After wrapping up Full House at the age of 18, Candace Cameron Bure retreated from the limelight to become a wife and mom after spending years as a child actor. When she eventually returned to acting, Bure struggled for a bit, but she quickly found a home at the Hallmark Channel where she basically became the Queen of Christmas Movies after knocking out 30 made-for-TV films. While none of Bure’s Hallmark movies are going to win an Emmy or wow anyone when they come to production value, it turns out making Christmas movies is a freaking cash cow for celebrities.
Buried inside a new Variety profile on Bure making the jump from Hallmark to the super conservative Great American Family network (where she’ll reportedly make $2 million per film, double what Hallmark was paying her) there’s an interesting nugget about the lucrative world of holiday films. Not only is Netflix paying huge upfront fees to lure stars like Dolly Parton, Vanessa Hudgens, and Kurt Russell for its holiday features, but even lesser name actors are making bank on the Christmas convention circuit, which unlike Santa is a real thing:
Now, much like Comic-Con and other fan conventions, the actors can earn money by signing autographs and taking photos with fans. Christmas Con launched in 2019, with 20 celebrity guests and 9,000 attendees; in 2021, attendees went up to 12,000. In addition to pricy day passes, fans can take part in a professional photo opps with stars like Lacey Chabert, Danica McKellar or Jesse Metcalfe, or buy an autograph for $80. Plus, each actor is paid a guaranteed rate to attend for the weekend — which can be anywhere from $10,000 to $75,000.
Damn, have the actors who make Marvel movies seen this? Forget jumping around in front of a green screen while wearing tights. All you gotta do is bake a few cookies, fall in love with an ex who’s back in town, and bam, there’s the gift that keeps on giving.
(Via Variety)