy” side of the action-comedy mix. It seems The Man With the Bag is ᴀssembling a strong, variously-talented ensemble in support of its leads, which should help the Christmas-themed movie rise above other similar offerings.

Source: ᴅᴇᴀᴅline