It’s beginning to be the right time to find that comfy spot on the couch to watch Christmas movies. But which one to choose?
For Arizonians, the top choice is a tie between a young man obsessed with a Red Ryder BB gun, a surly green guy and Clark Griswold.
Utilizing Google Trends, BetArizona.com took a break from Arizona sports betting and analyzed the most popular Christmas movies of state residents by looking at the search results of each movie over the past three Christmases. The movies included the 40 most popular Christmas movies over the past year based on global traffic from AhRefs.
Thomas Leary contributed to this article.
Arizona’s Favorite Christmas Movies
Rank | Christmas Movies | Interest Over Time |
1 | A Christmas Story | 8 |
T-2 | National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation | 7 |
T-2 | How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) | 7 |
T-4 | A Christmas Carol (2009) | 5 |
T-4 | Die Hard | 5 |
5 | Elf | 4 |
Ralphie Parker Takes Top Billing
Not much separated the top three, but “A Christmas Story” from 1983 took the crown this year. “A Christmas Story” is based on Jean Shepherd’s writings, and he narrates the adventures of Ralphie Parker and his dream of receiving a “Red Ryder air rifle” for Christmas. The film often runs for a 24 hour marathon on cable during Dec. 25, and that's likely helped Ralphie and friends catch The Grinch and The Griswolds in our rankings this year, who tied for second.
The 2000 version of “How The Grinch Stole Christmas” has Jim Carrey offering an intense portrayal of the Grinch. It stands up well against the original 1966 cartoon based on the Dr. Seuss children’s book. In “Christmas Vacation,” Chevy Chase revisits his role as Clark Griswold from the “National Lampoon’s Vacation” as Clark hopes for a big holiday bonus while all of his family visits for the holidays.
Tied for No. 4 is another Carey-Christmas movie with 2009's "A Christmas Carol," in which an animated Carey gives his take on Charles Dickens' Ebenezer Scrooge (and his three ghosts). The film grossed over $320 million at the box office. Tied for No. 4 is the much-debated "Die Hard," which apparently is officially a Christmas movie according to Arizona residents.
Will Ferrell's "Elf" takes the last spot, with director Jon Favreau's classic holding its own over 20 years after its release.
It’s hard to go wrong with any Christmas movie you choose as we settle in for family time this holiday season. Grab the blankets, the hot drink of choice and enjoy. After you’re done, check back here at BetArizona.com for all the latest Arizona sportsbook promos.
Author
Douglas Pils has been a sports journalist for 30 years in Texas, Arkansas and New York having worked for the San Antonio Express-News, the Associated Press, The Dallas Morning News and Newsday. He most recently ran the Student Media Department at Texas A&M for eight years.
